Personal Narrative : A Life Changing Singularity

But out of this helplessness, came a strong desire to help and be involved in medicine. I persevered in the study of sciences, volunteering in clinical settings, and had research and internship experiences that have

I woke up and took one bite out of my pop tart but that one bite was all I could eat. My legs were shaking, and my heart was pounding. My dad told me, “It is a true honor to even make it this far so go out there and have some fun.” Once I heard this statement, I knew I was ready to go. I arrived at school and boarded the bus. The car ride was an hour and fifteen minutes of hearing the squeaking of the wheel on the bus. My teammates were getting their heads ready for the big game.

    Ever since my childhood, I have always found medicine to be intriguing. My interest first sparked when I learned about my cousin’s, Austin, illness. Austin was born nearly four months early and was diagnosed with an underdeveloped trachea and COPD. Within Austin’s first moments of life, doctors had to perform a tracheotomy. As I observed my cousin’s suffering over the years, my desire to help others was ignited. Since then, my will to help people has only grown immensely. From playing doctor to caring for my family when they are sick, my caring nature and love to help people has always been evident. All I want is the ability to help others and to make a difference. Now, my cousin has miraculously lived

A simple antibiotic, a successful bone marrow transplant, it was science and its unrelenting nature to help solve problems that soothed my ten-year-old heart. It was then that I began to fall in love with medicine. Early in my school years, I began doing research on natural, low-cost solutions to various health problems, and as I progressed through school, I was awarded multiple scholarships and awards for my research. This, I thought, was going to be my beginning of “helping save the world.”

culture. As a business student, I am no less influenced by money than the next

I was in the 7th grade and I was only 12 years old when my parents told me that we were going on a cruise. I was so excited and I could not wait to go. I asked them “ WHEN ARE WE GOING “, they said we leave in 2 months, and those were the longest 2 months of my life. Finally 2 months had past and we were finishing up packing the night before we left, I was so happy and excited that i could barely do anything.

Each day sitting in lecture, I felt as though there was an entire world, undiscovered, for me to explore. The sensation of youthful enjoyment about your studies and profession is one you often hear individuals speak of, while always secretly wondering if you will ever be so lucky, to be enamored with what others call ‘work’. I believe that I am fortunate to have found a profession, which never ceases to lend me that wonder and excitement. From a humanitarian standpoint, I believe medicine allows for some of the most unique and rewarding experiences an individual could ever wish to enjoy. To know that you have directly aided in an individual's health and well-being from the diligence, hard work, and years of practice required to become a physician is simply an unparalleled

At some point in life, there will be a time when one explores an idea of issue of personal interest in depth. That’s the real starting point since it marks the beginning of a milestone journey. It will open many new doors in one’s life. Nonetheless, with it come great responsibilities. It might sound stupid, but take a moment to really ponder it. I asked myself, “Why do I want to devote my life to a career in medicine?” The answer lies within my junior year of high school.

The only reason i went to these football games was because my friends were. This was the first time my dad drove me here though. I was very bored so i decided to go talk to my dad and there he was the varsity coach for basketball was there. As i approached they welcomed me and told me that i was going to play for him this summer on a club team.

My passion for medicine developed from my interactions with physicians as both a patient and a patient advocate. After experiencing both sides of the spectrum, I’ve discovered my love for patient care and my desire to work with the more personal fields of medicine, such as obstetrics and gynecology.

Most importantly, I realized that practicing medicine is my dream at the Spine Center. Here, I shadowed several surgeons, and at the end of each day, I could not help but smile while watching each doctor effortlessly put their patients at ease and soothe their fears. Seeing an old lady react to the good news that her back pain could be alleviated was one of the most encouraging experiences of my life, and although this type of patient accounted for only a small fraction of patients that I worked with, I was convinced that I want to practice medicine for this small joy. I continued to apply myself clinically here, but I soon realized that I could make a bigger impact in research during my undergraduate. Subsequently, I decided to develop my research

Time,the never-ending force that continues to work throughout history. Some student’s feel that time doesn’t move fast enough, although when the dreaded Finals come around, many students find that there isn’t enough time for effective studying. My time was running out as dawn quickly approached. I was sitting on my bed with my laptop as my mother opened the door to my room.

“I can’t pay my bills”. As I was screening a patient for the physician, she explained how debilitating her health problems had been. I grabbed the blood pressure monitor only to find her vitals ran well above normal at 175/122 and her blood sugar was greatly elevated as well. When I asked her about those stats, she just repeated, "I need the doctor to make me better. I have to work." After assessing the patient and sending her to the physician, the gravity of the situation struck me with sobriety. That moment put the profession of medicine into perspective for me. For that patient, medicine, and its practitioners were providing much more than treatment: they were helping her secure her livelihood and provide for her family. I had always envisioned medicine as the practice of saving lives, curing ailments, and generally improving an individual 's health. While medicine was all of those things, in that moment at the clinic it became something much bigger. Medicine was the avenue through which a physician could not only improve an individual 's health but also help transform their life outcomes. In many ways, I aspire to become the type of physician whose impact reaches beyond treating illnesses.

An incident that served as inspiration in my desire toward a career in medicine was when an impoverished family of a teenage girl from a remote village in Northern India, knocked at our doorstep requesting help in repair of their daughter’s mitral stenosis. Humbled by their request, my father made arrangements and successfully operated on her. The family touched his feet in reverence and with tears in their eyes, said “Thank you, you have given each of us a new life”. His professionalism and quest to serve the community is a standard that I strive to achieve.

It was the first day on my clinical rotations as a medical student when I read this inscribed outside one of the largest and busiest hospitals in the region and it has stayed on with me since then. My inspiration for medicine began well before my medical school, because of my mother who is a nurse. The satisfaction she had on her face after each day of work captivated me even as a young child. I realized that everything we do and learn is for serving patients, curing their disease and alleviating their suffering. It was the first time I understood that, medicine is not a profession, it is a passion, a higher calling.