Thinking of podiatry- need some advice

[AttackNME]

Did you work in the real world before podiatry school? You speak as if non medica fields are all fields of gumdrops and smiles. As if it is better anywhere else.

I've worked the 60 hour workweek making a dollar above minimum wage, it's not fun. Sure u don't have the huge liabilities as a surgeon, but you spin your wheels going nowhere for 10 years and get a 2$ raise at the end of it barely making 13$/hour. Would you rather be a podiatrist or a grocery store worker?

People in real estate don't see the big returns until they are 15 years into the grind. They work 70 weeks barley scrapping the 20k mark.

It's not better anywhere else besides the MD world, and they are prolly the ceiling for the "average" person not born into money or wealth.

My family is in healthcare and they have a lot of MD friends who are no longer recommending medicine to their kids. The way I see it, no what field you're in, you'll find people that love it and hate it. As far as considering different forks and career paths, I'm assuming most people are here because they're interested in healthcare. I have classmates who are MDs from foreign countries and they are making a better life for themselves by pursuing podiatry, so what we're doing can't be all that bad right? I'm just a glass half-full kinda person.

Sure, I get it. I am the sum of my life experiences and it has made me who I am today. If I hadn't chosen podiatry I wouldn't have met my beautiful amazing wife. But this is for people to take a different fork the first time, not going back and changing the path you took.

I too met my wife in podiatry And for that alone it was worth it

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[GypsyHummus]

I am saying think bigger. Think outside the box. This is not grocery worker vs podiatrist, this is podiatrist vs something more.

Ehh, I'm not so sure. There are a lot of people in medica school right now who I really don't think could be proficient at anything else. Doctor is kind of the ceiling. What else do people do with their useless Bio degrees? Go on and get a worthless masters?

There is like 4 things you can do with a bio degree. 1 is professional school of a doctoral kind, 2 is get a masters, 3 is do work in a lab, 4 is not using it at all.

If people truly are as smart as you say, they would avoid college altogether and find a service they could provide to someone and start a business. That is not the type of person that comes to SDN.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

I shadowed a ton of MDs and not one recommended it. They said go PA. I shadowed a ton of PAs. The young ones loved it but the older ones who had reached their ceiling in income and knowledge said no, to go dental. I shadowed dentists and they didnt recommend it because of how many there are along with debt. One told me to look into podiatry. A few recommended it but some didnt. At the end I stopped listening to people and had to decide what i would enjoy. Id hate being an engineer or sales or computers. Out of all the careers Ive shadowed this seems to be the one id enjoy most.

Heres to it working out.

 

[de Ribas]

Ehh, I'm not so sure. There are a lot of people in medica school right now who I really don't think could be proficient at anything else. Doctor is kind of the ceiling. What else do people do with their useless Bio degrees? Go on and get a worthless masters?

There is like 4 things you can do with a bio degree. 1 is professional school of a doctoral kind, 2 is get a masters, 3 is do work in a lab, 4 is not using it at all.

If people truly are as smart as you say, they would avoid college altogether and find a service they could provide to someone and start a business. That is not the type of person that comes to SDN.

I agree for the most part.

I have been involved in automotive business and sales for about 10 years. My two brothers opened a trucking business and have drivers, sell trucks and make more than most of the doctors. They have been in business for about 10 years too. They constantly ask me to join. I have opportunity to start my own car dealership. (I just had a great offer recently from local dealership).

For me, medicine had always been dream of my life. I can't imagine doing other things for the rest of my life and enjoy it. I think medicine is my calling. I do not necessarily look at it from economics perspective but from personal one.

For people who go into medicine solely based on income, I think they are the ones who will be looking into another peoples backyards all the time. The grass is greener there.

I don't think that its fair to say that people who go into Medicine have no other choice.
Maybe for the most part, but there are a lot of inventors, businessman, leaders and researchers in medicine who make great contributions.

