Getting cold feet

[ciestar]

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Idk man... Was med school so bad? I'm almost done with 3rd year and med school has been the most fun time of my life. Made a lot of friends and it feels like the info I learn actually matters.

Med school sucked.

As I enter residency Ive questioning legit everything, especially now with COVID. I worry about the next time I’ll be able to see my family. Even as things reopen people already have reservations about being around me. I hope once I settle into the thick of residency I get clarity. To be fair, ive been filled with self doubt the entire way. Second year put me at my breaking point mentally.

 

[hallowmann]

I started school at 30. I would not do it if I knew what I know now. If you are making good money and have kids, it's a lot smarter to use your time to be with them and invest your cash into your retirement. Best case scenario you're finished with training in your early 40s with a lot of debt. I don't see that as a smart move. Medicine is massively overrated

You finish residency yet bro? Its almost done. Hang in there. Literally everyone says it gets better when you can actually start to make decisions for yourself.

Immaturity? Sure... also, judgement problems, sunk-cost fallacious and emotional thinking, inability to be introspective / reflect and cut losses, lack of varied clinical exposure, family pressure, grass is always greener mentality, etc., there are many reasons why people regret their decisions and become miserable.
When you work in a warehouse, medical insurance office and in a restaurant, you then start to realize what actually sucks and what doesn't.
A lot of things in medicine DO suck, be many like to ignore the positives.

Wow, tone it down a bit. There's a hell of a lot in medicine that is horrible no matter what your motivations are going in. I would even argue that some of the "right motivations" can make the experience all the more traumatizing. I don't know a single person that hasn't doubted the decision at some point. Med school sucks, residency sucks, and the only thing that gets you through it are the tiny wins. It sucks harder going through as a non-trad with family that both depend on you and never sees you. No one can really understand it until they go through the whole thing. Its anxiety, pressure, self-doubt, sleep deprivation, etc. that you only understand after you experience it. It only gets worse in residency. No, there's nothing wrong with being unhappy with medicine, and this is coming from someone happy with his decision.

Hate to step on all of the self-righteousness emanating from these posts, but to suggest someone is unhappy with medicine because they have the wrong or different internal motivations is stupid. Medicine is full of long hours, being treated like crap by people just because "that's how it is in medicine", endless egos, and on and on. You can go into medicine for all of the right reasons (whatever those even are...) and still be unhappy with this crap simply because it's normal to not like being treated like dirt. I'm still happy with my decision to go to medical school, but I can't wait for the day that I don't have to pretend to be okay with being treated the way students are treated.

Yup. There absolutely is something traumatizing about the process, and its not even just the being treated like dirt (I expected that and medicine delivered), its the being treated like dirt while being in debt, having responsibility over someone's life, and ultimately having no control. Your life isn't your own in medicine. That might sound fine to pre-meds hoping to heal the world, but there's a reason why so many people get divorced in med school/residency, so many people develop horribly unhealthy habits, and ultimately why so many people are burnt out here. Again, I love what I do, but the process of becoming a practicing physician in this country is horrible.

As I enter residency Ive questioning legit everything, especially now with COVID. I worry about the next time I’ll be able to see my family. Even as things reopen people already have reservations about being around me. I hope once I settle into the thick of residency I get clarity. To be fair, ive been filled with self doubt the entire way. Second year put me at my breaking point mentally.

Anyone not filled with some degree of self doubt in medicine is a liability. It'll get a bit worse before it gets better and the days are long, but the years are short. Try your best not to lose yourself and remind yourself of those long-term goals constantly.

 

[deleted936470]

Family and personal health are far more important than a career in medicine. I don't think it takes until pgy-5 to develop that insight. Also, no one is saying doubt is bad; it's necessary and healthy.

OP seems rational and self-described as positive and optimistic who planned out his path toward medicine i.e. seems to have a clear head. He should be supported here, too, and so I don't think sharing "traumatic" anecdotes working with burnt-out providers who take out their frustrations on others to be prudent.

