Lessons from living as a patient and a doctor
Many of these topics involve medicine, mental and physical health. Through narrative medicine I hope these stories give a greater understanding of what people go through. Alongside my own journey and the anonymous, de-identified stories of patients, I have included research and resources, to give insight and power to disempowered voices.
EDUCATIONAL CONTENT ONLY. NOT MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE.
Start with these three
The three posts she pins on her own blog.
Applying into Residency - ERAS & PS Guide for Medical Students
A guide for dual applicants and for anyone applying with red flags like a failed exam, a failed year, a leave of absence or a disability.
Read the postClinical Rotations: The Hidden Curriculum
Ten lessons from the M3 clinical year: the unspoken rules, the protocols nobody teaches you, and a set of rules for getting through rotations.
Read the postOvercoming USMLE Step One Failures to Residency Success
Resilience and perseverance in a medical career, from Step 1 failure to matching. The video version is on the post.
Read the postStep, the MCAT and testing accommodations
Failing, retaking, and requesting accommodations, written by a resident who did all three.
MCAT Failure to Medical School Acceptance: My Retake Strategy
An honest MCAT strategy for premeds who failed or underperformed: retake planning, study adjustments, test anxiety and accommodations.
Read the postUSMLE STEP3 Fail to PASS: Lessons Learned
Study strategies, exam content and mental health after failing Step 3, written openly for students and residents who have had the same setback.
Read the postGuide to Applying for Accommodations for USMLE, COMLEX, MCAT
How to apply for accommodations on the USMLE and COMLEX if a mental or physical health condition affects how you test, from a resident who received them for Step 1, 2 and 3.
Read the postOvercoming USMLE Step One Failures to Residency Success
Resilience and perseverance in a medical career, from Step 1 failure to matching. The video version is on the post.
Read the postTips for Navigating Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) Exam
Insights and guidance from a Step 2 Mastery seminar on how to plan, study and pace yourself for Step 2 CK.
Read the postLessons Learned from Failing USMLE STEP1: A Comprehensive Guide
Study strategies and lessons from someone who failed Step 1 twice and then passed, for anyone facing a setback or preparing from scratch.
Read the postUSMLE Failure: How one’s identity can be shaped through failure
On refusing to be defined by illness, by failure or by accomplishment, and using each obstacle as a source of resilience.
Read the postOvercoming Board Exam Challenges: Seeking Accommodations for USMLE Step 1
How the Disability Office accommodations process worked for her, and how endometriosis, pelvic floor dysfunction and an anxiety disorder affected standardized testing.
Read the postERAS, personal statements and the interview
Her own applications, and how to write yours when the record is not clean.
Applying into Residency - ERAS & PS Guide for Medical Students
A guide for dual applicants and for anyone applying with red flags like a failed exam, a failed year, a leave of absence or a disability.
Read the postApplying to Medical School as a Non-Traditional Applicant
Real questions from a Reddit AMA on extracurriculars, clinical hours, gap years, GPA, MCAT timing and work-life balance, answered for a holistic application.
Read the postExtracurricular Activities for Medical School and Residency Applications
How to approach volunteering, paid clinical work, research and shadowing so your activities build one coherent application.
Read the postResidency Ranking Tips
How to build your rank list, from a 2024 match applicant and current psychiatry chief resident.
Read the postResidency Interview Tips & Prep
How to prepare for the residency interview, written as a PGY1 in psychiatry by a successful 2024 match applicant.
Read the postExploring the Impactful Experiences Box in the ERAS Residency Application
How to use the Impactful Experiences box to address health challenges, Step or COMLEX failures and financial insecurity.
Read the postMedical School Personal Statement: A Journey from the Dojo to Medicine
Her own medical school personal statement, tracing the path from martial arts leadership to caregiving and patient-centred care.
Read the postPersonal Statement for Medical School
A personal statement built on elderly care, and the moment a caregiver's view of a patient changed.
Read the postMedical School Personal Statement: The Impact of Caregiving
A personal statement for applying to medical school as a non-traditional premed who was a caregiver for the elderly.
Read the postAccommodations, leave of absence and chronic illness
Requesting what you need, disclosing what you choose to, and stepping away when you have to.
Disability Disclosure in Medicine: Residency Applications
The pros and cons of disclosing a disability, how residency programs respond, and practical tips for applications and interviews.
Read the postConsiderations Before Taking a Leave of Absence (LOA) from Medical School
Types of leave, the reasons people take one, the financial and academic consequences, and what it means for residency applications.
Read the postGuide to Disability Accommodations in Medical School & Residency
How to request accommodations, what your legal protections are, and how to navigate clinical environments with a disability.
Read the postHow to be an ally for people with disabilities
Disability identity, language and communication, from someone who has been a person with invisible disabilities, a case manager, a family member and a future MD.
Read the postLiving with Chronic Medical Conditions as a Clinical Medical Student
Journal entries written during clinical rotations while she was having chronic pain flares.
Read the postLOA: Returning to Medical School or Extending My Leave of Absence
Weighing a return to clinical years against extending a leave of absence, and what healing and self-advocacy looked like.
Read the postEndometriosis, infertility and pelvic pain
Her own diagnosis and treatment, plus the research and lectures she has gathered along the way.
Understanding Fertility Preservation: Reasons and Options Explored
Why people preserve eggs or embryos, from diminishing ovarian reserve to cancer treatment and transgender transition, and the options available now.
