I, too, was once faced with your decision. I knew from previous experiences that I loved medicine and enjoyed helping people. I also knew that what I enjoyed most about my life up to that time was the gift of being an athlete. My daily life was planned around exercising and staying fit. I asked myself the question, “At 30 years of age, do I want to make the sacrifice and go to medical school for 4 years and then complete another 3 to 5 years of residency and then be faced with the constant rigors and accountability of being a physician in an ever changing medical environment or do I want to seek some other alternative career in medicine?” Well, I chose the alternative path and became a Physician Assistant. Now I have the best of both worlds. I work as an Emergency Medicine PA 14-15 shifts a month (160-180 hours) and make a 6 figure income which supports my family and my triathlon lifestyle. I have plenty of time to train and race and best of all I am working in a career that I enjoy and participating in a hobby that is my passion. Perhaps you need to consider the PA profession if you like medicine yet aren’t sure if you want to make the long-term commitment to becoming a doctor. Good luck in your decision.
"Sports Med is a field that is sorely lacking in practitioners’
Fact is that “sports medicine” is quite often just a total misdonomer and IMO often just a marketing ploy. A sprained ankle is a sprained ankle or low back injury is just low back injury whether on an athlete or an 80 yr old. The mechanism is still the same and in fact rehabililating the 80 yr old is often more challenging.
Twenty-five years ago the Toronto Argos CFL team had a “sports medicine ortho specialist” that had not actually passed his orthopeadic surgeon exams until the 3rd attempt. Since he couldn’t make regular ortho fees screwing back busted hip joints in seniors he then decided to promote himself as a “sports medicine specialist” and the football guys bought it.
At one time I was the “official” chiropractor for both an Ontario soccer league and a Junior “A” hockey team. An injury is an injury, but the minute I held up “sports Injuries” as part of my resume, people thought I would be something special, which although good for business is a bunch of malarchy.
I now live in a rural area. A few weeks ago I had a farmer come into my office that turned his back on a mare in the barn. She let go with both hoofs and darn near punched him thru the barn wall. When he arrived in my office he was in as much pain as any sports injury I’ve seen in my 22 yrs of practice. Just like a pro athlete he has to get back to work as soon as possible, even more so as a self employed man but without the benefit of multi buck disability insurance.
IMO, the biggest difference between treating hardcore athletes and anybody else is their egos. They seem unwilling to recognize the fact that the healing process in their bodies is no faster than anybody else even if they can run/jump/skate/etc higher/faster/longer than other people. That’s why so many ex jocks end up with such serious joint problems in middle or later life.
Just my $.02 from a chiro with bummed out knee that can’t run much any more but loves the bike.
I’m M.D., graduated from an American med school. I should disclaim up front that I quit in the middle of my internal medicine residency in Jan, 2000. So, I’m in this sort of limbo… not really properly trained to be a doctor, but with an M.D. I’m now getting a PhD in medical informatics (a field concerned with medical information technology).
My advice would be to emphasize many of the great points already made here. First and foremost, there is no urgency to this decision. Although you may feel pressure from your family, friends and yourself, you are still quite young. At your age, I felt a great need to do something and I actually wondered what I would do if I didn’t go into medicine. Seems silly now. So, if you are uncertain, take time off and crank out some fast tri times, fall in love, travel, work a job that lets you be young and have fun. Medicine will still be there if and when you’re ready. You’ll likely be a more attractive candidate for the time off, which I say based on my experiences serving my school’s admissions committee. It’s probably a good idea to take the MCAT and get pre-reqs for admission out of the way now, simply because it’s more convenient to do it now than later. But even that is not critical.
I would say also that don’t discount the grind of medicine. In the American system, you are looking at a solid seven years of training, minimum. If you are interested in a sports-specific specialty, you can expect more training years than that. During this time, you will be incurring debt and/or making just a living wage as a resident. Your friends (if they’re like mine!) will be getting rich as I-bankers, attorneys, etc. while you are training. Money’s not everything, but it is a frustration for many. I would also say that lots of people want to get into sports medicine specialty aren’t able to do exclusively sports med, at least not for several years. Additionally, it’s quite competitive to get into these specialties and it’s hard to know what you’ll like after a few years of medical school, so you might not end up in sports medicine. Most people tend to hook onto a few high profile specialties before med school, then learn about all the other options available to them over the course of school.
