ctwickman said:
You can't say "wrong" it's just an opinion.
It was only my opinion that you were wrong :^) Truly no harm meant - we both approach it from our own perspectives. From mine, I'd rather be in your situation than in mine. From yours, perhaps you'd be more willing to face what I described. In my experience, what I described in my previous post was what gave/gives me the most misery.
And in December and January in Chicago I'd say the sun sets around 4:30-5, and it's windy here at times, so yes I know the difference since I am from North Carolina.
I'm pretty sure it's colder in eastern Mass. than in northern Illinois during the winter. It's also a lot windier when you're right next to the Charles. But I'm not planning on moving to Chicago anyway, since it's still (ugh) North.
To be honest if you are willing to move your whole life for 2-3 months of the year I just can't understand that, but to each his own. But to relay my experience in the past two years in medical school, weather has been last on my list of things that have impacted my mood.
I don't know if it's fair to say I'm just planning on "moving my whole life for 2-3 months of the year", because the weather where I'm stationed is different from the weather where I'd like to be for all 12 months. You can't really compare what it's like to live in Mass. for 9 months of the year to what it's like to live in SoCal for a parallel amount of time.
And for that matter, *everyone* who moves to a different school for med from undergrad relocates his or her life. For different reasons (finaid levels, acceptance, family, etc etc), but unless you attend the same school for both levels of your education, you're going to make another life shift. Doing it for the weather is no worse than doing it for the money, or curicculum.
Tests, curriculum, stress, the people I'm surrounded with, the hours, the hospital, all the crap I have on my plate, and the city itself have all had far, far, FAR greater impacts on my mood.
Work has definitely affected me here, but I can handle the work. And I can handle the weather. But of all the things that bug me about undergrad, the only thing that made everything else that much worse was the wretched winter weather. In the same way your situation affects you, mine affects me - which is why, for my mental, physical, and emotional health, the location of my med school will likely be one of the two most important factors in deciding where I apply.
Anyway, as you noted, different strokes for different folks. And I do hope things get better on your end.