They could be elsewhere inventing other businesses and such, but they are applying their skills and mind in medicine.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Why podiatry as opposed to other forms of medicine?

I agree for the most part.

I have been involved in automotive business and sales for about 10 years. My two brothers opened a trucking business and have drivers, sell trucks and make more than most of the doctors. They have been in business for about 10 years too. They constantly ask me to join. I have opportunity to start my own car dealership. (I just had a great offer recently from local dealership).

For me, medicine had always been dream of my life. I can't imagine doing other things for the rest of my life and enjoy it. I think medicine is my calling. I do not necessarily look at it from economics perspective but from personal one.

For people who go into medicine solely based on income, I think they are the ones who will be looking into another peoples backyards all the time. The grass is greener there.

I don't think that its fair to say that people who go into Medicine have no other choice.
Maybe for the most part, but there are a lot of inventors, businessman, leaders and researchers in medicine who make great contributions.

They could be elsewhere inventing other businesses and such, but they are applying their skills and mind in medicine.

 

[GypsyHummus]

I shadowed a ton of people too. They said go dentistry. They were right.

I shadowed a ton of MDs and not one recommended it. They said go PA. I shadowed a ton of PAs. The young ones loved it but the older ones who had reached their ceiling in income and knowledge said no, to go dental. I shadowed dentists and they didnt recommend it because of how many there are along with debt. One told me to look into podiatry. A few recommended it but some didnt. At the end I stopped listening to people and had to decide what i would enjoy. Id hate being an engineer or sales or computers. Out of all the careers Ive shadowed this seems to be the one id enjoy most.

Heres to it working out.

 

[sasoriboi]

Why podiatry as opposed to other forms of medicine?

Just an option I'm considering right now. I'd have to get shadowing experience to see if it's for me.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

I shadowed a ton of people too. They said go dentistry. They were right.

If you can get into a state school and keep your debts low then definitely. I wouldve gone to a private and been 500k in debt... not for me haha also after having worked as a dental assistant for over a year I can confidently say I have absolutely 0 interest in dental medicine and thank my lucky stars I switched haha

 

[de Ribas]

Why podiatry as opposed to other forms of medicine?

we had this conversation on the other thread. I am procedure oriented and like hands-on approach. Shadowing pods I have seen lots of in-office procedures that help patients and relieve pain after even 1 visit. I prefer helping people faster rather than assigning meds all day long. I shadowed 2 neurologists. 1 of them prescribes meds like to 90% of the patients. That's all he does besides MRI and CT scan. For more special cases he refers to other specialists.

I don' want to prescribe meds all day and after 3 months change them because they did not work or have bad side effects.

Other specialty I am very interested is Pediatrics. I like pediatrics more because I worked with children, teens and youth for the past 10 years. I think it' interesting to watch them grow, watch how the develop and go through milestones. I like it also because I live in very rural area and I would like to serve in rural area.

That' only downside to podiatry that most jobs are in big cities.

The downside of DO: it is hard to specialize in pediatrics if needed.

My state M.D. school though has separate campus for rural track and they have relatively low stats. If I work on my MCAT and such, I think I might have a chance. They are very in-state biased.

So, will see. I am open minded so far. This week I will hear if I have been accepted to podiatry school or not

 

[de Ribas]

Geez this thread honestly might be the REALEST, TRUEST, and most reality-based thread that I have seen so far.
Other threads are WAYYYYY to overly-optimistic about podiatry....it's not all that.
Others are WAYYYY to pessimistic......podiatry is not that bad.
And to all the people who said medicine, even MD/DO, is going downhill in this country are 100% correct.
Just like the people who say Dentistry and pharmacy are overpriced and OVERsaturated are also correct.

Every MD/DO I shadowed also said NOT to do it. And I can see why. Just like in podiatry, they are getting bought out or shut out by corporations, and even WORSE....is the bureaucracy of having to deal with insurance, MEDICARE, and governing boards.

