Dear Anita

Thank you for being the special person you are and for providing insightful advice that helps me better understand my life’s goals. The cancer genetic counselor that I spoke with on October 31st said that genetic counselors often volunteer at a crisis line or seek other volunteer opportunities to help people struggling in life because these volunteer opportunities can help genetic counselors learn how to communicate with empathy to people. Genetic counselors need to be able to communicate well with patients who have a high risk for developing cancers and they need to listen to their patient’s concerns and provide advice about how the patient can work on their health. By volunteering at a crisis line or with people struggling in life and listening to them helps people develop empathy and learn how to listen to the concerns people may have. It can be quite emotional for a person to discover that they have a high risk for cancer, and it is important that genetic counselors have the communication skills to help their patients feel more at ease and guide them in ways to better their health. This is why volunteering to help people who struggle in life may help genetic counselors build their skills and also learn how to connect with people by listening to them and understanding how they think which can help genetic counselors learn psychology as well. The cancer genetic counselor also mentioned that it is important to take time to rest because listening to patients health concerns can be stressful and that genetic counselors should strike a research/patient assessment balance where they spend some time doing laboratory research and some time with patients, as well as taking breaks to recharge. I learned a lot from reaching out to genetics counselors about the career path. I am thinking of looking for LGBTQ internships to build my communication skills, by helping LGBTQ people with their mental health I will also learn more about psychology and possibly gain more understanding about myself as a person because I am part of the LGBTQ community. In addition, I will be connecting with LGBTQ people and building my empathy skills when listening to them so I can work on building my skills for genetic research when I will communicate with patients.