Paging Dr. H

See this picture? Its me standing in front of the Dunedin School of Medicine at the University of Otago. My dad took it after I interviewed for a place in medical school. I was crazy nervous, but thought I would be facetious and get one of me 'praying' for a spot :)
On monday I found out I was accepted. So I guess God heard my prayers!

A lot has brought me to this place.
When I was 15 I read a book called the Hospital By the River. It was about a husband & wife team who were doctors, moved to Ethiopia and changed the lives of thousands of women who suffered from birth injuries. I decided I wanted to do that. Then someone told me you couldn't be a mother and a doctor, that I had to choose. I didn't want to give up being a mother so I decided to do nursing. Then I met all of these incredible women who were also doctors. They worked part time and had wonderful relationships with their kids. They were fulfilled and passionate and challenged every day. I then found Mothersinmeicine.com which is a forum of women in medicine all around the world, and how they manage to make it work. It inspired me.
Most of all, my husband inspired me. He encouraged me to pursue my dreams, and pushed me when I got scared/nervous/worried. He wanted this so bad for me, and his support has meant the world to me. I am here, because of him.

I thought I would share with you what I shared with the panel regarding what nursing has taught me and the type of doctor I want to be.

"Working as a nurse the past three years has shown me more than ever that I want to be a doctor. I have discovered that I genuinely love working with people and seeing their quality of life improved. However, I have found that there is something missing. While I love the bedside role of nursing, I found myself longing to master the pathology of my patients diseases and their treatment from a scientific perspective. As a result, I see medicine as the only career that will allow me to both care for patients and remain true to my interests and abilities. Blending these passions as a doctor will also enable me to make a bigger difference in their lives, by taking on that more decision making role, and assuming the overall responsibility of what kind of care that patient will receive.

Secondly, I have seen what it means to to care for patients, and what it means to treat the whole person. an effective doctor can do in not just improving physical health but improving a patients mental, emotional and spiritual health as well. When you improve the wellbeing of someone it not only affects them, but their family as well. Which I believe has a ripple affect into the community, which is rewarding and why medicine seems really appealing to me. I have also noticed that the prevention and treatment of disease is truly a joint effort between a doctor and the patient. This type of relationship is one that involves trust, and interpersonal skills, which I believe I have and why I want to take on the role of becoming a doctor.

Finally, everyday I put my patients first, but I feel like I work in a system that does not. Whilst the New Zealand health care system provides much better access to care than the U.S, ensuring a health system is functioning well has a much greater impact on a patient than just one provider. Medicine is appealing to me, as beyond the 1:1 patient contact and interpersonal relationships of your own practice, there is a place for health care policy development, academic involvement and facilitating medical research. Integrating all of these spheres into a working life would allow me to operate in a much larger scope than I ever could currently as a nurse. This would allow for a fulfilling career, one that would never be short of challenges and opportunities to keep me engaged – which in end, will cause be to be a better caregiver down the road."

Yes I have fears and the thought of moving to New Zealand in six months, starting in a whole new city, finding Noah a job, getting through the hefty medical study and fitting babies into the mix is TERRIFYING. However, I want to look back at my life and know that Noah and I took risks. That we didn't take the easy road (what is safest financially, what is the least time consuming, what doesn't involve as much sacrifice).Because the easy road leads to a diminished life. with regrets.

The ROAD NOT TAKEN however, leads to growth. character. depth. fulfillment. passion. trust. faith.
And a beautiful, well-lived life.

I hope you will partner with us in this crazy adventure. I hope it encourages you to run towards your dreams, and to take the time to discover who you are and what you have to offer the world.

Hindsight

I *LOVE* Summer. Especially when I live in a state that feels like the polar arctic five to six months of the year.
Its also been especially sweet because Noah graduated at the end of June with his Masters degree, and while he was looking for work we had lots of wonderful precious time together! Whenever I was home from work, hubs was there. So we had lots of time to go on dates, talk and hang out. I don't know if we will ever get time like that again, besides from vacation time my husband takes, and I am so glad we had it.

However, everything is clear with hindsight. During the three months hubs didn't have a job and was looking for one, it was really hard. We had all this time to talk, but we were well aware of all of our upcoming expenses with possibly having an international move in six months. Noah pretty much never worries, so we spent a lot of hours of Amy being worried and Noah telling her that everything was going to be ok. In my heart I knew that this time together was special and needed to be enjoyed, but then I would become overwhelmed at being a one income family and thinking of how we really needed Noah to get a job. I wish I could look back and think, "man I enjoyed every single minute of our summer and didn't waste a second". But I did. On worry, anxiety, fear, sadness. Its embarrassing. It drove my husband crazy. I wish I could have my husbands optimism and trust. But that's why I have him, to make me a better person.