To those who don't like premeds chiming in, it's bizarre and hypocritical to judge the entire field as a student or resident. It's particularly odd to provide such negative gatekeeping out of context, too. Since many of you are doing that so much, it makes sense why you aren't acknowledging OPs concerns because perhaps his concerns are too naive to be real to you. It's suddenly become a negative journal entry club.

 

[hallowmann]

Nah. If one hates it, they should transition into something else like the above poster referenced. Life is too short to regret the entire thing and it sucks for you, your family and your patients when you regret medicine.

Family and personal health are far more important than a career in medicine. I don't think it takes until pgy-5 to develop that insight. Also, no one is saying doubt is bad; it's necessary and healthy.

OP seems rational and self-described as positive and optimistic who planned out his path toward medicine i.e. seems to have a clear head. He should be supported here, too, and so I don't think sharing "traumatic" anecdotes working with burnt-out providers who take out their frustrations on others to be prudent.

To those who don't like premeds chiming in, it's bizarre and hypocritical to judge the entire field as a student or resident. It's particularly odd to provide such negative gatekeeping out of context, too. Since many of you are doing that so much, it makes sense why you aren't acknowledging OPs concerns because perhaps his concerns are too naive to be real to you. It's suddenly become a negative journal entry club.

Depends on what they hate about it. Most people hate the bureaucracy, the terrible hours, the admin, the ridiculous documentation, etc. A lot of the terrible things in medicine improve when you actually have autonomy. Medicine has a million different paths you can take after finishing residency. You generally develop a broad set of skills and can be as in demand as you want to be. You only want to do one type of thing, you can. You want to open up a business that's cash only and not deal with insurance you can. You want to work 25% and still make a livable wage, you can. You want to do locums and only work 6 mos a year, you can. Lots of options that all become available when you are no longer under the training process. Most of us are still happy with our decisions with medicine, its not as black and white as you're making it seem, go ahead and join us in the gray.

And just to be clear, it became a negative journal entry club because you and a couple of other posters felt it necessary to reply to a contrarian post with degradation and invalidation. Had no one replied to him in that manner, and rather just asked what about medicine he found frustrating, it would have never gone down that road.

Seriously, just take a look at the thread. He makes one short contrarian post, everyone jumps on him, and a few of us that actually recognize some truth in what he was saying came to his defense. Just be comfortable with the idea that people can have different opinions, its why most people come here.

 

[Mad Jack]

Agreed, medicine is not for those with thin skins.
Work full-time in a warehouse, hospitality, or insurance office, where those jobs are your primary source of income and you'll quickly redefine what it means to be dirt on the floor to people. It helps build character, too.

The point, if you're expecting to be some saving grace, god's gift to medicine, and to be the warm, healing light in children's dark lives or whatever and put on a pedestal, you're in for a rude awakening..

Medicine as a motivation really doesn't surmount to anything beyond "can I see myself doing anything else?" If the answer is yes, you should probably go do that.

but the problem is...



OP hasn't stated concerns about this. It's not a question of whether your experiences are valid, bc they are, but whether they pertain to OPs concerns... like why try and scare him away?

Approximately 4/5 doctors are "happy with their careers" so it follows that it takes a certain person to wade these forums w/ constant negativity. Not saying that's you, but my point is that it then becomes partially self-afflicted misery.

No one is saying medicine is glorious and easy, I think we should focus on what is being said and not how others are interpreting it.

I wasn't addressing OP

63% of doctors in the only study I know on the subject would not recommend their children enter medicine. Granted, it is from 2003, but things certainly haven't gotten better since then. Anecdotally, that seems about right, as most of us wouldn't subject our own children to what we've been through. Most doctors would choose medicine again, however, which is likely a manifestation of the sunk cost fallacy, in which you must internally justify your own sacrifice to remain happy with your decision. This also explains the cognitive dissonance between what doctors would do for themselves and what they would recommend to others- we, on an internal level, know it's not something we would want most people to go through, but we also have trouble coming to terms with the idea that maybe 11+ years of our lives were a mistake.

