Specialties for non-type - A personalities?

[acetylcholinesterasee]

So I've heard the adage about med students being perfectionists and type A and anal and worrying about everything, but I feel like I never relate to that. I feel like I more like to just see the best of each situation and not worry about things unless I absolutely need to (like, I worried about getting into med school, and I always adhere to aseptic technique and all) but overall don't really got the whole neuroticism going on unless I know it's important - vs my classmates who are always freaking out about this that or the other. Like, I like to joke around, and overall have a very light / easy going way of thinking of life.
Some other characterictics if it helps:
I'm ridiculously liberal; do what you want as long as you're not hurting others. I love tats and piercings and all that jazz.
I think I'm not very professional by default but can obviously fake it if need be. Like I'll wear pajamas almost anywhere and I guess in a similar regard don't super care how I appear to others. But like I promise I'm nice and caring and empathetic haha.
I like to DO things, i absolutely HATE sitting around! We're doing a lot of table rounds right now in IM and I literally wanna kill myself and my legs are always shaking like crazy, I also have a pretty low attention span like definitely can't make it through a lecture and be paying attention the entire time lol my mind just wanders

So yeah, any specialties that seem to vibe with that? Preferably not too competitive specialties cuz my step score's a little below average? I've been leaning towards peds and EM so if anyone can also mention if I wouldn't feel out of place in either of those.

Thanks guys !! I hope I'm not the only one in medicine like this.... maybe a minority, but pls not the only one, right?

If it helps they say I'm an ENFP !


Edit; y’all thank you so much for the responses!!! I’m really excited to see such an overwhelming consensus about fitting into EM, i am so hype to get in there and find my people! Also gonna take a look at anesthesia, never really thought about it before thanks!!!

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[odyssey2]

I feel like I’ve met a lot of EM types who a lot like what you describe yourself as. Very chill and easygoing but love getting involved and being on their feet all day. Also very distractible

Psych tends to be very liberal but might not be fast-paced enough to keep your interest.

In term of least Type A personalities, people in the low patient contact specialties (rads and path) are some of the chilliest and least judgmental in medicine, at least in my experience. Sounds like you might get bored stiff sitting in front of a computer or a microscope all day though.

 

[Scrubs101]

+ 1 to EM

feel like the laid back yet energized/wanting to be doing something attitude goes really well with EM

no rounds, scrubs for life, and the personalities at least in my experience have been really chill

 

[altblue]

some historically laid-back specialties might include gen surg, neurosurg and ob/gyn

 

[odyssey2]

some historically laid-back specialties might include gen surg, neurosurg and ob/gyn

Just the chillest. Low rate of personality disorders too!

 

[altblue]

Just the chillest. Low rate of personality disorders too!

I'm routinely impressed by how down-to-earth the neurosurgeons are

 

[APA 32]

consider anesthesia

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

some historically laid-back specialties might include gen surg, neurosurg and ob/gyn

lmfao before 3rd year i woulda prolly believed you
i was surprised about ob gyn tho, heard same thing from one of my residents - do you think thats true for women in ob gyn too?

 

[odyssey2]

lmfao before 3rd year i woulda prolly believed you
i was surprised about ob gyn tho, heard same thing from one of my residents - do you think thats true for women in ob gyn too?

oh you sweet summer child

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

oh you sweet summer child

HAHAH IT WAS A SRS Q but aite guess thats 100% out of the q now

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

I feel like I’ve met a lot of EM types who a lot like what you describe yourself as. Very chill and easygoing but love getting involved and being on their feet all day. Also very distractible

Psych tends to be very liberal but might not be fast-paced enough to keep your interest.

In term of least Type A personalities, people in the low patient contact specialties (rads and path) are some of the chilliest and least judgmental in medicine, at least in my experience. Sounds like you might get bored stiff sitting in front of a computer or a microscope all day though.

awesome, thats great to know about EM!!! and tbh now that you mention it ive vibed pretty well with rads people I’ve met but yeah not sure about the whole no seeing patients thing haha

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

+ 1 to EM

feel like the laid back yet energized/wanting to be doing something attitude goes really well with EM

no rounds, scrubs for life, and the personalities at least in my experience have been really chill

yassss this makes me so happy! also the scrubs for life is SUCH a plus

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

yassss this makes me so happy! also the scrubs for life is SUCH a plus

+ 1 to EM

feel like the laid back yet energized/wanting to be doing something attitude goes really well with EM

no rounds, scrubs for life, and the personalities at least in my experience have been really chill

also ty for just putting my whole post in like 5 words lmao

 

[Frazier]

Prob EM from your description.

