cwolf said:
I'm wondering if anyone knows a website where residency openings are posted? How to go about changing residencies...within the same speciality and changing specialties all together? Any good resources for trying to make this difficult decision of starting a residency and not loving it the way I had hoped. To stick with it or switch? Is the grass just greener on the other side?
How sleep deprived are you at this time? Are ther other personal, or environmental stressors weighing in as well (like lack of supportive network, distance from family, bad location, stuff like that)? It is not good to make massive life-changing career decisions with potential far-reaching consequences (especially when it comes to medicine), IMHO, unless you are in a pretty rock solid relaxed frame of mind, and are able to assess your current situation as dispassionately, objectively, and "clear-headedly" as possible. However silly and trite this may sound, I'm a big believer in making pro- and con- lists to clarify for yourself your options and choices, ideal "desires" and realistic options, risks/benefits, both short- and long-term (as much as you can safely speculate, of course). Writing it down on paper helps you clarify some things at times. Taking some "protected" time off for your own needs while doing this helps too (even if it's just for 1/2 afternoon go into a relaxing spot you like, away from the current "routine" hassle-places.) Take some time to relax, then think. I know this may sound sort of cvasi-zen-"weird". But I think that everyone (especially during residency training!), needs (and deserves!) a little sanctuary of their own. These days, so many people, in real life, don't even have time to sit, breathe, and THINK anymore, and are all the time overly stressed and anxious, that's how fast paced everything seems to be!
Sorry if I over-reached in a possibly inappropriate way. Not everything may be directly applicable to your particular current situation, of course. I was just prompted to do this because you were talking about changing specialties altogether, not just mere residency settings, so I got a sense of a possibly "larger" turmoil/uncertainty. Whatever you do, try to "separate" your personal more "general" worries about identity or career, from the fields/specialties themselves, and try to prioritze. Your well-being and health (physical and mental) should always come first, no matter what! I keep saying this because Medicine is such a long-haul career, with such a long, costly (not just in $), and intensive study-appenticeship-training that people's personal lives cannot help but get wrapped (or tangled!) in it at some points. Just thinking that people go through several real life stages (late adolescence/young adulthood/adulthood, all with various simultaneous inevitable motivations/interests/stressors/conflicts of their own to be resolved and pondered on!) before they actually end up practicing...makes me dizzy just to think of it! So if any personal stuff is tangled in it (and I am NOT saying this in a derogatory manner, I am saying it just because it may be realistically possible for anyone, without it having to be "pathological" or anything like this!)...just try to take time to clarify, clarify, and clarify again for yourself as many things as possible before you take such a leap!
Realistically speaking...it is not very uncommon for some residents to switch specialties at PGY II or even III level. OTOH, depending on how competitive the new chosen field is, the REAL options may be restricted. Plus if you do rely on open spots outside of the match, there are also some chances that the available programs themselves may not be very good themselves (even though the new specialty may seem more appealing). But given that there are some residents who do change every year, it may be worthwhile to inquire individually with some programs of your choice to see whether they might anticipate an unexpected PGY II opening. It is still very soon though...we are just at the end of August. Did you just start PGY I in July this year and want to change already? What's up with that? This begs the question...why did you even pick this residency and specialty to start with? (this is a question you should probably have to ask of yourself, not necessarily respond in here, of course!). It really sounds that you might have been ambivalent about it right from the start. Or do you already have a full year under your belt already, and the realistic "aspects" of your specialty are hitting you right now? (If that's the case, how much do you realistically know about the "real aspects" of the new residency that you find yourself attracted to?)...so I guess...these are some of the questions you should probably try to answer for yourself as you are making your pro- con- list. You should attempt to clarify whether it is this current particular program that is "disappointing", or the whole specialty itself. (I heard there are some truly "malignant" places that will turn you off all of Medicine altogether, but I really hope you are not into one of those at this time! I tend to doubt it somehow if it's a properly accredited residency program though, but you never know!). This one might be difficult to figure out, but I guess you could lurk on other specialties' forums and see what others have to say about their specialty. You should definitely try, if at all possible, to actively find some real-life "mentoring" attendings or docs in real practice that might give you some different perspectives about the specialties themselves.
