Getting in but don't feel the excitement

[ProdigyMD]

Hey guys, I recently got accept to medical school; I did get excited but not what I thought I would feel. Instead of feeling really excited, I'm actually a little scared. But I don't know what I'm afraid of? Anyone getting this feeling?

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[MedvacMoney]

Hey guys, I recently got accept to medical school; I did get excited but not what I thought I would feel. Instead of feeling really excited, I'm actually a little scared. But I don't know what I'm afraid of? Anyone getting this feeling?

Yup, my mom was all excited and I was like its not that big a deal. I guess it is becasue what if being a doctor is not really what i want to do? Will i just waste 4yrs of my life and $200 k to figure that out?

 

[szhao]

hahaa i can't say i have the same feeling well because i didn't get accepted, nor do i expect to, BUT i had the same feeling during high school to college, and dealt with a lot of friend's troubles during last year when they got into grad school.

I think the main worry is am i going to succeed? what if everyone else is smarter than me? what am i going to do?

if your going to a new place: possibly am i going to fit in?

in any case, don't worry everything will be fine, sit back relax, chill like you have never before because you deserve a break.

 

[Depakote]

Yup, my mom was all excited and I was like its not that big a deal. I guess it is becasue what if being a doctor is not really what i want to do? Will i just waste 4yrs of my life and $200 k to figure that out?

I would hope you would have figured that out prior to an acceptance.

Either way, I would advise doing so before matriculation...


As for me, I just haven't had a chance to be excited yet. My first acceptance was overshadowed by family emergencies, my subsequent acceptances have been overshadowed by uncertainty about where I'm going and craziness at work...

Eventually, I'm just going to need to take some time off and enjoy the fact that I'm going to be going to school.

 

[Punkn]

Hey guys, I recently got accept to medical school; I did get excited but not what I thought I would feel. Instead of feeling really excited, I'm actually a little scared. But I don't know what I'm afraid of? Anyone getting this feeling?

It didn't sink in when I first got accepted (it still hasn't, really). I am really excited, but I know what you mean about being a bit scared, too. Sometimes I wonder if I'll be able to cut it in med school. I figure the adcoms know what they're doing and if they have confidence in my academic abilities, then I should, too! Easier said than done, though. 😳

 

[Depakote]

I think it's natrual to have apprehension about the work. It's only natural.

Don't let this scare you off. Everyone else is doing the same thing, being a little worried just means you understand what you're getting into.

Every school has its own support systems and attrition rates at most schools are pretty low. Just go for it. If you were good enough to do the work to get in, you will be good enough to survive.

 

[spicedmanna]

Fear 🙂scared🙂 in the face of the unknown is natural. Roll with it.

And...

Take a breath into

your fear....

"Fear is excitement
without the breath,"

says Fritz Perls.

😀

 

[dopaminesurge]

Hey guys, I recently got accept to medical school; I did get excited but not what I thought I would feel. Instead of feeling really excited, I'm actually a little scared. But I don't know what I'm afraid of? Anyone getting this feeling?

I think it must be a fairly common phenomenon that people work really hard to attain a goal, and only whenthey get there do they really think about the implications. I wouldn't personally know, but my best friend went through the same thing two years back when he got into law schol. Seems natural enough.

 

[mintendo]

I have a similar problem. When people say "Congrats! You go into med school." I'm like "Yea whatever, it's just more school. "

But when people say "Congrats! You're gonna be a doctor!" My heart beats a little faster.

I wouldn't say I'm scared, just a little anxious to get started. But school is still nine months away.

 

[dutchman]

Hey guys, I recently got accept to medical school; I did get excited but not what I thought I would feel. Instead of feeling really excited, I'm actually a little scared. But I don't know what I'm afraid of? Anyone getting this feeling?

I am going through the same exact thing. I tell you what SDN will also help elevate your fears especially if you wonder into the Allopathic or general residency forums. But just relax and make a decision if this is what you really want to do

P.S don't make a decision based on the fear of hard work

 

[jeffCAandTX]

Two years ago, I remember myself saying "when I get into medical school, I'm just going to be flying with excitment, a huge weight will be lifted off my shoulders", etc. but when I got accepted it wasn't really like that.