And to PashaOdesit, airbud is right. That dude has been around the block and knows what it is like to be REAL PRACTICING podiatrist in todays world. And what he is saying is NOT BS. IT's the damn truth.
Also, just like airbud stated, I am also thinking "bigger" than medicine/podiatry. I know being a podiatrist will afford me a decent living, but I do not want to be just decent. So as we speak, I am doing all I can to learn about different investment avenues, whether that be stocks, bonds, rental properties, motels, land, bitcoin, etc etc. Having just one source of income does NOT cut it anymore. Listen to airbud before it's too late.

About investments I agree 100% I support that and I actually wanted to pretty much write what you wrote in the last paragraph.

I agree that it' is good idea to invest or open or buy some other business and such. But as far as medicine, I want to do it. I am not going in for the money. I was told by couple docs I shadowed that they also invest and I was even told of best and specific ways to invest for better ROI.

As far as that, I am in. But why go into medicine if you can go to investments and be wealthy. Many people do that.

 

[AttackNME]

About investments I agree 100% I support that and I actually wanted to pretty much write what you wrote in the last paragraph.

I agree that it' is good idea to invest or open or buy some other business and such. But as far as medicine, I want to do it. I am not going in for the money. I was told by couple docs I shadowed that they also invest and I was even told of best and specific ways to invest for better ROI.

As far as that, I am in. But why go into medicine if you can go to investments and be wealthy. Many people do that.

Because if you haphazardly invest in the wrong thing, you can lose everything and wonder why didn’t you go with a safer route such as podiatry Knowing what to invest in will take skill, and it requires having money to do it. It also requires time, energy, and comfort with risk. If you want to be good and be rich, you will still have to work your ass off. Warren Buffett probably spends more hours reading and working than most doctors, nothing comes free and easy. If you want to just buy rental property and make passive income, you better know your fair market value, know how to DIY home fix repairs to save money on hiring someone and you need capital in order to buy it in the first place. Doctors are the worst business people and most financially gullible because we spend all our time and energy learning medicine, not business or learn good financial habits. BUT it doesn’t mean you can’t learn it some way or another. Podiatry is my full time gig, but it isn’t the ONLY thing I’m doing. One day I’d like to start a business, or develop a product and license it to someone and earn passive income that way (shoutout to Mr Wonderful on Shark Tank). Just because you are choosing a career in medicine doesn’t mean you’re stuck with it, there’s ways to pivot into something else while still making good use of your medical talents.

 

[de Ribas]

This is specifically in response your last sentence of "why go into med. if you can go to investments....."

You go into medicine because you love it. You go into medicine/podiatry because you know, that no matter how great or stable you THINK your investment avenues are, there is ALWAYS volatility in the market, regardless of which market we are talking about. You go into medicine/podiatry ( or any other day job really) because you need to be damn sure you and your family have food on the table because not all investments work out. You go into medicine/podiatry to fund said investments because loan officers are MORE willing to trust YOU with their 500k for whatever business/land you want to invest in due to your occupation and income. You go into medicine because deep down, you are NOT okay with being average. You thrive in a field where you have to think, to be vigilant, and to be "a leader". That's why you go into med/pod/dent.

I agree. That' how I think about it too.

I mean is that you have to love medicine to some extent anyways. otherwise we hear these stories that people hate medicine and such. I agree with what you said and I plan to invest when I start practicing. But I also love medicine.

Every single doc I have shadowed was generally happy besides insurance and such of course. None told me to look elsewhere.

