What keeps you going?

[Rotinaj]

So I've spent the last 8 months looking into being a doctor, and I'll be honest, I had no idea what it took to be a doctor. At first the title and the paycheck came to mind, but as I soon found out, the title makes you as much a target as it brings you respect and the paycheck is compromised by the student loans for the first several years of your career. Still, I was determined not to be so shallow as someone who chases pure numbers, and fell back to the thought that work as a doctor would be 'fulfilling' and 'meaningful'. As I've seen on my now many volunteer shifts in the ER, doctors spend most of their cross-referencing symptoms, diagnosing and treating the same hum-drum conditions over and over. "Ok, every job has a tendency to be monotonous," I told myself, "but still, what other kinds of jobs can you truly help people like that?" Then I remembered my mother's experiences and for all the "help" she recieved, she also recieved a hyper-inflated bill. Seems like I could do just as much good as a mechanic or an accountant. In addition, I really don't place as much stock in people as I should, I realize I'm human and therefore I have tendencies to be prejudice, selfish and judgmental.

Sure, you don't have to be perfect to be a doctor, and earning a 3.5 in college doesn't take extreme intelligence. It's a weed-out number to select the most mature and committed folks. No matter what I end up doing, I'll try my best to do it well. For the last year I've been 'looking into' becoming a doctor, and I've probably done more than most sophomore pre-meds have done in my freshman year. As I'm finishing up the basic classes and moving into more major-specific ones, I'm finding the prospect of medicine less and less appealing. Obviously it's not for everyone, and I'm starting to think that it's not for me. I love the sciences and I love communicating with people, but I think I'd be more comfortable in a teaching role or even working research in a lab for an engineering firm. When it comes down to it, almost anything seems more appealing to me than signing myself up for a massive debt committment and 8 years of hell, following by an extremely demanding career.

In closing, to all those people out there who are still thinking about completing their medical doctorates, I'd love to hear your honest opinion as to why it's the career for you. What was your turning point? Why doesn't nothing else seem satisfactory. What first got you interested and what kept you interested? Don't be afraid of statements like, "I want the respect" or "I want a high-paying job." I don't view validation or money as evils, rather I think they've driven almost everything that's ever been accomplished, good or bad. I see a lot of talk on this forum of how to become a doctor and I see a lot of dancing around the issues, but I rarely see what people's real motivations are. As for me, I think I've seen enough to know that it's not for me, and I just wanted to understand what kept people going before I abandon the idea for good.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[MilkmanAl]

I think my passion for the subject matter is my most significant motivator to be become a doctor. A close second is my desire to help people and comfort them when they need it most. I grew up with chronic migraines and, fortunately, had a spectacular neurologist. She made all the difference. I'd like to be that difference-maker for others.

I also like the authority and autonomy physicians possess. I feel like I can manage people and situations better than most, so a job where I get to call the shots fits me well. Pay and prestige are nice, but I'd still want to be a doctor for $30k a year...assuming med school was priced accordingly.

 

[135892]

the cash

 

[Rotinaj]

I think my passion for the subject matter is my most significant motivator to be become a doctor. A close second is my desire to help people and comfort them when they need it most. I grew up with chronic migraines and, fortunately, had a spectacular neurologist. She made all the difference. I'd like to be that difference-maker for others.

I also like the authority and autonomy physicians possess. I feel like I can manage people and situations better than most, so a job where I get to call the shots fits me well. Pay and prestige are nice, but I'd still want to be a doctor for $30k a year...assuming med school was priced accordingly.

That's pretty good. A good long-term experience with a neurologist and a personal understanding of the importance of a quality physician. I also like the fact that you're unafraid to say that the power and responsibility of the job is appealing as well.

 

[Rotinaj]

the cash

Hey, it's what drives all the business majors, and for every robber-baron monopolist there's a captain of industry supplying jobs to millions and pushing for employee benefits as well as profits.