 

[Lucca]

“...pajamas everywhere...”
“...HATE sitting...”
*stops reading*
*smashes button.jpg* EM

 

[readmypostsMD]

Med students the only ones to try and perfect their non-type A personality...

EM for you? Idk I’m an M1 baby

 

[deleted804295]

Rads, pathology

 

[deleted804295]

I'm routinely impressed by how down-to-earth the neurosurgeons are

Damn it. I shouldve never read 'When Breath Becomes Air' it made me like neurosurgeons

 

[agiraffe999]

Consider anesthesia or urology. Anesthesiologists seem chill, and urology is some of the funniest people I met

 

[odyssey2]

Consider anesthesia or urology. Anesthesiologists seem chill, and urology is some of the funniest people I met

If you’re looking for chill people I’d avoid any kind of surgery, even urology. The urology program at my school is horribly malignant with abusive attendings and bitter residents. Urologists also tend to skew more conservative and bro-y which I’m not sure meshes with how the OP described himself.

 

[altblue]

If you’re looking for chill people I’d avoid any kind of surgery, even urology. The urology program at my school is horribly malignant with abusive attendings and bitter residents. Urologists also tend to skew more conservative and bro-y which I’m not sure meshes with how the OP described himself.

Yeah, ENT also has a reputation for being quieter and funnier, but the program I worked for after UG was malignant as hell

Don't go into surgery for the personalities, lol

 

[kb1900]

Em or gas for sure

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

If you’re looking for chill people I’d avoid any kind of surgery, even urology. The urology program at my school is horribly malignant with abusive attendings and bitter residents. Urologists also tend to skew more conservative and bro-y which I’m not sure meshes with how the OP described himself.

Oooh that’s good to know. Although, seeing penis every day sounds like a plus
I guess they’re diseased ones tho ....

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

Yeah, ENT also has a reputation to be quieter and funnier, but the program I worked for after UG was malignant as hell

Don't go into surgery for the personalities, lol

I wasnt super looking at it anyway, but what really turned me off was, at least in my institute they make u wear business casual into the hosp and then change into scrubs (why cant we just wear whatever and change into scrubs?) and then there’s apparently like a sitting order for rounds like thats just so EXTRA

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

If you’re looking for chill people I’d avoid any kind of surgery, even urology. The urology program at my school is horribly malignant with abusive attendings and bitter residents. Urologists also tend to skew more conservative and bro-y which I’m not sure meshes with how the OP described himself.

I have had almost exactly the opposite experience. I’ve met exactly one bro-y urologist, and he was very supportive and ready to be a mentor.

 

[Chelsea FC]

PM&R

 

[Dr. Rafiki]

I'm ridiculously liberal; do what you want as long as you're not hurting others.

Just thought I'd throw out that "ridiculously liberal" people tend to support overreaching government regulations and rules that *do not* allow people to do things they want to do.

You are likely libertarian if you truly believe your quote.

 

[WhereMyLiberalsAt]

Just thought I'd throw out that "ridiculously liberal" people tend to support overreaching government regulations and rules that *do not* allow people to do things they want to do.

You are likely libertarian if you truly believe your quote.

Ah yes, libertarians!

“Toll roads bro! Everything would be better with toll roads! Oh, and don’t get me started on the Federal Reserve!”

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Let’s keep the thread on topic. The nuances of what is liberal or libertarian is not relevant to this thread.

 

[InternistDO]

II have a pretty similar personality. In addition to EM and gas, I'd think about family medicine. Yeah, you have to deal with some inpatient rounding in residency but in clinic you see patients pretty quickly, have the opportunity for small procedures, and you can do peds and OB stuff without having to deal with a very inpatient heavy peds residency or a very stressful OBGYN residency. Plus, urban FM programs tend to be pretty liberal/social justice oriented which may help you feel like you fit in a bit more. Primary care IM and peds are also options but you have to deal with a lot more inpatient rounding to get there.

 

[hamstergang]

I think that putting this much stock into generalizations and ideas about personality is a mistake. There are a lot of ways to practice each field.

 

[Eye-eye]

You might like a busy clinic-based sort of practice. Ophtho, for example, typically is fairly busy during work hours because of the patient volume (and you're physically doing things, because it's all the eye exam). No rounding, really. You're in surgery as much or little as you want. But most ophtho docs are pretty laid back and happy folks. You don't have to think about stuff outside the eye much unless it's one of those diseases that affects the eye. You do a detailed exam, treat or set up follow up, and move on to the next patient. It's a good gig if you like eyes.

 

[solitarius]

Uro is the "nice guy" of surgery.

The most BRO specialties are ortho > neuro > cardiothoracic.