I think I made the right decision, but I could be fooling myself. I recommend anyone going down this road think very carefully about it, as the profession has a high suicide rate for a reason.

 

[Mad Jack]

Nah. If one hates it, they should transition into something else like the above poster referenced. Life is too short to regret the entire thing and it sucks for you, your family and your patients when you regret medicine.

Family and personal health are far more important than a career in medicine. I don't think it takes until pgy-5 to develop that insight. Also, no one is saying doubt is bad; it's necessary and healthy.

OP seems rational and self-described as positive and optimistic who planned out his path toward medicine i.e. seems to have a clear head. He should be supported here, too, and so I don't think sharing "traumatic" anecdotes working with burnt-out providers who take out their frustrations on others to be prudent.

To those who don't like premeds chiming in, it's bizarre and hypocritical to judge the entire field as a student or resident. It's particularly odd to provide such negative gatekeeping out of context, too. Since many of you are doing that so much, it makes sense why you aren't acknowledging OPs concerns because perhaps his concerns are too naive to be real to you. It's suddenly become a negative journal entry club.

People can't just walk away from 300k+ in debt. The debt is a set of shackles for many without which they would absolutely go elsewhere. Happiness doesn't pay the bills. You also don't need to be happy with your job to be good at it- I've known many a miserable but talented surgeon and intensivist, for instance. And then there is the fact that at the end of the day, a job is a job. Throughout history, work has not been seen as a means of self-actualization, but rather a necessity. The idea that one shouldn't work a job if it doesn't bring them joy is the most privileged nonsense and the most first world of first world problems. Go tell some workers slaving away in a Foxconn factory for a pittance 100 hours a week that you don't want to work a six figure job because it doesn't make you happy and the looks they would give you would likely bring you a sense of shame that would hopefully never leave your entitled soul.

 

[deleted936470]

People can't just walk away from 300k+ in debt. The debt is a set of shackles for many without which they would absolutely go elsewhere. Happiness doesn't pay the bills. You also don't need to be happy with your job to be good at it- I've known many a miserable but talented surgeon and intensivist, for instance. And then there is the fact that at the end of the day, a job is a job. Throughout history, work has not been seen as a means of self-actualization, but rather a necessity. The idea that one shouldn't work a job if it doesn't bring them joy is the most privileged nonsense and the most first world of first world problems. Go tell some workers slaving away in a Foxconn factory for a pittance 100 hours a week that you don't want to work a six figure job because it doesn't make you happy and the looks they would give you would likely bring you a sense of shame that would hopefully never leave your entitled soul.

I don’t think the degree is worthless on its own and one can still transition to another career, right? On that, the debt is a huge problem, but I know of someone who finished their IM residency, transitioned into consulting and does zero clinical work and after some years is now debt free. Not privy to her entire background but she had many more options than factory workers.

and that’s essentially my point. Whining about a white collar job is hard to give sympathy to.

 

[Mad Jack]

I don’t think the degree is worthless on its own and one can still transition to another career, right? On that, the debt is a huge problem, but I know of someone who finished their IM residency, transitioned into consulting and does zero clinical work and after some years is now debt free. Not privy to her entire background but she had many more options than factory workers.

and that’s essentially my point. Whining about a white collar job is hard to give sympathy to.

The options someone with only a medical degree has outside of medicine are very slim unless they have other pre-existing qualifications or skills, such as a prestigious undergraduate degree or MBA. It's basically worthless. I know a guy who is working manual labor because he couldn't match, he's looked high and low and has no other options.

 

[deleted610572]

Nah. If one hates it, they should transition into something else like the above poster referenced. Life is too short to regret the entire thing and it sucks for you, your family and your patients when you regret medicine.

Family and personal health are far more important than a career in medicine. I don't think it takes until pgy-5 to develop that insight. Also, no one is saying doubt is bad; it's necessary and healthy.

