Hello OPM!
I feel a little strange to be finally introducing myself after so many years of faithfully stalking this site. Your stories have been extremely inspiring over the years and made me feel like I had the support of a like-minded community, even though I was an anonymous member. Like many members here, I have always wanted to be a physician. Yet, somehow I always managed to move in another direction with my career. I think part of the reason was a lack of self-confidence, the other part was a fear of the long-term commitment. I worried about being able to start a family, earn a good income within a reasonable timeframe, and anything else that could convince me that there were far better (or at least just as valuable) things I could do with my life and obtain the same level of personal happiness.
I graduated from an Ivy League university 10 years ago with a BA in Psychology. I began post-bacc pre-med studies 5 years ago, but stopped 2 courses short of completion after getting married, moving to another state, and losing my father all in a 5 week period. I had been preparing to apply to MD/DO-MBA programs, so after a year I decided to go ahead and complete an MBA, allowing myself time to reflect (again) on whether medical school was the right move. I became a mom to a wonderful little boy in the process, obtained an MBA in Healthcare Management from a top 10 business school, secured a great job and continued to build on my now ~9 years of healthcare experience. All should be well in my world, right? Wrong! All throughout my studies, I was constantly thinking about going to medical school, about fulfilling my dream of becoming a physician, and I was again intrigued by the idea of applying business knowledge to the practice of medicine. Well this pretty much told me that I needed to carry my original plan to completion, become an MD/DO-MBA and do what I feel drawn to do, and that is treat patients.
There are many who think I’m nuts because I have decided to walk away from a lucrative job to complete my two courses and prepare for the MCAT. They think I’m crazy to think that I’ll find more happiness reverting to student life and a five figure salary until I’m in my 40s. But, I’ve had a significant taste of other healthcare career options to know that I still feel unfulfilled, unmotivated, and quite frankly bored because I’m not pursuing my passion. I just celebrated my 32nd birthday last week. I feel like now is the time to get it done, while I have the support of my husband and my little guy. I feel so guilty about the sacrifice that they’re making to allow me to do this, but I know in my heart that in the end my whole family will benefit from a happier, more fulfilled ME.
So, here I am, finally introducing myself to OPM, and looking forward to finally making this dream happen! 
- ADocToBe Said:
I feel a little strange to be finally introducing myself after so many years of faithfully stalking this site. Your stories have been extremely inspiring over the years and made me feel like I had the support of a like-minded community, even though I was an anonymous member. Like many members here, I have always wanted to be a physician. Yet, somehow I always managed to move in another direction with my career. I think part of the reason was a lack of self-confidence, the other part was a fear of the long-term commitment. I worried about being able to start a family, earn a good income within a reasonable timeframe, and anything else that could convince me that there were far better (or at least just as valuable) things I could do with my life and obtain the same level of personal happiness.
I graduated from an Ivy League university 10 years ago with a BA in Psychology. I began post-bacc pre-med studies 5 years ago, but stopped 2 courses short of completion after getting married, moving to another state, and losing my father all in a 5 week period. I had been preparing to apply to MD/DO-MBA programs, so after a year I decided to go ahead and complete an MBA, allowing myself time to reflect (again) on whether medical school was the right move. I became a mom to a wonderful little boy in the process, obtained an MBA in Healthcare Management from a top 10 business school, secured a great job and continued to build on my now ~9 years of healthcare experience. All should be well in my world, right? Wrong! All throughout my studies, I was constantly thinking about going to medical school, about fulfilling my dream of becoming a physician, and I was again intrigued by the idea of applying business knowledge to the practice of medicine. Well this pretty much told me that I needed to carry my original plan to completion, become an MD/DO-MBA and do what I feel drawn to do, and that is treat patients.
There are many who think I'm nuts because I have decided to walk away from a lucrative job to complete my two courses and prepare for the MCAT. They think I'm crazy to think that I'll find more happiness reverting to student life and a five figure salary until I'm in my 40s. But, I've had a significant taste of other healthcare career options to know that I still feel unfulfilled, unmotivated, and quite frankly bored because I'm not pursuing my passion. I just celebrated my 32nd birthday last week. I feel like now is the time to get it done, while I have the support of my husband and my little guy. I feel so guilty about the sacrifice that they're making to allow me to do this, but I know in my heart that in the end my whole family will benefit from a happier, more fulfilled ME.
So, here I am, finally introducing myself to OPM, and looking forward to finally making this dream happen!
A long time lurker comes out of the shadows. welcome aboard!
Welcome!!
Cool! Now that you’ve come out of the closet let us know how things progress! It’s always inspiring to see a success story in the making.