I think it's been more of a gradual reduction in stress this semester instead of one big relief, because the interviews made me feel really good. After 4 interviews, I figured I would get in somewhere; my interviewers made me feel like medicine was the right career for me.

So I was elated come November 15th to find out I'd be going to med school for sure, but the intitial excitement also gave way to the realization of things to come, the challenges and life adjustments.

...plus I still have finals to concentrate on before a semester of travel and then the beginning of med school!

 

[Ladyfingers]

I think I feel similarly because it still if another 9 or 10 months until it starts. I kinda wish I could just freaking start already. I am ready to move forward with my life here.

 

[Cirrus83]

You're making me scared just talking about you being scared and I haven't even been accepted anywhere, lol.

But yeah I guess it makes all that dreamy going to med school stuff suddenly very real.

Honestly, if I got accepted into a school I didn't really wanna to go to that much, and nowhere I did want to go to, I might actually consider just not going to med school, lol.

 

[pagemmapants]

I can def. say for me it was like an evening of excitement, then a week of it "not sinking in" and then a long "holy****" scared out of my mind period. Then I was just too busy moving to think about it, and then it had started and the whole meeting-new-people thing happened and then finally the work started. It'll move quick, I promise.

 

[BEMD]

I feel similar to the OP. For me I was extatic at first. However, I am in an awful class that is two semesters long. It is the capstone class for my major, but it is going so poorly (not just for me but for everyone in the class) that I can't think about any thing else.🙁 I'm hoping ill have time to be excitted during christmas break.

 

[Falco2525]

I definitly am feeling this way...my excitement level after receiving the acceptance letter was not what i expected...it was more like okay cool...now what...I think it just has not sunk in yet...I dont think it will until it gets closer to graduation...or during second visits

 

[baylormed]

I feel you.

My first feeling was relief and excitement...but then I thought "WHAT DID I GET MYSELF INTO?"

Either way, I know that I want to do this, I'm just scared that it's going to be very painful.

 

[Depakote]

Either way, I know that I want to do this, I'm just scared that it's going to be very painful.

But that's the fun part...

yes, I'm masochistic like that.

 

[Haemulon]

Should I be fortunate enough to get an acceptance, I suspect that the initial excitement will be followed closely by ..... "Uh oh, now how the heck am I gonna support my family with no salary and no free time?" . Or if I have to move very far ..." now where will I live, where will my wife work, where are the available daycares, do I sell my house or rent it out, buy a new house or rent one?, etc... etc... etc..." The practicalities will be the next hurdle. But where there is a will there is a way. I can only hope to have these types of concerns soon. 😉

 

[MossPoh]

Everyone goes through these waves of emotions. Just like you'll go through a little bit of a culture shock when you hit medical school. It'll be sunshine and lollipops for the first week or two until you realize "hey, this sucks. I'm not actually a doctor yet" and it dawns on you that it is just another stepping stone. I suspect it will be the same for me when I am accepted one day. Hooray, phew Im relieved, oh **** is this happening, I am an idiot how I am going to make it. Then you get done and guess what? You get the excitement of your first day as an intern. Then your first day as a real doctor making money😛

 

[Smiles91084]

I feel you, but instead of fearing about the work load, I'm scared of finding a new roomie, finding housing, getting my car there, feeling homesick, that kind of stuff.

 

[BunnyMonkey]

I had the same experience when I got accepted. I felt excited and happy for a few minutes, but it all went away and I was back to working and wondering what to cook for dinner. I think me visiting SDN a lot built up this "hype" for acceptances and I guess my personal experience did not meet that hype so it was not that special.

I'm a bit scared too. Now that I've got myself into a medical school, I am starting to worry about how I'm going to survive through medical school. Darn it, I'm constantly stressed out!

 

[spicedmanna]

Now that I've got myself into a medical school, I am starting to worry about how I'm going to survive through medical school. Darn it, I'm constantly stressed out!

No sense in worrying or thinking about something you have no idea about; you have been accepted, but you aren't in medical school yet. Concern yourself with the stresses of the school when you have to face it. Avoid futurizing; you can't possibly know how it's all going to unfold. My advise? Forget about it; take some time to relax after such an intense journey, go on a well earned vacation and enjoy the nowness of the world around you.