OP seems rational and self-described as positive and optimistic who planned out his path toward medicine i.e. seems to have a clear head. He should be supported here, too, and so I don't think sharing "traumatic" anecdotes working with burnt-out providers who take out their frustrations on others to be prudent.

To those who don't like premeds chiming in, it's bizarre and hypocritical to judge the entire field as a student or resident. It's particularly odd to provide such negative gatekeeping out of context, too. Since many of you are doing that so much, it makes sense why you aren't acknowledging OPs concerns because perhaps his concerns are too naive to be real to you. It's suddenly become a negative journal entry club.

I’m not a provider. I’m a physician.

 

[gyngyn]

The moderation team would like members to focus on responding to the op's concerns.
All opinions are welcome. The failure to remain civil is not.
I would like to personally apologize to the OP for the derailment of this thread.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

One of my classmates was 40rys old when they started. They graduated and went on to become a Dean at a Com. They recently retired . Passion is more important than age.

 

[Mad Jack]

If your biggest concerns are matching, then you'll be fine. If you don't have red flags and are geographically flexible, FM and IM are going to be good bets for matching for some time. Some program directors have a bit of a bias against nontrads due to prior experiences, but most don't. Just keep in mind your preferences may change, and that's where the DO degree really causes problems.

 

[spidey82]

Spidey82
Have faith in yourself. You can do it. I used to doubt myself and thought my age (47 y/o intern) would be a huge factor too... but it wasn't. Turns out, most people embraced my maturity and life experience. They'll appreciate yours also. Trust me.
Here's my story:

Great! Wishing you the best!!1

 

[spidey82]

.

 

[Mad Jack]

Thanks a lot, appreciate sharing your personal stories and the ones that you know who succeeded, definitely gave me hope and boosted my spirits! I have decided to move forward with 100% commitment, the worst case scenario would be I might lose 4 years of my current comfortable life and end up with 130K or so debt. Hopefully, that will not happen, if that happens, I should be able to get back to my current job and pay it off within a year or two. But if I don't do this, I'll keep regretting my decision for my entire life. This is what I want I wanted as far as I know, and I could not let it go now. I work with physicians closely, so I know the downsides of being a physician, that doesn't bother me as of now, every job comes with its pros and cons, that's how it is, and I am totally fine with it.

Thanks to the moderation team, appreciate it! I'll come back to update this post in the next four years with my outcome, thanks!

Sounds like you've made the right choice. I'm in that boat of, "well it isn't as good as I'd hoped and the whole experience is basically a wash but if I hadn't done it I'd have always had a chip on my shoulder so it's the only thing I reasonably could have done" and you seem to have the same sort of mentality where not knowing would be worse than any alternative. Good luck.

 

[Doggeronie]

Thanks a lot, appreciate sharing your personal stories and the ones that you know who succeeded, definitely gave me hope and boosted my spirits! I have decided to move forward with 100% commitment, the worst case scenario would be I might lose 4 years of my current comfortable life and end up with 130K or so debt. Hopefully, that will not happen, if that happens, I should be able to get back to my current job and pay it off within a year or two. But if I don't do this, I'll keep regretting my decision for my entire life. This is what I want I wanted as far as I know, and I could not let it go now. I work with physicians closely, so I know the downsides of being a physician, that doesn't bother me as of now, every job comes with its pros and cons, that's how it is, and I am totally fine with it.

Thanks to the moderation team, appreciate it! I'll come back to update this post in the next four years with my outcome, thanks!

You're making the right choice!!! Good luck to you

 

[Retro.viridae]

Agreed, medicine is not for those with thin skins.
Work full-time in a warehouse, hospitality, or insurance office, where those jobs are your primary source of income and you'll quickly redefine what it means to be dirt on the floor to people. It helps build character, too...

Yeah, I wonder how many people who regret going into medicine had jobs like this beforehand. I was in the Marine Corps. I know what it's like to be treated like absolute garbage and literally have no power to stand up for yourself. And worse: to know that you legally have to show up the next day no matter what. There's not even the option of walking away with debt. I've also worked jobs like dishwashing and maintenance. I spent a good portion of early adulthood making $6.25/hr, cobbling together hours from multiple crappy jobs to make full-time work that didn't even net me $1200/mo total.

