Am i to old or not good enough?

[sqiggle]

Im 19 oh and by the way im in th UK so things may run differently to here as they run in the USA.

So heres the the thing i spent 2 years of my life studying to be a cabinet maker as i thought this is what i wanted when i was at high school, I originaly wanted to go onto A levels but i was basically told by a careers adviser that i was not good enough to do them and this reflected in my GCSE grades D's across the board in science, F in maths, C in woodwork but a B in religious studies.

Right now im actually working as a matinence(spelling?) assistant at a large hospital and will soon be applying as a carpenter but i know in my mind im no good at it, Being at college most others were better than me and even my tutor doubted i would be any good and if the course was right for me, Oh how i wish i listened.

Anyway what started my interest in the human body and how it works or sometimes how it dosen't work was about 2 years ago when my mum was diagnosed with cancer and during this time somhow id developed a sebacious cyst on my penis (im male by the way lol) witch i managed to overcome after about 2 weeks and unfortunalty my mum died 6 months later since the tumor in the ovaries was already the size of a football before anything was discoverd and since then ive also lost another 2 relatives of mine and i want to be able to spot these problems in family members before anything happens again.

Im also somewhat of a hypochondriac as i will also need to be tested when im 20 as its now been found out that my family is more susceptable to ovarian cancer and bowel cancer.

I know alot is required, I need to go and redo my some of my GCSE's then do some A levels and that being a doctor is very hard work ive seen the run down faces of the student doctors and how they just crash out in the doctors mess room.

Ive been pouring over medical text books ive borrowed from the hospital and library for a few months now and some of the words used is like how in heck do i prunounce that like the word xiphisternum(spelling?) witch i think is a piece of firm cartilage attached to the breast bone.

So if you've read all this i would like to know am i wasting my time and carry on how i am now or try and persue it becasue there are many obstacles like money,Emotion,Determination. (sorry if my punctuation is not up to scratch i feel abit intimidated with the quality of typing by other member postings)

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[Depakote]

The US and UK med school admissions systems are pretty different.

We have a UK board, I think you'd have better luck there so I'm going to move this for you.

 

[Algophiliac]

You're questioning yourself, and that's never a good sign.

If you really really really want to get into medical school, you'll make it. Medical school isn't about superior intelligence or innate ability, it's about hard work, perseverence, dedication, and passion. It's about persisting when nothing seems to be going well, overcoming obstacles and rising to the occassion.

Should you pursue an MD? Why not? If it's what you really want, why let something like money stand in the way? Sure, you'll be put through a lot of emotional distress and mental taxation, but again, you really can do anything you set your mind to. So stop those "should Is", "what ifs", "maybes", and make a decision you plan to stick to!

 

[sqiggle]

Thank you for your comments, I really do want this but eventually the realization hits you, Where the heck do I start!?.

Id like to speak to some of the student doctor's but they seem to stay together in a close knit circle and if your not a paitient of them they will not give you the time of the day, Thats probally becasue they are so rushed.

Ive just moved onto a skin diseases book and im pretty good at storing what ive just read like Alchonthasis nigracans(spelling?) only read it 2 times and know what the 4 types are and what is usally associated with them although wikipedia says a little different, This book was written by Dr. Warwick Carter by the way.

ps. Whos's the cartoon guy dancing with a brainstorm superimposed on his head lol.

 

[leorl]

1) 19 is not too old.
2) You should probably do some volunteering or shadowing experience, just to see if it's the kind of thing you'd like to do. Talk to some doctors (or their secretaries) in a hospital near you and ask if you can shadow for a day or two.
3) That's very good that you read about acanthosis nigricans. The trick is to be able to remember than 4 years from now . That's the problem with medicine. There's an immense wealth of knowledge to learn, keeping everything in the brain isn't possible. But the goal is to try.

 

[sqiggle]

Well as luck would have it i do work in a Hospital but Doctor's seem so unaproachable.

Im also going to apply to 5 medical schools(5 is the maximum) just to see what happen's, ive got nothing to lose, Ive checked it out and apparently there is a course add-on called foundation its for people who do not have the best grades or required amaount needed to apply the usual way straight out of school.Basically it adds an extra year onto the original 5 years you should have at University and teaches you the basics.

News is that many budding Doctor's with straight A's get rejected as some schools are basically saying they are to much of a nerd and would not be able to cope with the pressure and dedication and that they are looking for people
who have good reason and experiance in a Hospital and also that they are already immunized to Hepititus B whitch i am.

To test my memory from about 2 weeks ago i learnt about Angiotensin Converting Enzyme or ACE inhibitor for short. It is a drug witch is given to people who have high blood pressure or and heart conditions, By giving them this drug it will stop the chemical witch casues the tiny muscles around the small arteries to contract minimizing the risk of the muscle clencthing the arterie. Also it increase the paitients chance of survival after a heart attack.

It must not be given to people who are pregnant, Have a brain disease and i think server kidney disease, Im not sure on the last one.

Is that all correct or wrong?.

 

[bambi]

Firstly, in the UK 4 is the maximum number of med schools you can apply to.

You seem to like reading med stuff which is good but you need to realise that it isn't just about memorising a few little facts, there is so much to do and you need to understand and apply it, not just memorise. The way you talk about it sounds like you think it will be just a bit of memorising and it really isn't. Also, no offense but you don't actually seem to have any idea about medical school. You really need to do some proper research. You say you would need to retake some of your GCSEs, well that may not be an option. A lot of med schools wont accept GCSE resits, you wont get in with your current GCSEs though. So, I guess you should look at access courses, you aren't old enough for all of them but you are for some.

 

[Prolif]

19 is not only not too old but its actually still quite young.

You are on a very long road, your going to need to choose on an entry route and a couple are available.

The best route for you is probably an "access" course, these will teach you an equivalent level of info to some A-level biology/chemistry/physics and maths. After this you can apply to study medicine through UCAS.

I would have a look at a site like http://www.study-medicine.co.uk which has more specific information in UK school entry requirements, especially for non-conventional applicants such as yourself.

You can achieve this but its not going to be easy and starting off with doubts is not a good place to be, what happens in 3 years time when your still many years away from graduating, struggling to get through the course, running low on money, maybe a relative has just died etc. How will you cope then?

What about in 10 years time when your a junior doctor working on a ward and its 3am, your the only person in and your trying to manage a massive gastrointestinal bleed, the nurses are being lazy and your consultant wont answer their phone, how will you cope then?

What about in 20 years time when your being taken to court for malpractise because you administered a potentially dangerous dosage of a drug and it may have killed someone. How will you cope then?

Medicine takes a lot of perseverance and your heart really has to be in it from start to finish and onwards, because if your wavering now then when the going really gets tough you'll really crumble.