 

[de Ribas]

Because if you haphazardly invest in the wrong thing, you can lose everything and wonder why didn’t you go with a safer route such as podiatry Knowing what to invest in will take skill, and it requires having money to do it. It also requires time, energy, and comfort with risk. If you want to be good and be rich, you will still have to work your ass off. Warren Buffett probably spends more hours reading and working than most doctors, nothing comes free and easy. If you want to just buy rental property and make passive income, you better know your fair market value, know how to DIY home fix repairs to save money on hiring someone and you need capital in order to buy it in the first place. Doctors are the worst business people and most financially gullible because we spend all our time and energy learning medicine, not business or learn good financial habits. BUT it doesn’t mean you can’t learn it some way or another. Podiatry is my full time gig, but it isn’t the ONLY thing I’m doing. One day I’d like to start a business, or develop a product and license it to someone and earn passive income that way (shoutout to Mr Wonderful on Shark Tank). Just because you are choosing a career in medicine doesn’t mean you’re stuck with it, there’s ways to pivot into something else while still making good use of your medical talents.

Another great post.

I agree. One doc I shadowed said that he has some small financial company that works on some portion on his investments and he said they were doing fine.
He said that years ago he invested about 90K and now receives around 8K per month or something. He also invests in New hospitals and surgery centers because docs get priority and better ROI or something.

If that is what Air bud meant in his posts is to invest, I agree with that.

 

[de Ribas]

Because if you haphazardly invest in the wrong thing, you can lose everything and wonder why didn’t you go with a safer route such as podiatry Knowing what to invest in will take skill, and it requires having money to do it. It also requires time, energy, and comfort with risk. If you want to be good and be rich, you will still have to work your ass off. Warren Buffett probably spends more hours reading and working than most doctors, nothing comes free and easy. If you want to just buy rental property and make passive income, you better know your fair market value, know how to DIY home fix repairs to save money on hiring someone and you need capital in order to buy it in the first place. Doctors are the worst business people and most financially gullible because we spend all our time and energy learning medicine, not business or learn good financial habits. BUT it doesn’t mean you can’t learn it some way or another. Podiatry is my full time gig, but it isn’t the ONLY thing I’m doing. One day I’d like to start a business, or develop a product and license it to someone and earn passive income that way (shoutout to Mr Wonderful on Shark Tank). Just because you are choosing a career in medicine doesn’t mean you’re stuck with it, there’s ways to pivot into something else while still making good use of your medical talents.

There are financial advisors and brokers who can work for you

 

[GypsyHummus]

I mean, even if you are making 250k gross per year, you only take home like 150k. So people getting into this really need to have a want to do it. Then you gotta pay back a 300k loan.

I really wish loans could be tax write offs lol. Maybe one day. But then the doc wouldn't pay any income tax lol.

I agree. That' how I think about it too.

I mean is that you have to love medicine to some extent anyways. otherwise we hear these stories that people hate medicine and such. I agree with what you said and I plan to invest when I start practicing. But I also love medicine.

Every single doc I have shadowed was generally happy besides insurance and such of course. None told me to look elsewhere.

 

[Weirdy]

I agree for the most part.

I have been involved in automotive business and sales for about 10 years. My two brothers opened a trucking business and have drivers, sell trucks and make more than most of the doctors. They have been in business for about 10 years too. They constantly ask me to join. I have opportunity to start my own car dealership. (I just had a great offer recently from local dealership).

For me, medicine had always been dream of my life. I can't imagine doing other things for the rest of my life and enjoy it. I think medicine is my calling. I do not necessarily look at it from economics perspective but from personal one.

For people who go into medicine solely based on income, I think they are the ones who will be looking into another peoples backyards all the time. The grass is greener there.

I don't think that its fair to say that people who go into Medicine have no other choice.
Maybe for the most part, but there are a lot of inventors, businessman, leaders and researchers in medicine who make great contributions.

They could be elsewhere inventing other businesses and such, but they are applying their skills and mind in medicine.

Hook me up. Would love a used GS-F or something fancy after residency if you're in my area. Not kidding.

I shadowed podiatrists and every single one of them told me not to do it. Shadowed MDs and they told their kids to pick dental or something else. Talked to dental students/newly grads and they said saturation was climbing and older dentists didn't want to sell their practices.

Podiatrists said go PA or Dental. Didn't like the ceiling in PA and had no interest in dental.