 

[lisichka]

the road is so long... it would be another decade till i am an independant phycisian. what keeps me going? i have noooo idea

 

[Rotinaj]

the road is so long... it would be another decade till i am an independant phycisian. what keeps me going? i have noooo idea

That's where I am. I've found that I'm really enjoying all the classes, but I don't know how much longer I want to be 'training' for my career. I'm not deviating far from the college coursework (chemical engineer), but I think that I'll enjoy either engineering or going on to teach a lot more. Also, I could live very comfortably on an engineer's salary or as a college professor while still having time to enjoy myself outside of work.

 

[Salsa45]

That's where I am. I've found that I'm really enjoying all the classes, but I don't know how much longer I want to be 'training' for my career. I'm not deviating far from the college coursework (chemical engineer), but I think that I'll enjoy either engineering or going on to teach a lot more. Also, I could live very comfortably on an engineer's salary or as a college professor while still having time to enjoy myself outside of work.

I find psychology fascinating, especially the therapeutic aspects of it. However, as a psychologist you're simply too limited in your ability to utilize this properly. A psychiatrist has the freedom to do whatever he wants.

I don't think I'll be a standard psychiatrist, where it's a revolving door of drugs. I want to use more a holistic method.

The salary also contributes to my enthusiasm. Respect doesn't play into the equation in terms of the final job, because honestly psychiatry isn't like surgery, but status helps me stomach the idea of so much school, because it's pretty badass to say you're in med school.

To sum it up, 90% because of the freedom I'll have to practice what I find most interesting in the way that I want, 9% because of the good salary, and 1% because of status.

 

[LostLost]

I have the same feeling of tentativeness. Since I started working as an EMT,i find that being a doctor isn't exactly that glamorous. People are intimidated by you in a way that's not desirable. You will be hated by the RN, EMT, and your patients. Many will think you are a snob, etc. A firefighter is probably more respected than a doctor; they run into buildings when everyone tries to get out, and literally saves lives. I have actually come to a point where i believe that being a doctor is not the only way where you can help people and make a difference and that it is okay for me to not be a doctor.

But I am still determined to go through the medicine path why? i think i would enjoy being a doctor not because of but in spite of the BS you have to put up with... i think my life will be meaningful not that this the only way... I think one day i will be able to practice medicine my way in a third world country although it is not gonna happen soon and may never happen... I think i enjoy the challenges of medicine although there are other fields equally challenging and maybe more... i think I like the financial security that comes with medicine although at the end there are better ways to make money....

I can go on and on but the bottom line is that I don't know 100% sure why I want to go to medicine. At some point in the past, I made a decision and decided to stick to it. I can give different reasons but they are all ex post facto attempts to justify my desire to become a doctor. But I also think that it is all right to feel this way. Not every desire has to have transcendental reasons. We don't know why we are hungry... we just are. We don't know why we want to be love or to love, we just do. I don't exactly know why i want to become a doctor, I just know I do and that I am 98% sure I won't regret down the road. To me it's good enough, and that's all that matter. Now back to writing my PS ....

 

[iampremed]

What keeps me going is a thought that keeps running in my head: "****, how the heck am I gonna get a job with a BS in biology?"

 

[Drogba]

I'm addicted to the feeling of hatred I have for organized learning and want to extend my loathesome scholastic life as long as possible. I hope to apply MD/PhD.

 

[carwreck]

What keeps me going is a thought that keeps running in my head: "****, how the heck am I gonna get a job with a BS in biology?"

 

[aemed724]

What keeps me going is a thought that keeps running in my head: "****, how the heck am I gonna get a job with a BS in biology?"

Haha

Well what keeps me going is that I truly believe a doctor helps patients in such a great capacity, granted for those who truly need it. Most of the job is seems to be uniform stuff over and over but when it counts, for even that one, it’s the doctor who saves and helps the most.
Also I have a passion for medicine and science. Medicine is the best combination for the sciences and art (the art of healing) and not to mention it’s such a diverse job (not only taking care of people, but teaching, research etc).
I still have a long way to go and am probably a little unaware of everything it will be like to be a doctor but what keeps me going right now is the passion for medicine, science and helping people get though the worst times in their lives.
And how I know it’s for me is simply because I researched other jobs and I can’t see myself doing anything but medicine at this point.
So IMO I would look at the other jobs out there and gain some experiences before giving up on being a doctor.