Finally, I totally agree that going into medicine for the money is not a smooth move. You will certainly be comfortable, but there are lots of easier and more lucrative professions if you’re just in it for the dough.
If in the end you decide you want to do it, it’s a great profession. I miss parts of it intensely and I think there are satisfactions from taking care of patients that can’t be found elsewhere. You can still do tris, though I think the combo of medicine, family, serious triathloning is very tough. In my experience you can do all three, but something’s got to give.
Good luck. You sound like a thoughtful guy and this is all going to work out well for you.
First and foremost, there is no urgency to this decision. Although you may feel pressure from your family, friends and yourself, you are still quite young.
Haha…nailed it right on the head…you should have heard the conversation i had with my parents this evening…
“Fine…you dont want to be a dr., enjoy being a poor bastard for the rest of your life…just keep quitting…click” (or something to that nature…)
I think i would enjoy medicine, i really enjoy helping people, and after giving it some thought, i realized the only reason i don’t listen to Dr.'s who treat me to injuries is because i firmly believe that they are tools…all the ones that i’ve been treated by are overweight, out of shape, and look like they have never done anything active in their lives besides study…
sounds like a possibility…a dr. that understands sports injuries…from all the responses i have read, the orthopedics stream sounds very enticing…allows you to be involved helping people, while still addressing their needs as athletes instead of just “normal people”…assuming you limit your clientel selection accordingly…
i think the biggest drawback is that im starting to get burned out…i graduated highschool @ 17, and 2 months later i was 3000 miles away from home, didnt know anyone at a highly demanding university…in a program that i wasnt enjoying…not much has changed since.
Question for all those med students out there: during your time off (if you took any), what did you do? how long did you take off? how did you tell your parents to go fcuk themselves (if you had this problem)? Did it help you realize that you wanted to do meds?
The biggest challenge i am facing right now is that my heart isnt there…i think i could enjoy it, but the motivation to work just doesnt follow…b/c it doesnt seem like it’s somethat that im doing for myself…and because of this, the GPA is slipping, and i am becoming more and more miserable…
sorry for rambling…i should get going, i have a 15 page essay to write…and at least now that im pissed off, i have the motivation to work 
Thanks for all your help everyone!
-kevin
Just a few random thoughts…
Have you considered using your college background in the sciences and taking a detour into education. You may not have too many additional courses to take in order to become a certified high school teacher. I would recommend going into biology or chemistry rather that phys. ed. – there are just more job opportunities out there.
That leaves the door wide open for plenty of afternoon and evening training, summers, holidays, etc. I work in a high school, and they even have the pool open from 6 - 7 for staff before school starts.
Plus, you would still get to coach cross country or swimming, if you’d like.
As far as your parents, I went through something similar. By the end of high school, I had decided I wanted to go into counseling, but my folks REALLY steered me toward law and finance. I went though grad school to get an MBA, started climbing the corporate ladder as an internal auditor in a bank, etc. It wasn’t that I was necessarily “unhappy,” but I wasn’t fulfilled, either. Through an interesting chain of events, I went back to grad school again at night (while still working at the bank) and became a high school guidance counselor.
It was one of the the best decisions I ever made. In retrospect, my folks now say that I was right the first time, but they weren’t saying that when I was 20 and in college the first time.
There are obviously a lot of things to consider, but that alarm clock is going to go off every morning for the rest of your life. When I was at the bank, the alarm would go off at 7:30 and I would reluctantly crawl out of bed. Now I set the alarm for 5:30 and usually wake up before it.
By no stretch of the imagination is my job EASY, but I feel deep down inside that I am exactly where God wants me. During my worst days in guidance (angry parents and administrators, depressed or violent kids, ridiculous paperwork from the state, etc.) I can still say that at least I’m not at the bank.
Keep us posted on your decisions and progress.
Ray
I avoid any doctor that I feel labored through schooling unmotivated for 8 years (and it’s easy to tell which ones they are). Do yourself and patients everywhere a favor - follow your heart. There are more important things than money and prestige.
I had your same “fork in the road” experience 25 years ago. I was advised by the orthopedic surgeons for the football team I played on NOT to go to Med school unless I was brilliant, or didn’t really like participating in sports. Because, in order to do well in Medical school, it will demand all of your free time…unless you are brilliant.
