I’m sitting here in an empty room searching for words to describe the last four years of my life in medical school. My bags are packed, my goodbyes have been said and I’m heading to a new place once again. I didn’t realize how happy and sad I would be for this chapter to finish until I saw my class walk across the stage to receive our degrees. Some experiences are hard to describe.
Medical school changes you.
There was no way I could have predicted what it would be like. I could tell you all the details about medical school but until you’ve gone through it yourself, it’s hard to understand what medical school does to you. It changes how you see the world and the people around you. You develop a bit of cynicism but understand the power of optimism and hope in new ways. You see new life, comfort patients, break bad news and witness death. There’s a slow irreversible transformation that goes unnoticed until one day, when you finally have the time to look back and see how far you’ve come.
It’s a journey I didn’t do on my own. I would like to thank everyone who has helped me along the way. The teachers who believed in me, my family who was always there and my friends for getting me through the good times and bad. Thanks to my blog readers for their comments, messages and support. I know that I could not be who I am today without the people in my life. I am blessed.
So for those graduating from medical school and about to start residency, I hope you find the same encouragement from this old Irish blessing that I did
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
First and foremost, congratulations on finally making it through what must be the four toughest years of your academic life yet.
A very important question though: Will you continue to blog about your life in residency? I’m sure all your readers (including myself) would be eager to hear from you whenever you have the time to write.
ditto what m said
Life’s pretty hectic right now preparing for residency, moving across Canada and figuring everything for the next few years. I’ll have to sit down sometime and think about the direction this blog will be going. I’ll continue writing and I’m excited for what the future might bring! Keep you all posted
Congrats! I hope you still blog once in a while during residency.
congratulations medaholic! so proud of you!
i really hope you continue to write about your journey because you’re really inspiring, reading your posts motivate me so much!
thanks and I wish you both nothing but great success in your future endeavours!
Changed me for the worse.
I look back at pictures of myself years ago, before I went into medicine, and I looked happy and enthusiastic. I was even happy during the abuse that was the clinical clerkship, for I had a hope that I would be onto completing a career I found interesting and rewarding.
Now I am a curmudgeonly fool who stumbled before the finish line, languishing in the middle of nowhere doing something I absolutely dread, and I can’t change into something I like.
Fuck CaRMS.
Hi Ted, Sorry to hear about your experience. I removed your other comments as they weren’t really fit with those posts. Hope there is some good that can be found out of this whole process.