Thank you all for your posts. I have been hearing things from REAL people, and this is the first time (and perhaps the last time) that I have come to the internet for advice. I have talked to people who have done two fellowships and are on their way to their third. I am not sure that I want to talk to my program director. For obvious reasons, this could be bad, especially if I decide to stay.
I am not basing my career choice on residency hours, so please don't be boggled, I did not mean it that way at all. I meant that yes, I could continue in Path for another 4 years with a great lifestyle, and then figure out what to do when I could not find a job, or I could switch now and have a horrible lifestyle for a couple of years. Also, if I need to end up doing two fellowships, they would need to be at my current institution. I don't want to uproot my family and ask my husband to quit his career.
I don't mean to offend anyone by asking for advice on this forum; I just wanted to put out my situation in case anyone else is in this position, or felt this way at some point.
As a first year resident, I considered leaving pathology on a daily basis. I too thought it was very interesting, but just couldnt see myself settling into one area and spending the rest of my career there. Pathology is a very broad field though, all the more so if you are doing AP and CP. I dont know what exposure you have had so far, but something you might not have much experience with could yet strike your fancy.
Like the others, Id council you NOT to base your decision on anything you read here (yes, I recognize the irony of posting that). But especially all the job stuff, it seems one perspective is very well represented here, and it is definitely not a happy one. Again, this reflects the diversity of the field. Without wanting to incite a flame war, my theory is that the same high strung types who are more inclined to be hyperfocused on jobs/money/so forth and also more prone to spinning out the dramatic doomsday scenarios, are also the ones more apt to post messages, as opposed to the more easy going wait and see people. At the risk of sounding, what did someone say on another tread? unicorns, hearts and fluffy clouds, things have a way of working themselves out.
Now, let me add another plug for my favorite area of pathology, forensic pathology. I do so not just to be gratuitous, but because you seem to be searching for a home. I found mine here. The work is very variable, you really do see something different every day. The environment ranges from the morgue where things are very informal and sometimes irreverent to the highly stilted and contrived atmosphere of the courtroom. You work with people ranging from burly blue collar types to the over refined,. You spend half your day primarily doing things and the other half primarily thinking about things. And of all the areas of pathology, its probably the one most like family medicine, if thats what you like. I talk to families a lot, as well as people in nonmedical fields. I also spend time poring over medical records and consulting with clinicians. Most of all though, the thing you do is discover, reconstruct and tell stories, the stories of the deceased. It is very rewarding.
Now, Is that fluffy cloud enough for everyone? (I cant help but feels there are others out there in different areas of pathology who could give equally glowing testimonials about how much they LOVE what they do, despite the fact that were all doomed! How about we hear from some of you!)