So, I went a different route. Never regretted it a second. I was able to learn to race bikes successfully (in my view), learn to rock climb, remodel a couple of houses, race in triathlons, travel a bit, etc. Along the way, I’ve made decent money. For a few years, I made way more than the average Family Practitioner with about 1/4 the hours/week. Now, I make less than the average GP (partly because they make more, partly because I make less), but, I’m still at about 1/4 of the hours/week. And, I sort of hide in the background when it comes to malpractice suits. A doctor gets a non-paying patient that the doctor pours his time and expertise into, and the best thing that can happen for the doctor, from a monetary standpoint, is that the non-paying patient doesn’t sue.
The accountability and responsibility problems are almost overwhelming. Many doctors have to hire business people just to keep up with the mountains of paperwork. It’s a frustrating circle of doom. Their attorneys say the doctors HAVE to do all the paperwork to prove that they are paying attention to the details of taking care of people’s health…the malpractice defenders demand it…BUT, the more paperwork that is done, the more opportunities there are for paperwork mistakes, and therefore the more cracks in the doctor’s defense when he is sued. Lawyers thrive on picking up on any mistake, however far-removed it may be from what actually happened, in order to “win”. It’s driven some of the best doctors I’ve ever seen out of practice altogether. A cardiovascular team that put together one of the top risk-adjusted results in the entire US just sold out to go to work for a hospital…one reason…their malpractice premiums to cover 7 doctors just reached the ONE MILLION DOLLARS/year level. A couple of the doctors have even stepped back to retire/do other things because their quality of life is not very good.
IF you have the drive and even “inner need” to be a doctor, go for it full speed ahead. If these kinds of problems I’ve mentioned make you sick, I’m warning you that they aren’t going to get any better in the US, anyway, as far as I can see. If fact, I know of NO doctor that currently recommends their children to follow in their footsteps. I’m sure that there are some doctors that do, I just don’t know them personally.
It’s a noble profession. In some ways, it’s more noble now than in the past, because in the past you could stand to make some big money. That drove some into medicine. I believe that is in the past. In the future, doctors will continue to make less and less, with more paperwork, and the lawsuit problem isn’t going away. I’m curious about the relationship between the number of law students/medical students now compared to 30 years ago. I read somewhere that the smartest students are no longer headed to medicine, they choose business and law instead, because the money isn’t in providing medical care, the money is in selling a product to the providers, or suing them.
You have a tough decision. Take your time, don’t make your decision based upon what your family pushes you to do (unless they always know you better than you know yourself…which is possible), and be willing to go full speed ahead in the direction you choose…or keep searching for the direction that will allow you to go full speed ahead without doubt.
Good luck!
its amazing how much good a long run will do the body and soul
it at least got my mind off the crap and got me motivated to work today…
esp. when you are running with a friend who is going to medschool
yeah…the orthopedics route seems somewhat promising, esp. if it is related to sports injuries…and private practice…
anyway, im coming to realize that maybe some time off will do well…or perhaps a couple years in a program that i enjoy (i am hoping to transfer into the physed/science dual degree program @ the end of this year), and maybe that will get me remotivated for school…
anyway, i need a shower and stuff, and to get some foor.
thanks for all the replies, and i will keep you updated on what happens 
-kevin
p.s. The great thing about canada ktalon is that we dont need huge amounts of malpractice insurance, because most things up here are all government regulated (well…not near as much as the states).
p.s. The great thing about canada ktalon is that we dont need huge amounts of malpractice insurance, because most things up here are all government regulated (well…not near as much as the states).
There’s good and bad about every situation. Interesting point you brought up about having a run and getting some food. Most situations don’t seem so bad after some exercise, good food, and sleep.
Just don’t settle for something other than what YOU want to do with your life…it’s your life, not anyone else’s. Heaven knows we need dedicated health care people in the future. The way people are leaving healthcare by the droves in the US doesn’t bode well for the future here, Canada may be a much better place for this reason, but I really don’t know enough about it to make an intelligent comparison.