 

[Giddyup5]

alcohol!


no seriously, I have a balanced life. I prob drank/ went out 5 days a week through college. If you work to hard in highschool and college there is a chance that you may burn out in med school.

Obviously there are people who dont burn out and do quite well and have worked hard their entire life. I have tons of respect for you guys.

But me, I have done enough just to get by and had a lot of fun.

Work hard, and party harder!

 

[spicedmanna]

Well, my motivation is pretty simple. I actually like the job. No, it isn't all fun and games, there are many sacrifices to be made for sure, and the healthcare climate isn't the best, but at the end of day, you just have to love getting up in the morning to the job. There is something pretty special about being in a healing relationship with a patient, about being his or her healthcare advocate. While much of medicine is routine and sometimes boring and laborious, at times, I feel like I'm doing something that is much bigger than me. What can I say? During those times, everything sort of goes in slow motion and I feel very much alive and in the moment. And it's a great thing to make a difference in somebody's life and it's a great feeling, even if they go and screw themselves up again after you fix them. Sure, there are lots of ways to benefit people, but only one that involves medicine and being your patient's definitive healthcare advocate. It's truly a unique and privileged role.

Now, during your preclinical years, you don't get exposed to this kind of stuff too frequently. Therefore, it's easy to lose heart, from time to time, as you have your head in the books with virtually no patient contact. But, then, you remember...

 

[brianmartin]

one of the only professions where you get paid well to use your brain helping people? Sign me up. A better question would be why NOT medicine. If you've volunteered/worked/been around health care long enough, you figure out if you're willing to sacrifice enough to be the doc. Some people are, some aren't.

Sure you'll see mostly the same stuff day-after-day....but at least once a week something will happen that is really interesting. Last week there was an ER patient who presented as a classic STEMI...went to the cath lab and was totally clean. Diagnosed with "Broken Heart Syndrome." WHAT!? There is so much we don't know. But so much we do. It's not boring at all.

What keeps me going? The material is just so fascinating, and when it links up to reality it just gets better.

 

[Rotinaj]

I have the same feeling of tentativeness. Since I started working as an EMT,i find that being a doctor isn't exactly that glamorous. People are intimidated by you in a way that's not desirable. You will be hated by the RN, EMT, and your patients. Many will think you are a snob, etc. A firefighter is probably more respected than a doctor; they run into buildings when everyone tries to get out, and literally saves lives. I have actually come to a point where i believe that being a doctor is not the only way where you can help people and make a difference and that it is okay for me to not be a doctor.

But I am still determined to go through the medicine path why? i think i would enjoy being a doctor not because of but in spite of the BS you have to put up with... i think my life will be meaningful not that this the only way... I think one day i will be able to practice medicine my way in a third world country although it is not gonna happen soon and may never happen... I think i enjoy the challenges of medicine although there are other fields equally challenging and maybe more... i think I like the financial security that comes with medicine although at the end there are better ways to make money....

I can go on and on but the bottom line is that I don't know 100% sure why I want to go to medicine. At some point in the past, I made a decision and decided to stick to it. I can give different reasons but they are all ex post facto attempts to justify my desire to become a doctor. But I also think that it is all right to feel this way. Not every desire has to have transcendental reasons. We don't know why we are hungry... we just are. We don't know why we want to be love or to love, we just do. I don't exactly know why i want to become a doctor, I just know I do and that I am 98% sure I won't regret down the road. To me it's good enough, and that's all that matter. Now back to writing my PS ....

Great post, such honesty is a rare thing. I like the fact that you aren't representing yourself as a Johnny-one-note and that you're constantly considering your decisions.

 

[Rotinaj]

Well what keeps me going is that I truly believe a doctor helps patients in such a great capacity, granted for those who truly need it. Most of the job is seems to be uniform stuff over and over but when it counts, for even that one, it’s the doctor who saves and helps the most.
Also I have a passion for medicine and science. Medicine is the best combination for the sciences and art (the art of healing) and not to mention it’s such a diverse job (not only taking care of people, but teaching, research etc).
I still have a long way to go and am probably a little unaware of everything it will be like to be a doctor but what keeps me going right now is the passion for medicine, science and helping people get though the worst times in their lives.
And how I know it’s for me is simply because I researched other jobs and I can’t see myself doing anything but medicine at this point.
So IMO I would look at the other jobs out there and gain some experiences before giving up on being a doctor.