🙂

 

[Medikit]

I think your feeling is totally normal, a lot of people are scared. It sounds like you're both excited and scared, I think the mixture of the two shows you have a healthy perspective of what you're getting yourself into.

 

[Dimness]

Is there anymore room in this boat? 🙂

For the past four years I've had to watch friends and close collegues get into medical school. My high school graduating class friends are now interns spread across the US. My close friends now are third years.

And I just got accepted. I worked an 11-7 shift at a nursing home after working a 7-3 shift (got 8 hours to "sleep"). I got my call around 4pm the next day from my wonderful interviewer.

That was on Nov. 16. And it still hasn't sunk in that I got accepted. I feel.....numb. On the other hand, I just got a call from the admissions office telling me that I've got a reception deal this January 6th concerning financial aid.

 

[PeripateticMD]

So when i was getting interviews, i was generally really excited. When cornell invited me, I couldn't eat/sleep/talk for about a day, i was in a horrible horrible mood. I was just really nervous, not even the UCs made me nervous... i think it's a bit scary watching a dream come true... and maybe it'll even be a let down after everything we've all worked on... but at least for a good chunk of us, it's at least coming to fruition.

 

[Mr. Tee]

I wasn't jumping up and down and off the walls when I got accepted. It does feel relieving though. Then again, I think of the 8 years ahead of me and how long of a time it is.

Should be fun though! 🙂

 

[DMBdoc]

So when i was getting interviews, i was generally really excited. When cornell invited me, I couldn't eat/sleep/talk for about a day, i was in a horrible horrible mood. I was just really nervous, not even the UCs made me nervous... i think it's a bit scary watching a dream come true... and maybe it'll even be a let down after everything we've all worked on... but at least for a good chunk of us, it's at least coming to fruition.

To this end...
I have certainly experienced the thrill of being accepted with each of my acceptances, but I have noticed (unexpectedly) that I am less manic with each one. For me, a lot of the satisfaction in achieving a goal comes from the small leaps (good grades, good feelings from volunteering, awards, etc.) made along the way to the giant bound (med school acceptance). So, for me, I think now that I have achieved a major life goal (basically an eight year goal, since I decided upon medicine back in high school and have affirmed that choice through my experiences over the years) I don't have that 'thing' to chase after. And, hence, I don't have the excitement of the small leaps along the way. Certainly, achieving that bound was a hell of an accomplishment for me and has me feeling great. Concurrently, though, I feel like I now have new goals to set for myself (the first will be making it through four years of rigor in med school). Others might relate, but I know that I am very forward thinking and goal-directed (pre-meds tend to be), so once accepted you start to think "okay, now what". Looking back on this process I feel like I missed some 'moments' along the way to achieving the "bound" along the way because I was so centered on the end goal: acceptance. Mind you, I have enjoyed each and every part of my journey (other than the MCAT, but my volunteer work, research, etc. has been enjoyable and things that I've done out of choice, not necessity), but the frantic pace forced upon pre-meds--the notion that you must be almost entirely perfect to get accepted (by the way, not true--I'm evidence of that: eg. D in organic and avg. MCAT)--leaves you with little time to reflect on your experience along the way and truly enjoy it. So, if I've learned anything along the way...it is to slow down every once and a day and take a breath, look around, and say "how bout it!" By the time most of us wrap up residency we'll be pushing 30 or more...that throws me back every time I think about it since a lot of our friends who enter the workforce straight out of college will have been working for nearly ten years at that point. What I take from this is that I'm going to keep my goal driven course, but I'm going to try to make it a point to step back every once and a while to enjoy all those leaps that keep me going on the way to my bound...

that's all. I'm hopped up on caffeine writing a psychology paper, and I got a little reflective so I thought I'd share...hoping some others might feel similar or have something else to contribute. cheers! 🙂

 

[Natatiap]

Sorry I didn't feel the same way. I was REALLY excited when I found out the news and I still feel the same way because it was a long hard, stressful road to get here and I know 100% this is what I want to do. The only thing that freaks me out is the cost school. I know I will find a way though even if its all loans.