I think a lot of people went straight from high school to college to medical school and have literally no idea just how tough it is in the real world. My physician told me "just go into finance." Yeah... I'm just going to "go into finance." Gee. Why didn't I think of that? It's so easy, I'll just go into a field I don't like, that everyone else is also trying to go into, and become a millionaire! And I won't be treated like garbage out of college, I'm sure! Some Fortune 500 will hire me right out of college and probably just make my life so easy and I won't have to work a day in my life! Problem solved.

I think medicine is no doubt incredibly tough, but I wonder what the perspective is between people who went straight to medical school is versus the perspective of people who worked for several years between HS and College or College and Med school are. Because most of the people who tell me how bad medicine is seem to have little experience with other careers. They don't seem to understand that you get treated like garbage everywhere, but in most jobs you don't at least have a nice paycheck to make up for it.

Anyways, OP: I'm in the same boat. I'm about to start medical school at 30 years old with a wife and kids. And it's pretty scary. But I think it's natural to be scared. This is a really big decision with huge consequences. You'd be crazy if you weren't having cold feet! But we worked really hard to get here. Job security, financial security, and a career we're actually interested in are all on the horizon. You've got this!

 

[Ho0v-man]

Sounds like you've made the right choice. I'm in that boat of, "well it isn't as good as I'd hoped and the whole experience is basically a wash but if I hadn't done it I'd have always had a chip on my shoulder so it's the only thing I reasonably could have done" and you seem to have the same sort of mentality where not knowing would be worse than any alternative. Good luck.

Same. I would’ve always regretted not doing it.

Yeah, I wonder how many people who regret going into medicine had jobs like this beforehand. I was in the Marine Corps. I know what it's like to be treated like absolute garbage and literally have no power to stand up for yourself. And worse: to know that you legally have to show up the next day no matter what. There's not even the option of walking away with debt. I've also worked jobs like dishwashing and maintenance. I spent a good portion of early adulthood making $6.25/hr, cobbling together hours from multiple crappy jobs to make full-time work that didn't even net me $1200/mo total.

I think a lot of people went straight from high school to college to medical school and have literally no idea just how tough it is in the real world. My physician told me "just go into finance." Yeah... I'm just going to "go into finance." Gee. Why didn't I think of that? It's so easy, I'll just go into a field I don't like, that everyone else is also trying to go into, and become a millionaire! And I won't be treated like garbage out of college, I'm sure! Some Fortune 500 will hire me right out of college and probably just make my life so easy and I won't have to work a day in my life! Problem solved.

I think medicine is no doubt incredibly tough, but I wonder what the perspective is between people who went straight to medical school is versus the perspective of people who worked for several years between HS and College or College and Med school are. Because most of the people who tell me how bad medicine is seem to have little experience with other careers. They don't seem to understand that you get treated like garbage everywhere, but in most jobs you don't at least have a nice paycheck to make up for it.

Anyways, OP: I'm in the same boat. I'm about to start medical school at 30 years old with a wife and kids. And it's pretty scary. But I think it's natural to be scared. This is a really big decision with huge consequences. You'd be crazy if you weren't having cold feet! But we worked really hard to get here. Job security, financial security, and a career we're actually interested in are all on the horizon. You've got this!

N=1 my friend, but I worked full time minimum wage for 3 years to put myself through vocational school after high school. Did that for a few years and then 70+ hour weeks (plus call) for three years while going to school full time to get my bachelors and lived paycheck to paycheck the entire way.

Med school is much worse. At least for me. Hope this being a doctor thing is cool because it’s sucked the whole way so far. And I had well over 10,000 hours of healthcare experience. So I thought I knew better than most what I was getting into.

