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I must say that I have always thought of becoming a doctor. I truly love to help people and care about them. I have 48 undergraduate credits. It is just discouraging that I would be about 39( I am 29 now) when I would be finsished and a M.D. What about retirement,savings and debt? Scared???

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I must say that I have always thought of becoming a doctor. I truly love to help people and care about them. I have 48 undergraduate credits. It is just discouraging that I would be about 39( I am 29 now) when I would be finsished and a M.D. What about retirement,savings and debt? Scared???


Hi Beau,
I finished med school at age 49 and will finish my General Surgery residency around age 57 or 58 should I decide to do a fellowship. I really didn’t think about retirement before I started medical school and I really don’t think about retiring now. While I was out of the workforce for 4 years or so, I have a great retirement plan that I brought with me from my years of teaching at the college level. I have even been able to start making contributions immediately when I began my residency here at UVa since they have the same plan. I am also fortunate to have good genetic material (all of my relatives have lived into their tenth decade and a couple are in their eleventh decade). All of my aunts and uncles who have practiced medicine, practiced into their 70s and continued to practice part-time (I have an uncle who started Kem-Po karate at age 70).
So, I figure I have plenty of years left to practice surgery and most any kind of medicine that I choose before I join the nursing home set. At 39, you would have even more time.
Natalie
(About to sip some Geritol)

Hi and welcome. I wish I had been 29 when I started my journey. I will be 38 when I start med school next fall. Do I worry about the numbers of years I will have to practice? Of course, but that is not stopping me. Some of us just find out later in life what our true calling is.
I intend on practicing at least 20 years, so I am not too worried about the debt from med school. Don’t worry about your age. Good luck with your undergrad studies. Work your tail off and study hard for the MCAT.

Natalie, you are an inspiration to us all. Many times everyone needs to put things into perspective. I know I do. I am glad you are out there setting such a good example.
Ultimately, I think it boils down to following your passion. From my viewpoint, it doesn’t really matter how old I may be when I graduate med school or residency, etc. If I am following my dream and my passion, then I am living my life the way I should. Yes, I should be able to pay off my debt without a problem, however, if not, then my life insurance will. As for retiring…I definitely don’t consider retiring early. It seems people who want to retire early are people who are not working in the occupation that they are passionate about. If you love what you do and get satisfaction from it, why retire early?
So Beau, don’t be so scared about it. Just follow your passion and you will be happy with your decisions. Don’t take a chance on living life with regrets.
Darrell

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So Beau, don’t be so scared about it. Just follow your passion and you will be happy with your decisions. Don’t take a chance on living life with regrets.
Darrell


Hi there,
Darrell has really hit on the key to why most of us undertake such a long jouney with few “guarantees” at the end. We simply have a “passion” for living a life that is unconventional but very satisfying for us. I can simply say that I was probably born to be a surgeon but fought the idea clear up until I made my first incision June 2002. I can still recall that exact moment when Dr. David Brenin, one of our nationally-renowned breast surgeons said, “Knife to Dr. Belle please”. I still get a lump in my throat when I recall that moment even though I have logged far more than 200 cases at this point. The thrill of doing this job and doing it 100% every time does not leave me. I am fortunate to have this opportunity to follow my passion.
As soon to be Dr. Mary Renard puts it " you are going to be – (insert any age) anyway, you might as wel be doing what you love". How can you know if you are going to have a passion for medicine? You really don’t know for sure but it becomes something that you really can’t get out of your system and you strive to do it at any cost. You can look to Dr. David Kelley who overcame a GPA of 1.1 something to graduate with honors undergraduate and is now embarking on the career of his dreams. You just don’t take “No, you can’t do that” when you know in your heart, that this is what you want to do with your life.
As I have gotten older,( hard to believe that anyone can be getting older than 51) I have started to understand the importance of being true to myself on a daily basis. While I loved teaching and I loved research, it is General Surgery that makes me spring from the bed at 3:30AM and keeps me operating from 7:30AM to 9:00PM and later.
It’s the “passion” that will keep you slogging away at those Organic chemistry problems at 2:AM because mastery of those problems and solid disciplined study will be the hallmarks of your practice of medicine in the years to come. Even if you have to paste an index card above your desk so that you can remind yourself on a daily basis that this is such a long-term goal but by doing every problem, by tackling every pre-med class and by developing the study techniques that will take you into and through medical school and beyond, you are transforming yourself into the physician that you have dreamed of becoming. Sure it’s tough but it is truly fun too!
Natalie