Session 99 In today’s episode, Ryan hosts the show along with Allison as they talk about juggling family life and being a physician. Being still new in the parenting game and working as physicians, Ryan and Allison share their thoughts, their struggles, and experiences in each phase of their medical path. It all boils down to doing the things that you love, choosing the lifestyle style that you want, and finding that balance between family and school/career to make it all work out. Here are some key points that Ryan and Allison discussed in this episode: The premed world as a nontraditional student How a traditional premed path can be hard if you have a family or children Allison’s premed path: Starting college at 17 years old in Canada How Canada has a different culture especially in Montreal Dealing with a rigorous environment at McGill University Studying all weekend to prepare her well for medical school Family life = none Lack of balance with so much science courses Ryan’s premed path: Went to University of Florida (a high party school but has a good academic environment too) Priorities in college and focusing on what’s important Appreciating the hours you have in a day and maximizing them A good resource on setting priorities in your life: Getting Things Done by David Allen Looking carefully at what your program is going to be like The Medical School Years How residency is a beast Not impossible to have children and be a medical student The common theme from premed through residency: the need for support Studying for so many hours vs. spending time with your baby and children The challenges when you’re on your ward years Third year as the most challenging year, not having the luxury of time Fourth year as a big time for considering marriage or having a baby The gaps and breaks where you can have more time with your family Having a family while being a medical student is doable, but be prepared. Plan ahead of time. Residency How residency is a bigger beast Why it’s the most insane time in Allison’s life Things in residency that you’re going to be deprived of The importance of residency Managing your time given the average 80-hour work week Factoring in the time you spend for eating, showering, sleeping, etc. Factoring in the administrative things you need to deal with Dealing with all the commitments The changes in responsibility from being a medical student to being a resident or intern Having a family at this stage is doable but you need support Choosing your specialty Specialties that require a bit less of your time Think about the lifestyle you want to have Specialties reported as having the highest scales of happiness at home and work according to the 2014 Physician Lifestyle Report by Medscape Specialties that you don’t get called in often Planning and thinking ahead Some pieces of advice for premed students: Plan, plan, plan. Figure out what you’re going to do and who are the people who are going to help you in every stage. There are challenges at every single phase. You’ve got to love what you’re doing because you’ll find ways to make everything work. Links and Other Resources: MSHQ podcast episode 61 - Medical School Mom – Prioritizing Family, School and More Getting Things Done by David Allen 2014 Physician Lifestyle Report by Medscape Free MCAT gift - 30+ page report all about MCAT tips and strategies plus discount codes for some test prep Listen to our podcast for free at iTunes: medicalschoolhq.net/itunes Stitcher: medicalschoolhq.net/stitcher SoundCloud: medicalschoolhq.net/soundcloud