Anyone ever found themselves really terrible at STEM but can't let go of wanting to be a doctor?

[SparklyRainbows]

Throughout my life, I've gotten many (and continuous compliments) about my writing ability (though it may not be reflected on SDN). My AP Language teacher even said "I had natural talent" and MANY people tell me I am a good writer. I don't get nearly the same amount of compliments about my STEM ability because it's nonexistent!

In HS, I excelled in Spanish, English, and psychology and (seemed to) barely scrape by in my STEM classes, though I mostly earned A's and a few B's in geometry, Algebra 2 and chemistry. STEM was difficult for me, even in high school, and I seemed to either do really well on exams (A+, top score in the class) or completely crap out (earned a few B/B- grades on AP Chemistry tests; heck I even earned a few C's on calculus tests).

Now, don't get me wrong - I didn't earn A's on every single English or humanities paper I ever wrote either, but I have NEVER gotten anything below an A in a humanities or economics class, whereas I've earned tons of B's (3 B+'s and 1 B-) in the premed classes. My science GPA is currently a 3.56. Additionally, I didn't even take every single premed prerequisite either.

Recently, I have been self-studying physics, and I did 67 problems on 1D kinematics. I gotta say, it was not easy, and 1D kinematics is just the beginning! I had to skip and return to a ton of problems that I didn't immediately know how to solve at first. Moreover, my dad (physical chemist) lost his **** at me because I was so lost on this one problem and made "idiotic mistakes."

So yeah, my problem is that although I'm terrible at STEM or at least have SIGNIFICANTLY more talent in humanities/writing, I can't let go of wanting to be a doctor. Can anyone else relate? Moreover, I've had a ton of people tell me I don't have what it takes, and in college, I observed lots of people do MUCH better than me at STEM.

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[LizzyM]

What is it about being a doctor that appeals to you? What do you expect to do day-to-day that makes that an appealing career?

 

[cj_cregg]

Take a big step back here.

Not getting external validation about your "STEM skills" does not mean you will not be a good doctor.

Getting As and Bs (and yes, the occasional C) on exams does not mean you will not be a good doctor. Those are good grades. A 3.56 sGPA is fine and consistent with success in medical school and as a physician. Plenty of excellent med students and doctors did not take anything but the bare minimum science prerequisites and majored in things like philosophy or French, and plenty of them (myself included!) got Bs in science classes.

I don't know what 1D kinematics is (anymore? did I ever?), and I think I am still a pretty good doctor. I have not had to do one single physics problem in the 4-5 years since I graduated medical school.

Who are the people telling you that you don't have what it takes? Is it anybody who is actually connected with the medical school admissions process?

My day to day as a doctor is not spent answering short essays about molecular genetics or multiple choice questions about xylem and phloem or working physics or chemistry problems. It is spent communicating with patients and families, with my staff and nursing team, with other doctors, reading and synthesizing different sources of information to come to a decision about the best plan forward for a particular patient, and writing notes that other members of the care team, as well as patients and their families, will rely on to take the best possible care of that patient. Some of the best doctors I know are excellent readers, writers, and communicators. Yes, you need to have the work ethic to study and understand the foundations of the diseases you're seeing and the treatments you're prescribing, but most of it is not particularly complex.

Consider LizzyM's questions - if you have a genuine and well-founded interest in practicing medicine, nothing you said in your post will hold you back from that.

 

[eigen]

No offense, but you keep asking nearly the same question, then deleting your posts after people have replied and ignoring the advice they give you.

This seems like you're fishing for particular answers, and is also incredibly annoying to the people who take the time to answer you.