I have the passion for science and helping people. I would love to be a professor at a major university because I've seen good and bad profs and know how invaluable they are to helping you get through a tough subject. I guess I just don't have the passion for medicine. You justify your own reasons well however.

Well, my motivation is pretty simple. I actually like the job. No, it isn't all fun and games, there are many sacrifices to be made for sure, and the healthcare climate isn't the best, but at the end of day, you just have to love getting up in the morning to the job. There is something pretty special about being in a healing relationship with a patient, about being his or her healthcare advocate. While much of medicine is routine and sometimes boring and laborious, at times, I feel like I'm doing something that is much bigger than me. What can I say? During those times, everything sort of goes in slow motion and I feel very much alive and in the moment. And it's a great thing to make a difference in somebody's life and it's a great feeling, even if they go and screw themselves up again after you fix them. Sure, there are lots of ways to benefit people, but only one that involves medicine and being your patient's definitive healthcare advocate. It's truly a unique and privileged role.

Now, during your preclinical years, you don't get exposed to this kind of stuff too frequently. Therefore, it's easy to lose heart, from time to time, as you have your head in the books with virtually no patient contact. But, then, you remember...

Yeah, from where I stand, it's an intimidating goal. Right now the thought of a PhD sounds more appealing than an MD. I suppose my ER visits embittered me to patient care as I saw the same druggies and otherwise frequent flyers keeping those in need confined to the waiting room.

one of the only professions where you get paid well to use your brain helping people? Sign me up. A better question would be why NOT medicine. If you've volunteered/worked/been around health care long enough, you figure out if you're willing to sacrifice enough to be the doc. Some people are, some aren't.

Sure you'll see mostly the same stuff day-after-day....but at least once a week something will happen that is really interesting. Last week there was an ER patient who presented as a classic STEMI...went to the cath lab and was totally clean. Diagnosed with "Broken Heart Syndrome." WHAT!? There is so much we don't know. But so much we do. It's not boring at all.

What keeps me going? The material is just so fascinating, and when it links up to reality it just gets better.

I wish some of my volunteer shifts had been much more than what seemed a disorganized public system being taken advantage of by societal leeches. It's interesting that you speak of the material being fascinating. This semester my Biology teacher is a joke and I feel like I've had to grind everything out of a textbook this semester which is turning me off. I would ordinarily love the material, however Gen Chem 2 (a total math grind mind you) is more appealing than my Bio class. I'm sure it's having an impact on me subconsciously where I want to turn to Chemistry-based science more than Biology based. Either way my degree still encompasses pre-med if I change my mind.

 

[Lawliet2008]

I'm addicted to the feeling of hatred I have for organized learning and want to extend my loathesome scholastic life as long as possible. I hope to apply MD/PhD.

.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

red bull.

 

[Quadratic]

I can go on and on but the bottom line is that I don't know 100% sure why I want to go to medicine. At some point in the past, I made a decision and decided to stick to it. I can give different reasons but they are all ex post facto attempts to justify my desire to become a doctor. But I also think that it is all right to feel this way. Not every desire has to have transcendental reasons. We don't know why we are hungry... we just are. We don't know why we want to be love or to love, we just do. I don't exactly know why i want to become a doctor, I just know I do and that I am 98% sure I won't regret down the road. To me it's good enough, and that's all that matter. Now back to writing my PS ....

That just about sums it up for me as well. I feel like I could do a lot of things, but I decided on medicine and I will see where that takes me.

