Medical School?

[Kj]

Hi all,

I'm just considering a major direction change in life. I've wanted to be a psychologist for a very long time, and that was the direction that my life was moving. I'm in undergrad right now and am working toward a psych major. I'm also working on an education minor and a French minor so I could be a teacher if I wanted. In addition, I am completing a dance minor because I love dance, and will upgrade to the major if they develop it in time.

That's the current plan at least.

BUT, I didn't expect my life to be turned upside down by ON and possible MS. I've gotten very interested in neuroscience, and neurology more specifically. Unfortunately I do not have enough time to complete the premed requirements in two years along with everything else I have to do unless I get a bunch of summer courses approved.

I never expected what life had in store for me, but wow. Who knows what's next!?! I've got to figure out what I want to do now.

Kj

[Jules A]

Hi Kj,
I think it is very wise to consider your future career paths with regard to MS if that is what you end up getting diagnosed with. I ended up going to nursing school after diagnosis because I needed a flexible career with decent pay.

Have you thought about psych nursing? Becoming a RN is fairly quick, more flexible with hours/opportunities and pays way better than undergrad psych degrees. Also as a nurse you can always become a Pschiatric NP which allows prescription rights and counseling.

Good luck with whatever you decide. Jules

[Kj]

I'm going to pursue a graduate level degree regardless of what happens. I'm just trying to figure out if I want to go for a PhD in psychology, an MD in neurology, or a combined MD/PhD degree. I'd have to really bust my butt to complete the pre-med requirements in time...but it might be worth it. Who knows?

I guarantee no one in my high school ever would have pegged me for a PhD and/or an MD. That kind of makes me laugh. Imagine their faces if I actually ever went back for a reunion! LOL.

Kj

[Bob698]

Honestly, in time you'll learn what you're capable of doing with MS in the picture. Hopefully you won't have to deal with that for a long, long time but maybe its a good idea to do "worst case" planning on a big topic like this.
If (for example) your mobility became an issue, could you still be a shrink? Would the hospital or med group you work for consider you a liability? Now apply the same ideas to other med. careers you're interested in and some of the probable Sx you may be facing down the road.
I'm not trying to shake you up, just offering a big picture kinda view. Believe it or not the clock is already ticking and you've got to factor in things like school loans and stable work enviroments over the next twenty years.
BTW, try checking out the VA as a career path. Its fed. employment and while you might not hit the jackpot in terms of money its more stable.

[MyGirlsMom]

Neuro with MS

I think you should pursue your dream. Google Dr. Bill Shaffer a Neuro in Greeley, CO with MS. He was in school when he was dx and changed his path to neurology. I saw him speak at the MS Walk kickoff in Denver and he seemed like a great guy. Think of the value he brings his patients!

[Kj]

I am very excited about the possibility. The more research I do on MS, the more interested I become in figuring it out. I went to see my neurologist yesterday and, after examining me, we talked about me considering neurology as a career (which he HIGHLY encouraged). He offered to write me a recommendation letter for med school and also offered me a short term internship in his office (WOW!).

I spoke to him about CCSVI and the review that I wrote about it for my Intro Neuroscience class. We also spoke about differences in B-cells and T-cells as well as the new research on IL-1 and IL-17 to determine whether Beta-interferons would be successful or not. I told him that I was suspecting more and more that MS is a downstream event and not a disease in itself. Basically, I think that there are several different disease processes like CCSVI that have MS lesions as a primary symptom, which then causes all of the effects we see and live with every day. I just don't think we know enough to determine all of the upstream processes (actual diseases) yet. He didn't put down the idea and actually said he thought that was probably true!

In some ways, it's hard. I really want to practice neurology because it interests me so much. At the same time, I've been in love with psychology for so many years and want to practice clinical psychology while teaching at a college. Finally, I've been dancing for well over 20 years and have dreams of having my own dance company. I'm driven and love to stay busy, but I don't think even I can have three full time careers (even if MS doesn't ever rear its ugly head for me). I know that I could do any one of these and absolutely love my life, but how do I decide?

I know this must seem like a silly problem compared to the problems that you all face every day. I definitely count myself lucky that I've only had one "exacerbation" if that's what it actually was. I also feel blessed not to have any visible lesions at the moment or any sign of o-bands. At the same time this will impact everything I do for the rest of my life. I just want to make a difference somewhere.

Kj

[MyGirlsMom]

Your post was so refreshing!

Kj - your post was so refreshing to me this evening. You are so upbeat and positive and curious. Go with you intuition...it will take you where you need to be. I wish you great success and please continue to keep all of us posted on your educational journey!

