I know I need to get into medical school first, but I wanted to ask people who were in the midst of this process and really knew what they were talking about rather than the crusty old HPAC advisor at my university. I would like to eventually become a pediatric/adolescent psychiatrist, but it's been really difficult to find people knowledgeable about the matter.
I'm just a 4th year med student, but I have a bit more time free at the moment than some of the other people probably do, so I'll hit some of these really quick.
I had terrible advisors at my undergrad as well. My opinion is that if these people were in the position to give anyone advice, they wouldn't be working at that particular job, but that's just me. I often knew way more than they did just from reading the University's published guides and SDN.
I know there will be differences between the various med schools everyone is attending but I'm curious about:
General info: After high school, you need: a 4 year degree in something. Anything will work, but Biology or Chemistry are most common because of the "core" med school pre-reqs (1 year of: Biology, General Chemistry, Physics, and Organic Chemistry). Also need to take the MCAT (the pre-med test) and get a rocking score so you can get in.
Med school is generally 4 years. It will consume your life...at least until 4th year.
After med school, you do residency, often at a different institution from your medical school. For General Adult psych, this is 4 years. Child & Adolescent psychiatry is a 2 year fellowship, but you can "Fast Track" and start this fellowship at the end of your 3rd year of residency, making the whole process 5 years after medical school.
So, 4 + 4 + 5 = 13 years of post high school training.
-the hardships you've encountered
This is a bit vague and everyone will have their own stories. For me, medicine is my second career, so most of my problems have been balancing my family (wife, daughter) with my studies, which I think I've done fairly successfully. I'm a rather mediocre test taker, although I get ok grades, I don't think my test scores always reflect my level of knowledge. What else? Math. When studying for the MCAT, I hadn't taken a math class of 10 years, so I was very rusty. It certainly hurt my score a bit. You may not have these problems if you are young and don't take a school break like I did.
-things you wish you'd known before you went into your residency and/or fellowship
Haven't done it yet, but I'd like to hear answers to this one too, since I'll be starting next year.
-what your hours are like
Psych generally has pretty good hours compared to the rest of medicine, at least once you're done with residency/fellowship. Many psychiatrists set their own hours and can work 9-5 type gigs usually, if they so choose. This can vary a LOT though, and you'll find psychiatrists who take lots of call and work nights, weekends, and tons of hours a week too. But, it's really up to you.
-whether any of you have ever personally experienced mental illness through your own means or a family member or friend
Yes. Not myself (although I'm sure some people would beg to differ, ha ha ha), but I've known many friends and some distant family members who have had relatively minor bouts with mental illness, but nothing really serious. I had a number of friends in high school who were treated inpatient for depression successfully. I knew one kid less well who unfortunately succeeded in killing himself in high school. I spent many years after high school in the music business, so I met many colorful characters there. Many, many people with substance abuse issues, depression, personality disorders are very common too. Lead Singer Narcissism is not a myth.
My experience in this area is one factor that led to me choosing psychiatry, actually. When I did my psych rotation in medical school (3rd year), I found that I had actually been doing "psychiatry" my whole life, without really knowing it. I was always the person people turned to for advice or a "shoulder to cry on" or whatever and I feel very, very comfortable around this particular population of patients, and I speak their language. I had a classmate post on Facebook the other day that they were working in the ER and a patient said that he/she had swallowed an "eight ball." She had no idea what the patient meant. I did instantly (it's a reference to an amount (typically 1/8 of an ounce) of cocaine). Anyways, aside from this familiarity, I also find the subject incredibly interesting, and I feel like I'm doing something worthwhile, more so in psychiatry than in other fields. So, here we are.
Disclaimer: I never actually did drugs myself, but I was present for a LOT of drug use in my musician days. I never saw the appeal personally, and I used to have a heart tachyarrhythmia and I was worried the drugs would mess with it, so I stayed clean...but you pick up a lot when you're around it.
-what you've learned in and outside of the classroom
Waaaay to broad of a question. Umm...
In the classroom: Medicine. Like, all of it. I've learned basic things like anatomy, to crazy things like complications encountered when delivering a baby. I've had my hands elbow deep in blood inside someone's abdomen picking out pieces of ruptured spleen. I've learned more zebras than I care to mention. I've learned more drugs than are used, and biochemical reactions that I can't remember anything about. Some have said it's like trying to drink from a firehouse...I disagree. That's what they said 20 years ago. Now, with the expanse of medical knowledge, I think it's like trying to drink all the oceans of the world.
Out of the classroom: Music, people, love, balance, and happiness.
Or something like that. Good luck!
I've had my own experiences with mental illness as well, although I've been in remission for almost 5 years.
