Changing gears

I'll be working as a visiting company physician for the meantime. At least it's something to do during this break. I can still have my relatively low-stress vacation while at the same time keeping myself sharp by seeing and treating patients and hopefully earning a little on the side.

Pre-residency at UST ended a few days ago. Well, at least as far as the Neuropsych department is concerned. Do I regret having dropped out of pre-residency? Not really. I'm quite at peace with my decision. I guess one of the reasons is that I felt my life was spiraling out of control and I needed to pause and reflect a bit for a while. I've always wanted to pause a while and "smell the flowers" as they say. I believe that in rder to really be content with life, one should learn to appreciate the little things.. and now I have time to do just that. :) I also have a lot of cleaning up around the house to do. I promised my dad since way back durig pre-med that I would straighten out my room and toss out all the broken-down stuff gathering dust that I didn't need anyway.

My congratulations go out to my batchmates who have completed their respective pre-residency stints. It's a tough job, but you guys managed to pull through. And for the others who are still in the thick of things like the people in CGH-OB (Nats, Kathy, Gra, and Ivy), good luck! Kaya niyo yan!!

It's really a whole new ballgame after passing the boards. The doors just seemed to have burst wide open. Finally, you're free to do what you want, take whatever path you wish to take, and go where you want to go. Unlike clerkship where you're under pressure to pass the revalida so that you'd graduate and have internship with your batchmates, or to finish internship so you can take the boards with your friends, or to pass the boards along with your class, the "real" world is a totally different animal. Nobody cares whether you decide to train or not, whether you take the MLE and train abroad, or (heaven forbid) you decide to turn your back on Medicine permanently. Bottom line is that you're finally free of the herd, and you may roam as you please, knowing fully well that the choices you make are truly your own, not because of some pressure to conform with an established set of precepts and norms.

I've often told my interns and clerks (while I was still a pre-res) that the revalida (or passing med school) is for your parents, while passing the boards is for your own personal gain. Your parents went through a lot just to put you through Medical School, the least you could do for them is cough up a nice diploma which also entitles them bragging rights to having a son/daughter who became a doctor. ;)