[onlyairfare]

My family doctor has MS and she is terrific, has a very nice private practice. She says that there are days when she moves from one exam room to another on her wheeled stool, but she still works full-time and loves it.

If your neurologist, who knows your medical condition well, encourages you, then I am sure you can handle medical school and neurology residency, given your positive attitude. And if you like psychology and have an undergrad background in the field, it will be a big help to you in practice. Just check out all the complaints here about (lack of) bedside manner amongst our various treating physicians, and how often they ignore or dismiss our emotional stresses. You wouldn't be like that with a psychology background.

The pre-med requirements can be completed in 2 years though it would be rigorous, and as you pointed out, might require summer school, especially if your curriculum to date hasn't included any math, biology or chemistry. There are also colleges that offer a one year program to complete pre-med requirements for those whose undergrad degrees are in an unrelated field.

If possible, choose to attend a less-expensive in-state medical school to avoid piling up heavy student loans. Most med students graduate with debts averaging $150,000+ nowadays. There are also loan repayment programs and scholarship programs that pay your debt for you if you serve in an "underserved" area when you complete your training.

And who says dance can't be your hobby and a major leisure time activity just because you have chosen medicine as a career!

If you want it, go for it!

[snminnow]

I've always loved psychology and it was my intended path until I had my 2 girls & was diagnosed a few years ago. I just didn't think that I could juggle babies with classes for a Master's You seem to be pretty symptom free & driven so if you think you can handle the class load I would take advantage of your 'good health' and go for the pre-med route. My Neuro is one of the best in my area, she specializes in MS treatment, she gives confrences on MS treatments and research often, and has even incorporated her love of ballet into her confrences. After she speaks and answers questions and the presentation is over her dance group performs a ballet recital for everyone. It provides her with the opportunity to share her love of ballet, and it gives people exposure to this art that may not have ever attended a recital on their own.

[lorib]

Hi Kj, I'm currently a graduate student (almost done!) and I am in an experimental psychology program. My specific focus is cognitive/neuroscience. What this means is that I specialize in neuroscience (specifically sleep) but still learn about other areas of psychology.

Once I have my PhD I want to teach which sounds a little different than what you might be interested in, but with this degree you could do research with MS patients -- I don't know how to work the dancing in, but one of the gals I go to school with has been dancing her whole life!

Good luck!

[arjay]

Fantastic, Kj! Do it! Good for you, too, lorib!

[Pattigirl]

Go for it Kj.
I have not posted on here for a very long time. I had ON at age 37 and I am now 64yrs. I had very mild MS up until about 4 yrs ago. I am here to tell you don't let ON stand in your way! Life is short and you need to follow your dream!

[GoodJennie]

Hi Kj,

If it might help you, I thought I would add my story too. I was diagnosed with MS as a senior in college. I had always planned to go to medical school, but when I was diagnosed I wasn't certain I would be able to either get through medical school or be a practicing physician. I spent 2 years figuring things out/volunteering/working, and then realized that there wasn't anything else for me. If I had to make some adjustments to make medicine work for me, then that's just what I was going to do. I entered medical school 4 years ago, and will be graduating this weekend. I'm not going to pretend it was easy--medical school is difficult and for me there were added challenges--but I made it. If you really want it and are driven enough, you can do it.

I would like to add some other pearls if you'll indulge me. There is no harm in not going straight from undergrad to medical school. Sometimes I felt even more prepared than some of my classmates because I had taken that time for me. If you can't quite finish the pre-med requirements, do some post-bacc courses after you graduate to get them done (as onlyairfare mentioned). As you know, psychiatry is not psychology. So if what you really want is to be a counselor, stick with psychology. And, neurology is not neuroscience. If you want to do both, you might have to go for that MD/PhD you mentioned, and that's quite a commitment. I have current classmates who finished their PhD and came back, and I have had some of their original classmates as my attendings. Just a thought. If you're excited about research, I don't want to discourage that at all because that's awesome--it's just a different and perhaps longer road, certainly than the one I'm on.

Anyway, my point is that you can do this if you want. I would emphasize that it is important to figure out what you want (perhaps working with your neurologist would be good for that). If you know what you want and then can keep your eye on the prize, you can get through a whole lot of difficulty. Trust me.

--Jennie

[Kj]

Thanks for all the good wishes! I have two years to figure it out and make big decisions, and it's going to be the hardest decision of my life.

Kj

[rubberlegs]

do you think it's ok to experiment with friends and co workers? phyc them out, perhaps let them know after I gather my data? or should I tell them at all? just keep testing them with things to study them about for my paper.