What a successful summer!!!

So this summer has been the most difficult summer home I've had thus far. That's mostly because I spent the bulk of my summer in isolation studying for my first United States Medical Licensing Exam, which when I pass the first 3 of 4, will give me the right to apply to residency programs in the US, so it's a big deal. The studying part of my summer felt very isolated, stressful, and lonely, and at times I thought I was going or had gone crazy. It was like being in solitary confinement and being forced to learn volumes and volumes of information. Then, when I took the actual test, I felt like I had been hit by a bus and just wanted to study more! I left the test and continued to study for the next few days, mostly reviewing things I might have gotten wrong, but also random things that weren't quite clear to me during my crazed 6 weeks of study in isolation.

I'm happy to report that I passed my exam! I got my score just 2 days ago, and I cried for like 30 minutes solid. When I was studying, all these feels of self-doubt emerged, and even though I believe in myself and know that I have a good understanding of the information I need to be responsible for, I wasn't sure that my performance on the exam would reflect that. Passing the test makes me feel first of all like this is my ministry and my path, and I have to follow through and keep on pushing despite the difficulties I face. Second, I feel like a major hoop is out of my way, and I'm on a plateau at the very least and not on this uphill battle that I've been on the first 3 years of medical school.

Also, this summer, I was forced to increase my fundraising efforts in order to be able to continue school without taking time off to work. With the help of my good friend Kendra and her housemate Terri, we held a fundraising event at their house in San Francisco. Lots of people came out to show their support and give their money, which was amazing and inspiring. Sometimes I feel like there's no love or support out there for people who want to change their own situation and make changes to help people perceived by the masses to be irresponsible, but this night definitely showed that to be untrue. My family and friends also stepped up in a huge way and with all of the funds raised this summer, I will be able to go back to school for the next year to two years without worrying about where my next meal is going to come from. It's a huge relief, but also a boost of motivation and inspiration.

Finally, this summer I participated in the medical students for choice externship program. My externship was at San Francisco General Hospital, which is an amazing place to work and has changed the way I see medicine, patient care, and my role in the health field as a physician. I also learned some actual medical stuff, lol, but the most amazing things I walked away with are adopting an attitude of non-judgement, focusing on patient empowerment, and promotion of health instead of just the treatment of disease. All of these things are important to me, and I definitely want to integrate them into my practice along with improvement of social determinants of health and prevention. I'm not sure yet how I will do this, but I know I can.

Overall, I had a very difficult, but also very successful summer in that I buckled down and studied hard and passed Step 1, raised funds to continue my medical studies for the next year or two and participated in a wonderful externship at a hospital with exemplary faculty and staff. I also made time to be with family and friends, so just a great summer all around!