Long gap in med school

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sprint4

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Hello all,

My situation is perhaps unique and I was hoping to get advice from former colleagues. I completed 2.5 years of medical school before leaving due to an undiagnosed anxiety disorder. Long story short, a 5-year abusive relationship gave me PTSD and anxiety; as you all know, med school stress can make these things appear when you didn't know they were there before.

I left school not knowing what was wrong, but therapy and admitting everything that happened have done amazing things for me, and now I look back on med school and wonder if I could finish and continue my training. The school is surprisingly amenable to the idea, perhaps because there is an identifiable reason for my distress and because my grades and step I boards were very good. I will have a six year gap in my med school training during which I was a high school science teacher. I will probably pick up by starting my third year over again and beginning rotations.

My boards and grades were competitive before leaving, but now I have a large gap in training to account for. My question is: will that essentially eliminate me from consideration for residency programs? I am also aware that most states have a time limit between step 1 and step 3 and I would have to apply for exceptions to their limitations. Do you think I should risk coming back given how a gap in training might look to residency directors?

Thanks everyone,
sprint4

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