Can a person with OCPD become a doctor?

[leesan23]

I would say it's pretty moderate but not so severe to the point where I can't think rationally. I am able to recognize it after all.

It has allowed me to achieve stellar grades in high-school and so far it's working well for college but I'm concerned that I'll be discriminated against.

I am able to limit my behavior around those who determine my future like teachers to an extent but I'm afraid they've picked up on it as they see I'm socially crippled.

I'm not asking for personal advice but just your opinions on whether or not individuals with similar conditions make it into med-school.

 

[Hospitalized]

1.) Were you actually diagnosed? If so, when? The reason I ask is, when I see 5-year-olds diagnosed with ADHD, I always wonder... Maybe that kid was just being a kid.

2.) Being able to interact with individuals as a physician is extremely important. However, given you seem to be fresh out of high school, some anxiety in that regard is relatively normal. I doubt your teachers see you as "socially crippled." They are with people like you all the time. Your communication will improve with time if you don't exclude yourself purposefully.

3.) Yes, people with poor social skills get into medical school. I'm sure people with OCPD have gotten in.

 

[leesan23]

1.) Were you actually diagnosed? If so, when? The reason I ask is, when I see 5-year-olds diagnosed with ADHD, I always wonder... Maybe that kid was just being a kid.

2.) Being able to interact with individuals as a physician is extremely important. However, given you seem to be fresh out of high school, some anxiety in that regard is relatively normal. I doubt your teachers see you as "socially crippled." They are with people like you all the time. Your communication will improve with time if you don't exclude yourself purposefully.

3.) Yes, people with poor social skills get into medical school. I'm sure people with OCPD have gotten in.

But I do exclude myself purposefully, typically to study or work. If I do things for fun it's typically by myself. I haven't been diagnosed, but after reading up more about it, I find myself matching up with all the qualities of someone with it. I am still a compassionate person, but am afraid the medical schools or my professors will pick up on it.

Of course physicians need to communicate with people efficiently. I was able to interact with patients and staff at a hospital I volunteered at effectively but it was all fake, meaning I was good at forcing myself to do it but it's not genuine if you know what I mean.

My concern is that admissions staff will think I'm a fake sociopath or something and wrongfully reject me despite my presumably good gpa and mcat scores.

 

[Goro]

You may have a high functioning form of Asperger's rather than OCD. Go talk to a therapist. Med school is a furnace, just saying.

 

[Frogger27]

If you can't comfortably talk with people you will not be able to be a physician, end of story.

 

[Lost in Translation]

Of course physicians need to communicate with people efficiently. I was able to interact with patients and staff at a hospital I volunteered at effectively but it was all fake, meaning I was good at forcing myself to do it but it's not genuine if you know what I mean.

I don't want to say "if this is what you really want to do, you'll find a way to get over it" because if it's a underlying condition then you can't just "turn it off." But medicine is a field about human interaction, and a lot of it. Remember, volunteering you're only interacting with patients and colleagues for a relatively short period of time. Are you able to fake-interact for 10+ hours a day, 7 days a week? If that's not something you think you can do for the next 40+ years of your life, perhaps this field is just not in the cards for you. There are fields with little patient interaction, but they're also notoriously hard to get into (anesthesia and radiology are the big 2). And I'm not even sure radiology will be a field in a couple decades.

 

[Kurk]

I think I can relate to the OP a little bit here.

I don't believe things like aspergers or ocpd can prevent you from becoming a doctor. Look at people like Ben Carson. His social intelligence doesn't appear to be that high (based on the speed he talks and various pauses he takes when speaking from what I've observed) but he's a genius surgeon. There are specialties for the introverted and extroverted—that's what I like about medicine. I'm personally kinda introverted and wouldn't mind becoming a medical examiner if that's what it came to. I'm not sure if medical schools are trying to eliminate this kind of diversity between introverts and extroverts; those who spend time socializing and those who would rather read for fun. I hate conformity but then again I'm not conform myself.

There are fields with little patient interaction, but they're also notoriously hard to get into (anesthesia and radiology are the big 2). And I'm not even sure radiology will be a field in a couple decades.

Why do you say radiology will not be a residency? I know that demand won't be as high and salaries will fall, but to disappear altogether?

 

[RogueUnicorn]

ITT: ppl who can't distinguish OCPD vs. OCD

profanity warning

 

[raf1ki]

You may have a high functioning form of Asperger's rather than OCD. Go talk to a therapist. Med school is a furnace, just saying.