I think anyone who makes good money and has a comfortable life should have an escape plan ready to execute at the end of MS1 or even first semester. Everyone says it gets better but it doesn’t. Its really not worth it. But maybe my motivations are just too impure lol.

 

[Retro.viridae]

N=1 my friend, but I worked full time minimum wage for 3 years to put myself through vocational school after high school. Did that for a few years and then 70+ hour weeks (plus call) for three years while going to school full time to get my bachelors and lived paycheck to paycheck the entire way.

Med school is much worse. At least for me. Hope this being a doctor thing is cool because it’s sucked the whole way so far. And I had well over 10,000 hours of healthcare experience. So I thought I knew better than most what I was getting into.

I think anyone who makes good money and has a comfortable life should have an escape plan ready to execute at the end of MS1 or even first semester. Everyone says it gets better but it doesn’t. Its really not worth it. But maybe my motivations are just too impure lol.

I value hearing your experience, especially as someone who lived paycheck to paycheck before going to medical school. And I'm sorry you haven't found it to be worth it. I hope it does get it better... for your sake and mine. Haha.

 

[deleted610572]

Yeah, I wonder how many people who regret going into medicine had jobs like this beforehand. I was in the Marine Corps. I know what it's like to be treated like absolute garbage and literally have no power to stand up for yourself. And worse: to know that you legally have to show up the next day no matter what. There's not even the option of walking away with debt. I've also worked jobs like dishwashing and maintenance. I spent a good portion of early adulthood making $6.25/hr, cobbling together hours from multiple crappy jobs to make full-time work that didn't even net me $1200/mo total.

I think a lot of people went straight from high school to college to medical school and have literally no idea just how tough it is in the real world. My physician told me "just go into finance." Yeah... I'm just going to "go into finance." Gee. Why didn't I think of that? It's so easy, I'll just go into a field I don't like, that everyone else is also trying to go into, and become a millionaire! And I won't be treated like garbage out of college, I'm sure! Some Fortune 500 will hire me right out of college and probably just make my life so easy and I won't have to work a day in my life! Problem solved.

I think medicine is no doubt incredibly tough, but I wonder what the perspective is between people who went straight to medical school is versus the perspective of people who worked for several years between HS and College or College and Med school are. Because most of the people who tell me how bad medicine is seem to have little experience with other careers. They don't seem to understand that you get treated like garbage everywhere, but in most jobs you don't at least have a nice paycheck to make up for it.

Anyways, OP: I'm in the same boat. I'm about to start medical school at 30 years old with a wife and kids. And it's pretty scary. But I think it's natural to be scared. This is a really big decision with huge consequences. You'd be crazy if you weren't having cold feet! But we worked really hard to get here. Job security, financial security, and a career we're actually interested in are all on the horizon. You've got this!

Prob too new here but I have spoken about my situation in the past. Growing up extremely poor, working just to help out, doing laboring jobs and restaurant jobs just to put myself through undergrad. Working 40-50 hour weeks on top of going to school full time. I still say it sucks. The payment is certainly good and people would be dumb to argue it. You will get treated like **** everywhere but there are jobs that take less out of you. That’s all those with experience are saying. It’s not all rosy here

 

[deleted610572]

Same. I would’ve always regretted not doing it.



N=1 my friend, but I worked full time minimum wage for 3 years to put myself through vocational school after high school. Did that for a few years and then 70+ hour weeks (plus call) for three years while going to school full time to get my bachelors and lived paycheck to paycheck the entire way.

Med school is much worse. At least for me. Hope this being a doctor thing is cool because it’s sucked the whole way so far. And I had well over 10,000 hours of healthcare experience. So I thought I knew better than most what I was getting into.

I think anyone who makes good money and has a comfortable life should have an escape plan ready to execute at the end of MS1 or even first semester. Everyone says it gets better but it doesn’t. Its really not worth it. But maybe my motivations are just too impure lol.

Residency is poop most of the time but being a doctor is much not enjoyable than medical school.