 

[slowthai]

Uro is the "nice guy" of surgery.

The most BRO specialties are ortho > neuro > cardiothoracic.

I'd say ENT is the nice guy and uro is the funny guy

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I'd say ENT is the nice guy and uro is the funny guy

I wonder if writing about my testicular torsion would be too cliche for urology.

 

[slowthai]

I wonder if writing about my testicular torsion would be too cliche for urology.

Affirmative. It's like writing about my torn ACL that I never actually had

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Affirmative. It's like writing about my torn ACL that I never actually had

 

[Neopolymath]

I wonder if writing about my testicular torsion would be too cliche for urology.

Talk about your priapism instead. It's a juicier story.

 

[longhaul3]

Uro is the "nice guy" of surgery.

The most BRO specialties are ortho > neuro > cardiothoracic.

Neuro is decidedly not a bro specialty outside of a couple notorious programs.

And you don't have to be type A to do it, at least going in. I'm certainly not. You just have to like neurosurgery and be able to tolerate pain. Residency changes people though. I'm definitely more demanding and grouchy than I used to be.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Neuro is decidedly not a bro specialty outside of a couple notorious programs.

And you don't have to be type A to do it, at least going in. I'm certainly not. You just have to like neurosurgery and be able to tolerate pain. Residency changes people though. I'm definitely more demanding and grouchy than I used to be.

None of the neurosurgeons I’ve met have been bros except the one woman I met lol. Most of them have been pretty self important ****s though. But I don’t think you have to be that way, I think the nature of the field attracts some of that though.

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

with all the uro talk in this thread maybe someone can explain this to me - what's with all the hype??? maybe it's just the couple students from my school, but all the uro kids seem so stoked about it and super invested, like almost more than the ortho/neuro kids. but they never really say why.

It's probably more a reflection of my own lack of interest in any of the surgical fields, though I can kinda see the appeal of most of the other surgical subs. Uro is the one I just haven't figured out yet.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

with all the uro talk in this thread maybe someone can explain this to me - what's with all the hype??? maybe it's just the couple students from my school, but all the uro kids seem so stoked about it and super invested, like almost more than the ortho/neuro kids. but they never really say why.

It's probably more a reflection of my own lack of interest in any of the surgical fields, though I can kinda see the appeal of most of the other surgical subs. Uro is the one I just haven't figured out yet.

It’s a cool field. The variety of pathology is pretty wide. You can see very basic stuff and cancer back to back. The procedures range from very quick office procedures to big whacks. There is cool technology in the OR. There’s a good amount of medicine/clinic involved for people who want medicine and surgery. And there’s an endless amount of dick jokes.

It’s an awesome field.

 

[DrRedstone]

“...pajamas everywhere...”
“...HATE sitting...”
*stops reading*
*smashes button.jpg* EM

Post-COVID, we might be seeing a lot more scrubs specialties

 

[machete fred]

It’s a cool field. The variety of pathology is pretty wide. You can see very basic stuff and cancer back to back. The procedures range from very quick office procedures to big whacks. There is cool technology in the OR. There’s a good amount of medicine/clinic involved for people who want medicine and surgery. And there’s an endless amount of dick jokes.

It’s an awesome field.

Shhhh

 

[DrRedstone]

Whatever you do, don't go for ophtho. It's not a good field with great people and a glorious mix of procedures and longevity of patients.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Shhhh

Oh, I mean urology sucks. *cough*

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

Just thought I'd throw out that "ridiculously liberal" people tend to support overreaching government regulations and rules that *do not* allow people to do things they want to do.

You are likely libertarian if you truly believe your quote.

Oh thats really funny, you're right! When I was studying it all more intensely in high school I definitely vibed with libertarian the most. stupid two party system.

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

It’s a cool field. The variety of pathology is pretty wide. You can see very basic stuff and cancer back to back. The procedures range from very quick office procedures to big whacks. There is cool technology in the OR. There’s a good amount of medicine/clinic involved for people who want medicine and surgery. And there’s an endless amount of dick jokes.

It’s an awesome field.

I do say way too many dick jokes, esp for someone who doesn't have one...

 

[acetylcholinesterasee]

Dunno if anyone is still following this but some updates.

I hate lengthy precharting and love talking to patients (not forever though). Rotated in a small community ED for a week and absolutely loved it, there was only one actual emergency though so gonna get some more experience at our main hosp which is level 1.
Also kinda liked FM at a busy practice as well.

 

[QuizzicalApe]

Anesthesia could be pretty chill, I guess. Puff puff, pass

If it helps they say I'm an ENFP !

Also, you might get to this block later but:

No, it does not help