Good luck!
welcome and good luck!
Well, hello there!!! 
I had to laugh when I read your story, because there are so many parallels with my own… (I’m 33, BA in Psychology, successful career in the corporate side of healthcare–but having it smack me in the face every day because it’s not what I really want, but rather a huge tease at what I don’t have…one beautiful 3 year old child and a supportive husband cheering me on…) I WISH I had your post-bacc experience, but I’m starting my own path this spring. I won’t be able to apply for med school until Summer 2012–I can’t quit my job to finish all my pre-reqs, so it’s going to take me a bit longer. Nonetheless, we press on, right?
I just wanted to officially welcome you, and unofficially tell you that I hope you stick around and keep us all posted… your progress will fun to watch, and since our paths seem to feel similar in some regards? Your progress will continually convince me that mine is possible. 
So go, go GOOOO!!!
Thank you all so much for the warm welcome! I really appreciate you all cheering me on! 
Carrieliz,
Your story made me smile, yes there are lots of parallels. I totally understand how you feel about feeling teased as you work on the corporate side of healthcare. I always found myself longing to participate in the clinical side of things despite having a fairly important role on the business side. When your dream is staring you in the face every day, you have to make a decision to either suck it up and enjoy the career you’ve built, or make a drastic change and go for it! 
The majority of my post-bacc was 5-6 years ago, and thankfully I don’t have to re-do the courses. However, it will make it much harder for me to prepare for the MCAT, because I have to do some serious refresher studying. So, in a way, you’re lucky to be able to do it all in one sequence. You’ll be super sharp by the time the MCAT rolls around.
I actually ended up leaving my job because the company wanted me to relocate to another part of the country (I live in NJ). With a husband and child, that would have been very difficult and disruptive, so after discussion with my husband, we decided that I would separate from the company. Hopefully you’ll quickly get into a good study rhythm to balance all the work that lies ahead. I was all set to do the same while working full-time, and it’s still a struggle sometimes even with me being at home for the past few weeks. I think I’ll be going back to work soon though… I hate to put all the responsibility on my husband to support the family so soon.
Is your husband open to moving for you to attend medical school, or are you restricted to the Nashville area?
My husband would be open to moving, I think–but the problem is that my entire extended family just moved here this summer in order to be around our kids. They bought homes… my parents retired and uprooted after living in the same small town for 25 years to come up here to a place where they are completely overwhelmed, and they did that solely for us. So our entire center of gravity is Nashville! I do have a plan, though-- I will apply to Vandy, UT-Memphis, and ETSU… then extend my search to a few other schools within a 4 hour radius. UT has the didactic years in Memphis, but the last 2 years of clinical can be done in Chattanooga–and that’s only 1.5 hours from home. (We live on that side of town.) So I may have to long distance commute for a few years if Vandy doesn’t work out…but since we have so much family support here in town, it makes it more feasible to consider. AND…my husband is a pilot. So it would be fairly easy for him to come pick me up or fly the kids over to visit. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it…
While my corporate position is a huge tease towards my real dream, I certainly don’t regret what I’ve learned. I get to work with our hospital CEOs, recruiters, and physicians (and their practice managers) from many different angles… and it’s taught me the business side of the M.D. world in a way that medical school never could. Not to mention all the great relationships that will hopefully translate into future employment down the road… So it’s time well spent. But it’s hard, too!!
It’s unfortunate that you had to make the choice to quit your job–but slightly serendipitous, don’t you think? It sounds like it’s opened the doors to allow you to pursue this whole-heartedly, and that’s pretty exciting! I completely understand you wanting to go back to work while you prep for the MCAT. Even though the family is cheering you on, there’s this nagging need to contribute, darn it! Having a small child (and hopefully another on the way soon) brings an entirely different dynamic to the picture. But if I’ve learned anything from interacting with the folks on this site, it’s that anything is possible if you want it badly enough.
We are very open to taking the time we need in order to allow our path to take shape. We’ll make adjustments as we need to, and we’ll take it one step at a time. In the mean time, I am just plugging away and enjoying the possibility of what lies ahead. I sincerely hope that you are doing the same!!
Best of luck, and please keep in touch–I am cheering you on in Tennessee!
I should also extend a welcome, although I am hardly an old hand here. I, too, have been lurking on the sidelines (since 2003)on both SDN and OPM. I finally started posting on SDN a few years ago, but only recently have I started posting to OPM – after all those years of reading, waiting, wondering, hoping.
Let me join (belatedly) in welcoming you to OldPremeds. It’s so great that you have the family support! Best of luck on your journey.
Kate