Throughout college and into graduate school, I always felt like I was “lost at sea.”
In first year, 18-year-olds were thrown into the water to see if they would swim or sink. I’m sure many students can connect to this.
It was dangerous to “find friends at frosh,” “keep up with readings in classes with 1000+ other fish,” “learn to take care of your own health and meals,” “take ego damage as the class average rolled out at a B-,” “everyone wants to be a Doc, but not everyone will make it,” and many other things.
I felt like Nemo when he jumped into the East Australian Current without knowing how to get out or where to go. The first year went by so quickly, dude.
I was also used to being the big fish in a small pond back home. Now I was in a new city with all the Sea Anemones!
I felt lost not only in my pre-med lessons but also in life in general.
What’s the point of this? Why do I need to take Calc 2? What will getting this degree really help me with?
I realised that most of the time I had chosen to go to college and try to get into medical school by “following the other fish.”
I didn’t really think about my “WHY.” Why are you here? In this school. Taking this course. In this city. With these people.
Even more important: Why are you living this life? After I finished my undergrad, I still felt like I was “lost in academia.”
For me, it got worse when I started graduate school and really became “lost in life” when I started working.
I never really took any classes on “character development,” “aligning your values with your purpose,” or “knowing WHO you are and WHAT you stand for.”
No one ever taught me how important it was to speak up about my beliefs in school.
I felt like something was missing from my schooling that would have helped me feel like I had a compass to help me find my way when I was “lost at sea.”
I would have had a lot less trouble if I had a compass to point me in the right direction every time school made me question myself.
