- This topic has 11 replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 9 months ago by funktionz.
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February 24, 2015 at 7:19 am #73248JadeParticipant
Hi guys,
I am 31 years old and working full time at an office job. Pay is good, benefits etc but it’s very much just a meh office job. When I was 28 I got certfied to teach Zumba and have been doing so since my certification, and a year after that I began the long journey of being a certified yoga trainer which I am still on.
Prior to these events, I was a pretty big screw up. Long story short, I am the child of addicts and my upbringing left me with no self respect or confidence. I would start school programs and drop out, never saved money, smoked, drank every day, people pleased etc. When I was a child but before things got bad in my family, they did some tests on me and I tested way above my age group for intellectual stuff. This always bothers me because I never did anything with it.
Since beginning teaching fitness, I have found a small kernel of confidence and have been getting better every year with that and my other vices. I have also started a university program in Human Science (since I’m realizing that is my passion) and my other programs credits that I dropped out of can work towards completing my major, although the grades from them are pretty bad.
Anyways after I finished I planned on doing a physiotherapy program which is two years long, and as I was doing research I found an MD program that is only 3 years long. (Basically you don’t get summers off.) It has been my dream to be a doctor ever since I was young, but I have always discounted it because I never considered myself a good enough student or not having rich enough parents to become a doc. Now that my life has naturally led my in the direction of healthcare, and my grades are up, and I am enjoying my studies, it seems feasible.
I will be 37/38 by the time I’m done medical school and start my residency. Is that too old? Every time I picture this future I have a physical response of both butterflies in my tummy and terror.
Has anyone here done anything crazy like this? Was it a giant success or epic f-up? Am I insane?
Thanks for your responses and your time.February 24, 2015 at 8:04 am #73249Rock BananaParticipantEverything you say sounds awesome to me. The terror and excitement is a hugely good sign. It shows how much you care about this, and just how much you are taking even yourself by surprise on some level. If it’s truly the direction you want to go in and it fills you with joy to think about doing this, then you have it. Go for it. Do everything it takes to persevere with it. When things look like they’re going badly, keep going with it. If it’s really what you want, DO IT. As for giant success or epic f-up, would you rather look back on your deathbed having tried everything you could possibly think of to achieve your dream and failed (but naturally learned LOADS in the process), or having wimped out thinking “oh what if it all goes wrong”, not knowing whether you would have succeeded or not? Which scenario fills you with more of a sense of disappointment? Also, you might keep failing and then eventually become successful. It’s not either failure or success, failures can actually be encountered on the road to eventual success. If you think of a plane, it is continually adjusting itself (correcting itself) as it gets thrown off course by turbulence, wind and it has to keep adjusting its direction because the planes don’t travel in an exact straight line. Eventually however, with a destination in mind, it reaches the destination, having spent the whole journey adjusting and adapting to whatever was happening in each moment. Be the plane. Notice your fears and act anyway. If you really want to choose this path, then things do have a way of working themselves out eventually. But even if they don’t, you won’t have died trying in the process, and who knows where your journey could take you. You may find something that isn’t being a doctor, but is even better than anything you could’ve possibly imagined in your current situation. Be daring, you only live once!
February 24, 2015 at 8:32 am #73250StephenParticipantYou sound insane to me, but that’s not a bad thing ;). If you really feel a passion for it, keep at it! There will be times when you will feel like quitting, so you need to make sure you really want it. You will have to imagine during the hard times that things will not get better, and if you can live with that and push through it, that’s the sign that it was meant to be.
I’m sure you have done research and know all about med school and residency. I unfortunately just 2 days ago went through a breakup with a woman in residency. The emotional strain that residency has on her is indescribable, and I felt it vicariously, and I couldn’t handle it…but I digress. Maybe her situation is unique, and maybe you’ll be in a better position, but just be prepared. I’m not trying to dissuade you, I have a new found respect for doctors. They’re literally super heroes; up all night, saving peoples lives, responding to distress calls (also called pagers, you will come to despise them), and after you take into account med school debt, they get paid less than teachers. It’s awesome, but it’s rough, and not for the faint-of-heart.
I’m rooting for you!