 

[hallowmann]

Will echo what others have said. I was a non-trad making minimum wage and then slightly more in a different field. There's a lot of suck, especially in med school and residency, that said, I'm still happy with my decision, but if residency was never-ending and I didn't genuinely believe it will be better, I don't think I would say that.

Residency is poop most of the time but being a doctor is much not enjoyable than medical school.

Completely agree. From what I hear the transition to attending is even better than the one from student to resident. Plus just the freedom to be able to walk away from a job without destroying my career will definitely be an improvement.

 

[PhillyDoc24]

In my class, there were several 'non-traditional' students. Do not consider that a red-flag. I consider an advantage.
As far as matching goes, I will offer you this one tidbit: You can always change your training program mid-course. Many leave after PGY1 and go to their new favorite.

 

[deleted1051626]

you don't get into med school on accident. someone let you in because you can do it.

 

[KCP20]

I am a non-trad in mid-thirties, starting osteopathic school (well established one) this fall. I have always wanted to be a physician but had to start working right after bachelors and life got busy since then. Finally, now I am at a stage where we are financially sound and kids are bit older, I was so happy and excited to get back to my passion. But off late, for the past month or so, I am not so sure of my future and have started to doubt myself if I am making the right decision to start such a long journey now, starting from scratch, leaving everything behind that I have worked so hard to achieve in the past 12 - 14 years. I work in healthcare IT, make good money, everyone appreciates my work, and I have put in so much effort to get to where I am today. Though the decision to start medicine was well planned out and I have been waiting for this to happen for so long, I am not sure why I feel terrible off late. I think it all started with after I got to know about the merger, and shortly thereafter about Step 1 pass/fail, and how all these are going to affect DO grads when it comes to residency matching, the ever-increasing DO class size, and people talking about a good percentage of DO grads would be unmatched in the future, now with COVID, looks like the classes are going to be online, one after another.

I am starting the school already with a big red flag of being one of the oldest in the class, though in theory there is no age discrimination, I believe I'll still be discriminated when it comes to residency apps because of my age. Now with all these new developments in the past few months for DO, I am really stressed out and not so sure if it is a sane decision to proceed further. I am interested in Internal Medicine and Family medicine, that's why I did not even apply to MD schools, now with the current situation, I am worried if I'll go unmatched. I am usually a positive and optimistic person, but now, when the start date is getting closer, I am being pessimistic and having started to think that I am going to be doomed before even starting school, please help.

It is normal to have that doubt and it won't be the last time, but it is your passion so go for it. I am in the same boat as you and am getting into the medical field after finishing my bachelors in health science. I stayed home with the kids and traveled with my Army spouse which made it impossible for me to pursue my dreams. I am 36 now and you can't stop me!!
Don't worry about what others say and don't assume they are saying anything about your age (easier said than done). You will have experiences they don't just as they will have some that you don't have. We should learn with all different people so that we get a better range of experience to be able to treat a broader range of patients. You have got this!!

KP

 

[The wise one]

I doubt she is that worried about her age. Everyone seems to dodge this:

"I am not so sure of my future and have started to doubt myself if I am making the right decision to start such a long journey now, starting from scratch, leaving everything behind that I have worked so hard to achieve in the past 12 - 14 years. I work in healthcare IT, make good money, everyone appreciates my work, and I have put in so much effort to get to where I am today. "

Although Clairvoyance isn't a thing they teach at my medical school, I share the OP concern. No doubt, Medicine is the best profession but, I personally wouldn't recommend MD/ DO.

It is normal to have that doubt and it won't be the last time, but it is your passion so go for it. I am in the same boat as you and am getting into the medical field after finishing my bachelors in health science. I stayed home with the kids and traveled with my Army spouse which made it impossible for me to pursue my dreams. I am 36 now and you can't stop me!!
Don't worry about what others say and don't assume they are saying anything about your age (easier said than done). You will have experiences they don't just as they will have some that you don't have. We should learn with all different people so that we get a better range of experience to be able to treat a broader range of patients. You have got this!!

KP