Is Asperger's still used diagnostically? It was thrown out in DSM-5 and physicians were encouraged to diagnose Autism Spectrum Disorder or not at all.

Not to nitpick, but I think that in many cases people who self diagnose are wildly off the mark. Poor social skills may be due to stunted development, which can be 100% fixable, and not due to any sort of disorder.

@leeson23 Breathe and relax. Keep a journal of your progress developing social skills. Whatever you are experiencing is probably a normal reaction to an abnormal situation (stunted social skills). It is very normal to scrutinize yourself to a fault when they are underdeveloped. Get out and have some fun when you are able to unwind - it will give you some perspective.

 

[Law2Doc]

There's no way anyone can answer OPs question without objectively seeing him and his interactions with people.

I would suggest however that if certain kinds of interactions are difficult or a struggle, you will have a very bad time in medicine even if you can force yourself to do it.

And no, I don't think Ben Carson, though quirky, fits anyone's definition of OCPD so that's just silly.

 

[Law2Doc]

...There are fields with little patient interaction, but they're also notoriously hard to get into (anesthesia and radiology are the big 2). And I'm not even sure radiology will be a field in a couple decades.

I think these fields are now the weaker links in ROAD, not quite as impossible to get as they once were, although still more competitive than many of the primary care fields. But they also can have a lot more patient and interdisciplinary interaction than premeds seem to appreciate, and both will need to survive an intern year first before subspecializing.

Also nobody thinks radiology is going by the wayside, you can't drop that kind of bizarre comment into an unrelated thread without details -- anesthesia and family med are currently under attack by midlevels and so if any fields go by the wayside it will be one of those. (If you are talking about technological automation there are dozens of threads on here saying why that's all hype and unlikely to actually ever happen in our lifetime).

So no, I don't think without seeing OP anyone on here could reasonably tell him he can work in ANY medical field. He should seek out an advisor or do some soul searching. Strangers on the internet too often like to say "you can do it", meant as encouragement but often non-helpful.

 

[FactorV]

I haven't been diagnosed, but after reading up more about it,

Ahh... Dr. Google strikes again! If you are suspicious that you may have a mental health issue, please seek formal evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment. The first step is finding out what is actually going on from a psychiatrist or psychologist.

 

[Kurk]

ITT: ppl who can't distinguish OCPD vs. OCD

profanity warning

lol that sounds just like me

 

[Goro]

Meh, I'm an old fart, not a mental health professional.

Is Asperger's still used diagnostically? It was thrown out in DSM-5 and physicians were encouraged to diagnose Autism Spectrum Disorder or not at all.

Not to nitpick, but I think that in many cases people who self diagnose are wildly off the mark. Poor social skills may be due to stunted development, which can be 100% fixable, and not due to any sort of disorder.

@leeson23 Breathe and relax. Keep a journal of your progress developing social skills. Whatever you are experiencing is probably a normal reaction to an abnormal situation (stunted social skills). It is very normal to scrutinize yourself to a fault when they are underdeveloped. Get out and have some fun when you are able to unwind - it will give you some perspective.

 

[Hospitalized]

ITT: ppl who can't distinguish OCPD vs. OCD

profanity warning

lol medical schools so edgy

 

[Lost in Translation]

I think these fields are now the weaker links in ROAD, not quite as impossible to get as they once were, although still more competitive than many of the primary care fields. But they also can have a lot more patient and interdisciplinary interaction than premeds seem to appreciate, and both will need to survive an intern year first before subspecializing.

Also nobody thinks radiology is going by the wayside, you can't drop that kind of bizarre comment into an unrelated thread without details -- anesthesia and family med are currently under attack by midlevels and so if any fields go by the wayside it will be one of those. (If you are talking about technological automation there are dozens of threads on here saying why that's all hype and unlikely to actually ever happen in our lifetime).

It was more along the lines of the bolded. Maybe you're right, maybe I'm right. Only time well tell.

 

[WheezyBaby]

Is Asperger's still used diagnostically? It was thrown out in DSM-5 and physicians were encouraged to diagnose Autism Spectrum Disorder or not at all.

Not to nitpick, but I think that in many cases people who self diagnose are wildly off the mark. Poor social skills may be due to stunted development, which can be 100% fixable, and not due to any sort of disorder.

What was asperger's is now included under the global diagnosis of ASD. What was asperger's did not become "nonpathological"