Relatives are all MD or GTFO attitude so not much help there either.

You do what you like. Compare the cons and see which one you'd be able to live with longer.

Just kind of stumbled into podiatry and things kept working out.

 

[Kingomnis]

I guess to return to the ops original question, I had a very similar predicament. I used to want to be a dentist as well: I had decent grades and scored a 27 on the dat so I was pretty set, but once I started shadowing a family dentist I knew, I found out I really didn't like it that much. It felt like it was more about the money, and every other word was about a new dentist popping up. I was also nervous about the amount of surgery he did and was scared of my shaky hands becoming a problem in the future. I learned about podiatry and how truly flexible the profession is and it just struck me. I just made a choice to switch to podiatry and I'll be going to school this coming fall. I can't say if it's the same for you as you're a bit deeper in than I was, or if it's a right choice, but just go with what you feel is the best for you. But for God's sake, don't just jump into it before you shadow a lot and actually think about where you'd be happy.

As for the other part of where this forum post has gone: if you want to be the richest you can be then podiatry or any other science isn't going to fulfill that. You shouldn't go into it thinking about how much money you'd make. Focus on why you want to be a doctor first. You'll make money and you'll give your family a good life. If you wanted to make money with little effort this whole time you should've gone into a business degree program and learn how to invest everything you make. You most likely don't have that option now so just hire someone else to figure out how to invest your money.

 

[med2345]

Hook me up. Would love a used GS-F or something fancy after residency if you're in my area. Not kidding.

I shadowed podiatrists and every single one of them told me not to do it. Shadowed MDs and they told their kids to pick dental or something else. Talked to dental students/newly grads and they said saturation was climbing and older dentists didn't want to sell their practices.

Podiatrists said go PA or Dental. Didn't like the ceiling in PA and had no interest in dental.

Relatives are all MD or GTFO attitude so not much help there either.

You do what you like. Compare the cons and see which one you'd be able to live with longer.

Just kind of stumbled into podiatry and things kept working out.

Every pod I shadowed told me to do pod. I think the only people I knew that told me to stay away from their own profession was pharmacy/pharmacists because of the appearent crazy saturation. My family members are MD and think pod is a great, so I find that kind of interesting lol. People must be afraid you’ll be competition or something haha

 

[mbb21]

Hook me up. Would love a used GS-F or something fancy after residency if you're in my area. Not kidding.

I shadowed podiatrists and every single one of them told me not to do it. Shadowed MDs and they told their kids to pick dental or something else. Talked to dental students/newly grads and they said saturation was climbing and older dentists didn't want to sell their practices.

Podiatrists said go PA or Dental. Didn't like the ceiling in PA and had no interest in dental.

Relatives are all MD or GTFO attitude so not much help there either.

You do what you like. Compare the cons and see which one you'd be able to live with longer.

Just kind of stumbled into podiatry and things kept working out.

After shadowing and talking to people from many different healthcare disciplines, it seemed that everyone had the "the grass was always greener" attitude going on. This frustrated me. Although simple, one podiatrist's answer helped me out a lot. I asked him if he was satisfied with his decision to become a podiatrists. He said, "Well, you've got to choose something eventually." I realized that job satisfaction is a decision, not a consequence. There are things you will probably dislike with every specialty. Find one that you enjoy, do your research, and then don't nitpick over the little things.

 

[doyinDO]

saved

 

[Packers4lifeDPM]

Only negativity I have heard about podiatry has been on this website. Talked to so many podiatrists and they all love their jobs besides one who is in private practice and worried he wont be able to sell because podiatry is going away from that in his area (more towards hospital employment) but he loves his job. Each person has their own experiences. Choose podiatry because it is what you want to do every day. Be smart with your money. Pay off your loans first. I chose podiatry for the life style and how you get to work on so many different aspects of medicine (biomechanics, surgery, derm, ect). Each field has its pros and cons. If you choose medicine for the money, then you should have went into business. Rant over.