Pax
February 24, 2015 at 8:45 am #73256AprilParticipantHey jaspermarie,
You are a person with a lot of potential and I feel that you should go for it! Imagine yourself sitting in an old rocking chair, all miserable and full of regret. Thinking about all the what ifs… Don’t be that guy. I think you should go for it no matter at what age the programme ends.
Good luck!February 25, 2015 at 3:02 am #73273MsPeanutParticipantI say go for it, it will be hard but if you stick to it-
February 25, 2015 at 4:15 am #73274InkyParticipantHi Jaspermarie,
First of all, don’t worry about being too old. Some people are professional students, you know? I have seen grandmothers take grad programs with their kids!
And wow, you could be a certified yoga teacher, learned physiotherapy and be a doctor!!
All you can do now is apply. If it’s not in the cards for next year/s, finish the yoga/begin the therapy course.
If you are accepted, then BE medical student. Not, “Can I do it” but You ARE it! Let it encompass your whole being. No relationships. No hobbies. Your Life IS this program!! Hire a valet or someone to do your shopping and housework.
DO IT!!
Inky 🙂
February 25, 2015 at 7:11 am #73275MJLParticipantAge is only in the mind. Do what you love. Follow your passion. Life will become much more fulfilling and rich!
You can do it! Keep your eye on the prize and the hole at the end of the tunnel when things get rough or you have second thoughts (which may happen).
You can do it!MJ
February 26, 2015 at 2:22 pm #73319JustKeepBelievingParticipantI went back to junior college when i was 30, completed 2 associate degree in 3 years, then went on to a get my BS degree when I was 36. Once you get started, you just keep rolling. Oh, and I did this while working a full time job. (classes form about 830 am until 1pm then worked second shift in a factory)
Yes you can do it- and believe me it is easier than high school- you are more mature focused and disciplined than most of the “traditional” students that may be in your class- I really enjoyed going to my classes because it was what I wanted to do- had a burning passion for it
February 28, 2015 at 8:29 am #73358JTParticipantI agree with Stephen that you sound a little insane BUT I also say go for it…if this is your dream follow it!! I wish I had had the courage to follow my dream(s). I took some risks but not the “big ones”, I still plan to do it someday but it will be when most of my career days are well behind me instead of having so much in front of me. Your living in the moment, good luck!
March 4, 2015 at 6:57 am #73515JadeParticipantWow. Thank you all so much for your kindness, it means so much to me. It has been rolling around in my head for weeks and I know now that I would hate it if I didn’t at least try. It’s crazy and I’m sure a lot of people will try to deter me, but whenver they do I’ll just come back and read this 🙂
March 4, 2015 at 9:39 am #73520wilmaParticipantI say, live your dream! As the quote goes, you are never too old to be who you are. We only get one chance at life. Make of it what you will, and don’t let your age or past circumstances be a deterrent. The only one holding you back is you. Loosen the reigns and fly! I wish you the best of luck.
March 4, 2015 at 6:14 pm #73536funktionzParticipantI think you are definitely on the right path. For me personally, one of the things which I always aks myself when I venture into something is what is the underlying purpose of that action. For example:
I am looking to running my own business. The questions I would ask is Why? What am i hoping to achieve out of this? What is the end game?
Because more or less I’ve realised that whenever we perform an action, it is always driving by some form of higher purpose. Perhaps something I am hoping to achieve or get out of this venture and that really drives our actions. I know a guy who from a very young age wanted to help people who are suffering. That was what he decided as a kid he wanted to do for the rest of his life. So he said, “I shall then be a doctor. I can help others and help them ease their suffering.” . By the time he finished high school, though he did really well, he did not secure enough points to get into the public university to study medicine. So he said “OK, fine. I will then focus on my fathers business and the money I earn out of this, I will use to help others ease their suffering, by maybe running some free clinics and such.” So his underlying purpose did not change but the method he used to achieve it changed. After some time, he then met a monk and inspired by the monks teachings to help people understand their own purpose and inspire them, he decided to pursuse a monastic life and has now become a successful monk and he says the same thing. “I am still focused on helping people alleviate their suffering except that I am doing it by being a monk”
I found it amazing that despite having various goals and such, his ultimately underlying purpose never changed and thats what drives him everyday to live life to the fullest.
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