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age
30-35,
anonymous
writes: So this is not a relationship question but more of a life crisis. Im in my third year at a very prestigious university. Im planning on going to medical school after I graduate. The problem is Im struggling in my organic chemistry class. I feel so defeated, like if I can't handle this course how can I possibly be able to keep up in medical school? Im doing extremely well in all my other classes, its just this course that I can't seem to understand.People tell me to keep my chin up or drop premed. I don't know what to do. Here I am, less than 12 hours before my orgo exam tomorrow and all I can think about is possibly having to change careers. Im an english major biology minor premed so I have a weird combination of coursework. Im an amazing writer and my english gpa is a 4.0. But my science gpa is at a B average. Everyone tells me to play to my strengths but as great as I am in English I know I could never feel fulfilled in my life doing anything but Medicine. I've volunteered in hospitals since I was 16, I dissected human cadavers and helped my professor perform a brain dissection, I've even held a human heart in my hands. I may not be the smartest person in my premed classes but I want to be there more than any of them. I want this more than anything, I can't imagine not being a doctor. Realistically speaking, I don't want to become a surgeon but a pediatrician working in a small clinic with enough time to juggle a family some day. Am I being naive? Should I just give up and become an English teacher, something I would be great at but have no heart to do? Or should I continue to put myself through all of this stress, struggle more than the other students, and try to be the most compassionate and caring doctor out there? What matters more to medical schools, brains or heart?
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reader, anonymous, writes (2 November 2010): Attagirl! Sounds like a good plan. You WILL get your head around this stuff. You just need some time, lots of practice questions, and the right books. See this experience as a trial run for the summer, and use the time inbetween to do as much organic chem reading as you can cram in. I guarantee that with the right materials, you'll get the hang of the subject to the level you need to know it in no time. Take care.
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reader, anonymous, writes (1 November 2010): This is verified as being by the original poster of the questionThank you so much for the uplifting words. I just came back from my exam. Im pretty sure most of the class failed it. It was so difficult, I think I just chose the wrong professor. Despite crying for two minutes after, I've decided to just withdraw from the class to save my gpa and then retake it over the summer with a different teacher. Im going to get through this if it's the last thing I do. Thank you so much for the positive support, you have no idea how much you have all helped me.
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reader, anonymous, writes (1 November 2010): OK, stop right there.
As you already know, being a doctor is about having a huge range of skills. You don't just need to be academically excellent. You need to be able to deal with blood, guts, and tears with compassion, and consummate professionalism. You need to be able to communicate complex information clearly and coherently to people in crisis. You need to care about people - not just as individuals, but as communities.
Now here's the good news. You have what it takes. You have thought about this very carefully - you aren't some silly girl with stars in your eyes after seeing George Clooney in E.R. You have gone out there and prepared. You've done the relevant work experience and volunteering to know that you can stomach the bodily side of things. What is more, you are a talented communicator - something absolutely critical to success in the kind of medicine you want to get into.
So let me give you a bit of a shake and put this into perspective for you: this isn't a DREAM for you. It's a GOAL. What's the difference? Well, a goal is a dream that you are WORKING TOWARDS. It's not just some vague, hazy plan in your head that ripples in and out of focus - it's practical, it's achievable, and, what's more, you have a plan. You've been working since you were 16 to put yourself into a position where this would be a real choice for you.
I don't believe for a second that you've done all that preparation, only to suddenly have career doubts because you feel confused by steric hindrance. So what you're going to do right now is this. 1. Stop. 2. Breathe. 3. Focus. Let me explain:
What's actually happening is that you're despairing because you've encountered a really difficult course. Organic chemistry is hard, hard, hard. There's tons of information to remember, and a great deal of intricacy and detail that you need to get your head around. And some of the subject is really quite mathematical too. Result? Panic, panic, panic.
The only way you can cope with a challenging subject like this is to throw everything at it. So what you really need to do is to STOP worrying whether you need to give it all up and become a goat-herder in Nepal. That is, quite frankly, an entire waste of your energy and time. Let go of the panic, and the fear of failure that is gripping you. BREATHE. Get yourself a cup of coffee, and let yourself see the silly side of this. The important things in life are the things you deal with as a medic - life, death, bad health - not organic chemistry classes!
Now FOCUS. Instead of flapping around and panicking, what you are going to do - starting right now - is to learn to LOVE organic chem until you are getting A++++++ in your class and surprising your professors with your remarkable grasp of this multifaceted subject. First step: accept that your struggles might not be entirely your fault. Maybe you're not doing as brilliantly in this course because it's being taught in a way that's not conducive to the way you learn. So you need to find an alternative way - something that is going to help you see it YOUR way. That means reading, reading, READING. Accept that you may have to read the same concept in four or five different books before it 'clicks'. So get a range out of your uni library, and read relevant chapters in every one of them. I also seriously recommend that you go out and buy a book called Organic Chemistry by Jonathan Clayden and Nick Greeves. It's a really great, clear read, and it will walk you through from the basics upwards. It could be the best $60 you ever spend.
I'm sure you've dealt with things that you've found tough in the past. The approach here is no different. Stop thinking about the big picture. Calm down and breathe. And then focus on taking baby steps towards your goal. Be patient, but be persistent. If something is difficult - don't panic, but get your head into a different book and keep reading until you do get it. You're not far off. Your science GPA is a B - not a D. Keep working and you WILL get there. It means making sacrifices of time and energy, but I can feel in every line of your message that you have exactly what it takes to get ther.e
The good news is that getting your head around organic chemistry now will mean that you ace the relevant courses in medical school later on. So the more work you do now, the easier things will be when you are a trainee doc. It may seem like the the intricacies of pericyclic reactions will be irrelevant to your life as a paediatrician, but you will be really surprised how much it helps to have a thorough understanding of organic chemistry for drug interactions, dosages, etc. And feeling confident with molecular stuff may even open up new branches of medicine to you in terms of your career. (Once you're in a hospital, you might find there's nothing you'd like more than to be an anaesthetist - and you'll be thanking the organic chem then!!)
You can do this. Now get up and get going! You're going to be a brilliant doctor, so you have no time to waste!
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reader, anonymous, writes (1 November 2010):
If you stop now you will always wonder "What If...?"
Fufill your dream, don't give up just because things start to get tough. This will be a test of your perserverance and strength of character and your chance to show everyone, including yourself, how committed you are. If you get through this you will prove to yourself that you can get to med school and get through it. Use your stress to fuel you through these exams! It can be an advantage :D
Good Luck!
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male
reader, CaringGuy  +, writes (1 November 2010):
I'm just a bit older than you, and when I was 18 I made the mistake of not following my dream, and instead I 'played to my strengths' and did everything other people told me to. Here I am five years later and I'm unemployed because the work I entered (construction) has collapsed because of the recession. And, as you can imagine, I'm rather regretting not following my dream. The good news is I'm now trying to follow that dream.
I'll tell you straight, that if you give up now before you know whether you can make it or not, you will regret it. You NEED to know whether you can make a doctor. That's your dream. You need to try at it. If it happens that you ultimately don't make it, then you tried and you can change then. But don't give up yet. Instead, forget your uni social life and put even more effort in. Sit down with books and internet and work your ass off. Get extra tuition. Tell your teachers that you're just struggling a bit and need extra help. Exhaust everything until you know that you've either succeeded or failed. But don't give up until you know the truth.
As for medical schools, they will want a mix of heart and competence. You need to have a heart and to be caring, but clearly you need to know your science. So it's a mixture. The good strength that you have is you've had experience of hospital work. That's a good thing, because experience often beats everything else.
Sit down, focus on your work and nothing else.
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