 

[uzybear]

crack

 

[uzybear]

btw: i do think that the "you MUST be absolutely sure that you want to be a doctor, and NOTHING else, to go into medcine" line is definitely over-stated; you certainly should be pretty darn sure, you should do as much as you can to get a feel for it, and that's why you volunteer and shadow and all that, but you know, it's a pretty cool career, and you could be doing worse things

 

[uzybear]

Seems like I could do just as much good as a mechanic or an accountant

this is an absolutely true sentiment and one that folks should really understand; you shouldn't be a doc just cuz you want to "do good" but because the career is a good fit for who YOU are

 

[uzybear]

in the end bro, you just gotta go where you seem, and perhaps the phd route is for you; i myself am in the same situation, wavering between phd (career research/teaching) and md (academic medicine i'd think anyway cuz i like to teach and do want to do research)

........the best thing is to TRY TRY TRY; try anything, give anything a shot; get a job as a painter, or whatever, you really do never know till you try; it only took one month in a call-center to make me run like ****ing hell back to school

 

[apricotattack]

I want a job where I can work independently, and with the poorest, most oppressed people. And I am a fast-results kind of person, so I need a job where I can produce results: like here is a sick person, and here I am to help them. I realize that journalists, politicians, public health professionals, etc. have the capacity to help a great many people but I need to be able to help this sick and needy person I see in front of me, you know?

I think that the ability to diagnose and cure many disease with just your mind, hands, and some simple tools is an absolutely incredible skill, too, that I can't wait to possess.

 

[Rotinaj]

this is an absolutely true sentiment and one that folks should really understand; you shouldn't be a doc just cuz you want to "do good" but because the career is a good fit for who YOU are

Well put.

 

[skyeblue0610]

I was just asking myself this today.For me it's my volunteering. I absolutely love doing itI really like being in a hospital, aside from freezing my butt off. I also think about what everyone else is doing and how much that is really not where I want to be and that reinforces alot of things

 

[Rotinaj]

I want a job where I can work independently, and with the poorest, most oppressed people. And I am a fast-results kind of person, so I need a job where I can produce results: like here is a sick person, and here I am to help them. I realize that journalists, politicians, public health professionals, etc. have the capacity to help a great many people but I need to be able to help this sick and needy person I see in front of me, you know?

I think that the ability to diagnose and cure many disease with just your mind, hands, and some simple tools is an absolutely incredible skill, too, that I can't wait to possess.

I really like the enthusiasm your tone suggests, so often what it takes to get into medicine turns people into robots that can only weigh objective truths rather than chasing an ideal.

 

[AvengingNarwhal]

Actually, that's very interesting, because I started my entire college experience in complete denial of the fact that I would ever become a doctor. For some reason, I resented the power-hungry, money-and-praise-centric view so many physicians I knew had, and for some reason shied away from the emotional drama of medicine. I planned on a career in biomedical research and was dead-set on getting my PhD.

Something changed for me when I started working at a free primary care center. I was a social worker and translator for uninsured immigrants, and the experience shook me out of my complacent shell of apathy. The cultural, human component of this whole damn process got to me, and I became heavily involved in public health. I started volunteering with several organizations and worked with a number of groups in international health including an NGO building a hospital in extremely rural South Asia. I read Sachs, Farmer, and Sen, and was blown away at the incomprehensible need and suffering the rest of the world was buckling under. I had the chance to travel to the clinic site overseas the following summer and contemplate the reality of the situation-- why easily-curable diseases were so prevalent here, what geopolitical forces contributed to the AIDS epidemic there, how cultural determinants shaped the health of a region's inhabitants, etc. Much of my time was spent working with directors of NGOs and local GPs who truly were abandoning the possibility for a lucrative medical career in favor of helping the sick and destitute. The entire trip was somewhat demoralizing due to the extent of the poverty there (I was by myself or with only 1-2 people for the duration of my travels so there was a lot of "seeing" and "thinking" time) but hardened my resolve to work for underserved populations.

My thinking was also aided by a housemate in my sublet who had returned to America after over five years in Africa with MSF. While talking with him, everything made so much sense-- medicine was a power you could use however you chose to. Not all doctors are money-grubbing businessmen looking to make a quick buck in compensation for their miserable experiences as pre-meds and residents. That said, there would still need to be poor doctors to make up for the gap in coverage for the poor--whether it be in rural South Asia or urban New York City.