Read the postMy Ovarian Follicle Stimulation & Preservation Journey
The costs, the side effects and the emotional weight of going through follicle stimulation and retrieval during medical school.
Read the postPelvic Pain Insights from Medical Experts | Lecture Series
Conditions that cause pelvic pain and how they are treated, from an OBGYN residency lecture by vulvodynia expert Dr. Kiran Sigmon, MD, plus recommended reading.
Read the postInsights from the 2023 ISSWSH Conference: Advancements in Women's Sexual Health Research
Key research from the 2023 conference of the International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health, from sexual response models to treating sexual pain disorders.
Read the postSecrets to Getting Infertility Treatment Covered
What she learned about getting infertility and IVF medications fully covered through student health insurance.
Read the postNavigating the Hidden Costs of "Fully Covered" Infertility Treatment
The out-of-pocket costs and coverage limits that appear even when treatment is called fully covered, and how she pushed back.
Read the postThe Unchosen Path: Navigating Medical Challenges Beyond Our Control
Living with endometriosis and infertility, choosing treatment, carrying the cost, and advocating for your own health inside a system that resists it.
Read the postCoping with IVF Disappointment: Understanding Failed Embryo Development
Grief, frustration and self-blame after failed embryo development, and the decision to keep going.
Read the postThe hidden curriculum, year by year
First year, third year, money, teaching, and the parts nobody puts in the handbook.
MS1 Year: Medical School Resources
First year from the inside: what to prioritise academically, how to protect your mental health, and how to keep your relationships intact.
Read the postPre-Med and Medical School Finances
The real cost of applying to and attending medical school on a lower income, from living expenses to licensing exams to unexpected setbacks.
Read the postClinical Rotations: The Hidden Curriculum
Ten lessons from the M3 clinical year: the unspoken rules, the protocols nobody teaches you, and a set of rules for getting through rotations.
Read the postResidents as Teachers of Medical Students
How to mentor, teach and evaluate medical students, and the steps of medical education a resident is expected to know.
Read the postSurviving the Taboos of Medical School
The subjects medical school avoids: mental health, failing exams, accommodations, taking a leave of absence and managing money.
Read the postOvercoming Anxiety and Imposter Syndrome: Journey of a 3rd Year Medical Student
Seeking validation while doubting yourself, and what self-acceptance actually looked like in third year.
Read the postFinancial Traumas during Medical School
Facing financial hardship during a leave of absence, from the grocery store to the creative ways she made the month work.
Read the postFinding Purpose Amidst Uncertainty: A Reflection Before the Pandemic
A reflection written before COVID-19 on finding purpose in medical school, and how it led to the founding of the Chicago Homelessness and Health Response Group for Equity.
Read the postChildhood trauma, mental health and who you are
The narrative medicine end of the blog. Some of these posts discuss suicide and disordered eating.
Navigating Affirmative Action: A Latina Medical Student's Perspective
Affirmative action, racial disparity and diversity in medicine, and what race means for admissions, education and patient outcomes.
Read the postExploring Implicit Bias in Transgender Perception: A Personal Journey
A personal account of implicit bias, plus gender affirmation resources from clothing options to healthcare guidelines.
Read the postFor Years I Pretended To Be White - My Reality with Racism
Hiding her heritage, confronting bias, and what systemic racism looks like from inside medical training.
Read the postNavigating Suicidal Ideation: A Journey from Darkness to Hope
Recognising warning signs, understanding risk and protective factors, and asking for help. You are not alone.
Read the postNavigating Trauma and Body Image: Journey with Disordered Eating
How emotional abuse shaped body image and eating, the signs of an eating disorder, and where to find support.
Read the postUnderstanding the Impact of Childhood Trauma on Mental Health: A Personal Journey
How Adverse Childhood Experiences shaped anxiety and sense of self, and what the road toward healing looked like.
Read the postOutline of My Future Book: Trauma's Impact on My Health & Life
The working outline for her book on Adverse Childhood Experiences, trauma and their effect on health.
Read the postPatients, psychiatry and clinical medicine
De-identified cases and rotations, written to teach and to reduce stigma.
Calling a Code White on a Forensic Psychiatry Unit
What happened when a patient turned on her, and what a code white looks like on a forensic psychiatry unit.
Read the postNavigating Death and Dying: A Reflection on Loss and Healing
Grief through a caregiver's eyes: coping, the stages of grief, end-of-life care and resources for getting through it.
Read the postManaging Opioid Withdrawal with Suboxone
A teaching case on Suboxone dosing in the emergency room, covering precipitated withdrawal and opioid receptor mechanisms.
Read the postCreating a Functional Limb from a Forearm
Nine hours in the operating room to build an extremity from another part of the body, and what it meant for the patient.
Read the postWatching the heart flatline
A cardiac surgery rotation, an open chest, and the moment the heart slows and stops.
Read the postUnderstanding Trauma-Informed Care: Essential Strategies for Healthcare Providers
Practical strategies for building trust, making room for emotion and working with inter-professional teams, drawn from real patient interactions.
Read the postAn Inside Look into Catatonia and Electro-convulsive therapy (ECT)
One patient's catatonia and her recovery with ECT, written to educate and to reduce the stigma around both.
Read the postUnderstanding Substance Use Concerns: A Comprehensive Guide
Stigma in the medical system, the barriers to treatment, and what recovery and support actually involve.
Read the postPatient Examples Demonstrating the Significance of the Mind-Body Connection in Medicine
Three patients: seizures with depression, altered mental status with catatonia, and metastatic cancer with self-blame.
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