You could not have given any better description of what medicine has become. I applaud you. It is very sad what is happening to the men and women we rely on more than any other profession. Our society should pause and stop and think about what it is that’s important to secure our future and our kid’s future. It’s not the professional athletes or entertainers that are making millions and millions a year that are vital to our long term well-being. It’s the doctors and the nurses. In my opinion, both are way underpaid. And it’s not going to get any easier. In the medical community I serve in, we have lost numerous physicians because of the medical malpractice insurance crisis. These physicians have included obstetricians, neurosurgeons, and cardiac surgeons. For those of us still at childbearing and childrearing age, whose going to deliver our babies? For the number one killer in America, heart disease, who is gonna perform our open heart surgery to give us a new lease on life. These are the questions all of us need to ask ourselves and our politicians as things get worse, because they certainly will. While the smarter, more talented youth are shying away from medicine, we are gonna find ourselves seeing more and more not so deserving applicants getting accepted to medical school. It’s inevitable. And the end result is sub-par or average doctors being produced. This my friends is not good. I did 5 years of cardiac surgery standing directly across from the surgeon acting as his first assistant, knowing his very next move before he even made it. There is no room for errors in medicine. And if average doctors are being produced, that means our parents, ourselves, and our children are going to suffer in the end. To Young Ironman, if you are motivated to pursue a career as a doctor, by all means don’t let anybody or any reason stand in your way. Just realize, medicine is going through some very hard times right now and they will continue to get worse before they get any better.
Hey Kevin–
I graduated HS wanting to row, and not much besides. I shipped off for college as a bio/pre-med, CONVINCED I would never go into medicine. I wanted to do kinesiology/exerphys and planned to get a PhD after college. I thought Id row for the GU team, and satisfy my sports-ambitions that way, finish in 4 years, then have the bio/premed degree and the ability to decide about medschool vs PhD in a sportsci field. Both my parents are Drs. and they kept telling me I shouldnt limit myself to what I thought I wanted at the time (rowing and PhD physiology) but to keep all possible alternatives open. As it were, after a semester at GU I decided there was NO WAY I was going to stay there-- academically it was fine, but rowing for the team was not enough. I was quite a bit faster and more dedicated to rowing than the rest of the people on the team, and truly, all i wanted in life was to row. I couldnt stay there and resign myself to mediocrity. So I made a plan for myself to get out of GU asap, and followed it. I finished my B.Sc. in 5 semesters.
I was BURNT out. In those first 3-4 semesters, I was absolutely convinced of two things: 1. I needed a break from organized academics, and 2. When I returned to school, I would never ever go to medschool. BUT: The last 2 semesters, I had 4 surgeries for compartment syndrome (both legs both arms) that I was having serious trouble with for a while when rowing and running. I was tremendously impressed by my surgeons, one, a hand surgeon, and the other an orthopedics/sportsmed guy. They were incredible. Really hard-working, dedicated guys. Athletes. Never asked me 'why dont you just not row?" or “just dont run then” They understood dedication. All the surgeries rehab etc made me realize how tremendous sportsmed or any medicine can be. To me, rowing was life. Those two guys saved my athletic career, and I was incredibly grateful. But to think-- that you save not somebody’s lifeSTYLE but someone’s LIFE: thats pretty powerful stuff.
In any case, I decided to take a min 9months off before applying to any sort of gradschool and shipped off to Slovenia to row. (country of my birth, im a naturalized UScitizen) Was here 8 months, living the life. Just training, teaching english, relaxing. Soul-searched about what I wanted to do with my further education. Couldnt decide between medschool and PhD in kinesiology. Applied to both. Got in to medschool. Said what-the-hell. Ill give it a try. I can always change my mind if the thing doesnt fit. And here I am.
Trained hard all through my first year of medschool, made the U-23 national team in the lightweight double, placed 8th at SeniorB World Champs this summer. Ran 3 marathons during that first medschool year too. Finishing off the seconds semester of the second year. Still cant decide whether I want to work as a doctor when I am done with school or not-- all I know is that I want to have a minimum 4hrs per day to train, and enough time to race. I dont know HOW I will do that when I am done, but i know I will. Everyone said you cant do medschool and be an elite athlete. I say bull. Its doable. Everyone keeps telling me you cant work in medicine and be an elite athlete. I say bull. Its doable. ‘Where there is a will there is a way’.