Take is as you will. My journey, I feel, is not representative of most since I'd never even considered a medical career until further on in college (late Sophomore year/early Junior year). That said, I thank God I found this route in my life as I can't imagine doing anything else (okay, I lied, I also respect development economists a lot-- the non-corrupt ones at any rate). It defines who I am and though some people point out that I'm more of an activist than most future medical-practitioners-to-be, I'm fine with the fact that my MD/MPH is not going to be making me much money. That's not why I'm here and definitely not the kind of doctor I see myself as. Search within yourself: there are a myriad of reasons to be a doctor, I'm just presenting mine.

 

[Kromosoft]

deleted

 

[metalgearHMN]

Difficulty of Undergrad/Med School/Residency:
I like to be pushed to the edge, otherwise I feel like I could be doing so much more.

"Lose" your youth to the above:
What are other young people doing that's so great? I'm sure I could do it concurrently while in school

Debt from school:
Parents are paying for eeeevvvveerrrryyyything

Lawsuits:
This is the only aspect of medicine that casts reasonable doubt on my choice of a medical profession. Hopefully there is greater malpractice reform in the future.




All in all, I think we are in a tumultuous time in American healthcare and the following couple of years will bring about many changes. Hopefully medicine is still alluring as it is now, otherwise I'll find another way to help people.

 

[Luxian]

I tried everything except med school. Pre-meds, as far as I was concerned, were far too concerned with the grade and too little concerned with learning as much as they could (taking a lot of fun hard classes). I got an engineering degree, then worked for a financial consulting company. I found it utterly soulless. I didn't want a PhD since out of the dozens of people I know who got their PhDs not a single one of them became a professor. They all went on to years of post-doc hell, waiting for a tenured position to open up, or jumped ship to programming after spending 5-8 years living as a poor grad student. I got a MPH in public health and went into public policy, but everywhere I've worked has been one bureaucratic nightmare after the next, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

For me, every part of being a doctor is appealing. I am an engineer, so I love the problem solving that is diagnosis. I love people, so I'm happy to work with them. I have an incredibly thick skin, so I can take the s*** people sling. I'm very good at multi-tasking and I work best when people have high expectations of me. In a low pressure environment I end up bored silly, but in a high pressure one I can accomplish so much!

I have been at jobs that pay okay, but require 40 hours a week of pure drudgery. There's nothing that makes you more miserable than feeling useless. I'd take an 80 hr work week of meaningful work any day.

 

[amph119]

The thought of those extremely, incredibly, rare times when you can walk into a seemingly hopeless patient's room on their death bed and say "I think I have the answer."

... and yes, I know how that really never happens, but let me dream.

 

[apricotattack]

I really like the enthusiasm your tone suggests, so often what it takes to get into medicine turns people into robots that can only weigh objective truths rather than chasing an ideal.

Very true. You have to fight this kind of training not only in undergrad, but all through med school and residency. There will always be someone telling you not to be some empathetic, not to get involved, that you can't do anything for this person - the key is to never, ever believe them.

 

[Drogba]

Very true. You have to fight this kind of training not only in undergrad, but all through med school and residency. There will always be someone telling you not to be some empathetic, not to get involved, that you can't do anything for this person - the key is to never, ever believe them.

...and to prove it for yourself.

 

[135892]

I want a job where I can work independently, and with the poorest, most oppressed people. And I am a fast-results kind of person, so I need a job where I can produce results: like here is a sick person, and here I am to help them. I realize that journalists, politicians, public health professionals, etc. have the capacity to help a great many people but I need to be able to help this sick and needy person I see in front of me, you know?

I think that the ability to diagnose and cure many disease with just your mind, hands, and some simple tools is an absolutely incredible skill, too, that I can't wait to possess.

Is it bad that I'm not this idealistic?

 

[Rotinaj]

Is it bad that I'm not this idealistic?

No, I think idealism without pragmatism is foolhardy.

 

[mfrizzo3]

Very true. You have to fight this kind of training not only in undergrad, but all through med school and residency. There will always be someone telling you not to be some empathetic, not to get involved, that you can't do anything for this person - the key is to never, ever believe them.

Do you realize people die in hospitals and sometimes there is nothing you can do?

 

[AvengingNarwhal]

Do you realize people die in hospitals and sometimes there is nothing you can do?

Of course, there is something to be said about quality of life, even for terminal patients. Being a doctor isn't as black and white as "saving lives"