There were several women (both traditional and non-traditional) who joined my class after having taken a year off at some point during med school to have a child (first, second, or even higher). I’m not sure what happens to their student loans during that time, but would be something to consider.
Having worked as a patient care tech during the first 3 years of med school, I would recommend against it. You get very little free time and, in retrospect, would have rather spent that time with my husband than working, even if it was only 16 hours per month (4 hours each Friday night).