Just dont be afraid to do things your own way. Lots of people cant handle doing things differently than their peers and parents. There is no reason to decide NOW what you will want 20 years from now. Just decide what you want NOW, and what you are prepared to do differently, give up, or have faith in, to get there. If you are burnt out, do what you need to do, then take time off. Just make sure you wrap up the loose ends before you take off-- finish your degree, like you finish your race once you start it.
“Thus I urge you to go on to your greatness if you believe it is in you. Think deeply and separate what you wish from what you are prepared to do.”
Best of luck
Ziva
"Question for all those med students out there: during your time off (if you took any), what did you do? how long did you take off? how did you tell your parents to go fcuk themselves (if you had this problem)? Did it help you realize that you wanted to do meds? "
I took a year off both before and after med school (before an orthopaedic surgery residency) to swim. (Interestingly, I didn’t swim any faster, but that’s another story.) I wasn’t all that sure I wanted to do medicine, but it was hard to get into and at the time I had to try to do as many hard things as I could for the challenge of it. I had to do a lot of things that weren’t very interesting along the way, but the further you go along, the more relevant and interesting it gets. Once you’re done, it sure gives you a lot of choices, and now I can’t imagine another job I would enjoy as much.
As far as the parents go, if you can find a way to fund it yourself, it doesn’t really matter much what they think - though the funding is sometimes the tough part.
Good luck with the call,
Deke
A couple of parting thoughts, although I’ve already said more than enough. However, being a middle-aged man that has given this subject the (common middle-age-crisis) requisite twice-over, maybe I have some information that actually will help.
Go the direction that allows you to be at least VERY GOOD in your chosen field. I had the grades to get into med school, and I have no doubt I would have even graduated…but, do you know what they call a med school graduate that finishes last in his class? Doctor.
Here’s a weird twist to consider…I know of many doctors that say they’d LOVE to quit and do something else, but can’t. They say their families and friends just wouldn’t understand, and they fear they’d be labeled as a failure if they quit medicine…because anything besides medicine would be viewed as “less than” medicine. Quite a mental prison they’ve constructed for themselves, but, so many doctors have told me the same thing, it must be a crowded prison.
I didn’t want to be “average”. I don’t know if I could have been much more than an average doctor…I have too many other outside interests that I wanted to pursue, and while my test scores say I’m much smarter than the average graduate, I’m “not brilliant”. So, I don’t think I could have done it all and done medical school well, too.
Some of the most fulfilled people I know are doctors that had the talent, brains, and drive to do it ALL. But, like Clint Eastwood’s writers said, “A man’s got to know his limitations.” I think I honestly and accurately evaluated my limitations. I wanted to be an expert in my chosen field, someone who’s opinion is valued and even sought after, often by cardiovascular surgeons. I’ve been able to do that in my chosen field, and have enjoyed pursuing other interests while doing so. I can forsee changing to a teaching role in the future…maybe even high school…and maybe even coaching in high school. Who knows what I’ll end up doing when I grow up?
You have so many options at your age, just don’t burn bridges as you make your choices. You’ll see the light, or stumble upon the right path…the best you can do is realize it’s the “right way” when the opportunity presents itself.
Make sure you enjoy some of the uncertainty. This surely makes the time of certainty, when it comes, more satisfying.
Here’s a weird twist to consider…I know of many doctors that say they’d LOVE to quit and do something else, but can’t. They say their families and friends just wouldn’t understand, and they fear they’d be labeled as a failure if they quit medicine…because anything besides medicine would be viewed as “less than” medicine. Quite a mental prison they’ve constructed for themselves, but, so many doctors have told me the same thing, it must be a crowded prison.
I didn’t want to be “average”. I don’t know if I could have been much more than an average doctor…I have too many other outside interests that I wanted to pursue, and while my test scores say I’m much smarter than the average graduate, I’m “not brilliant”. So, I don’t think I could have done it all and done medical school well, too.
Always wondered when someone posts, just what path they have taken and how it all turned out. Nine years is a long time, interesting to see what Slowtwitchers were talking about back in '03.
I got the best job in the world (firefighter) and they pay me to train. Depending which part of the country you are in it could be very rewarding. And all you really need is a high school diploma and set of brass balls :0)
Edit some companies require a Associates and a EMT cert.