And you know what? Noah has a job now. We have two incomes. Everything IS ok. I wish I just could have relaxed and enjoyed it. Not put stress on my husband.
I hope I look back on this time and lesson and remember to not waste what is in front of me. That wherever I am, to BE there. Not in the past. Not in the future. But just present within the season at hand.



Some photos of our summer activities....

Picking strawberries
Enjoying lunch at my favorite organic & local french bakery
Paddle Boarding!
Saturday morning at the Farmers market by the Mississippi river

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Redefining 'All'

Reposted from my favorite blog, Mothers In Medicine. http://www.mothersinmedicine.com/

Can Women Have It All? Depends On How You Define All.

I just finished the just profoundly awesome article Why Women Still Can't Have It All by Anne-Marie Slaughter, in this month's Atlantic. This is the article that has all the buzz going about professional women and work/life balance.
It has taken me a full week to finish this article, reading in bits and snatches before work, between patients and after work. I finally got through all 6 pages. Totally worth it. She says what I have been feeling and trying to voice to the women coming up the ranks of training in medicine.

Though I disagree with one fundamental point. She feels that most women can't Have It All, and by All seems she means breaking into the higher echelons of their professions, making the highest possible achievements. I agree with her on this.

My feeling is that All can mean something else. All, to me, means achieving total personal and professional fulfillment. And this does not have to mean being the CEO/ Secretary of State/ Department Chair/ Nobel Prizewinner.
When I am asked advice by pre-meds or medical students considering a career path, I hedge my response based on their answer to my questions-- "Do you have or want to have a family? And do you want to spend time with them?"

There are few professions that require as much schooling as medicine. It took a long time for women to get into those schools, to break into the profession. Women now comprise 50% or more of the students entering medical schools. However, we still don't see many women in positions of power in medicine or in certain subspecialties. While women in medicine has been a long time coming, women in power positions in medicine, and women in certain subspecialties, may be a long time coming yet. The basic reason? The paths to those positions mean too great a sacrifice at the expense of a family.

I wish I could say to any of these incredibly bright, hardworking, determined women that "Hey, with enough brains and hard work and determination you go anywhere in medicine!" But that's bull, and Anne-Marie Slaughter says so in the pages of the Atlantic.

But they can have it All.

If All means achieving personal and professional fulfillment, of finding that elusive work/ home balance, then I'd say, it's entirely possible, but think it through very carefully. Look to the future- Look to the women who are working and practicing doing what you want to do. What kinds of positions are available? Is anyone working part-time? Are family values promoted and respected? Would you be expected to be at work and working endless hours? Is there a lot of call? Would you need to go into the hospital unexpectedly? Etc etc.

If women have or envision having a family someday, I ask them to think really hard about the kind of life they imagine. What kind of a partner do they or will they have-- is this someone who can stay home when the baby is sick/ it's a snow day/ there's an unexpected holiday/ they are sick? What kind of partner and mother do they want to be-- do they want to be present, participating, reassuring, enjoying family dinner, tucking in? If so, can that vision fit with the lifestyle of the specialty they're considering?

When I was interviewing for jobs four years ago, I had just come out of a research fellowship, and I knew that life wasn't for me. Very competitive, getting those grants. I also saw women MDs who aspired to be Heads of Something, or Experts in Something Else, and I knew I didn't want to do that either. I knew I wanted to focus on family as my priority, and to work part-time at a clinical practice with a good "vibe": supportive, flexible, mom- friendly.

I had to really search. I hired a professional job headhunter guy. He kept sending me listings. Some places wanted me to work 10 clinical sessions a week! Others had 1 week of call a month. Ugh.

Now, I'm a part-time internist, with two little kids. I was lucky to have found work in a small, progressive practice, 5 sessions a week, with 1 week of call every 3 months. The vibe? Well, just this morning, I met with my practice head and explained our situation:

Our two-year-old isn't talking. He's been diagnosed with severe delays in receptive and expressive communication, as well as some cognitive delay. He's eligible for all kinds of services. We'll be taking him to speech therapy and group therapy at least... and before that, he needs hearing testing, a developmental eval, etc. We'd also like to get him into some other activities to help him start communicating. This will all take some time, and time involves rearranging my work schedule. Like, dropping my Friday afternoon clinic.

My boss was great. There was no issue here. The support was 100% there.

All, to me, is where I am. Yes, I had to search this place out. Yes, there is tweaking here and there. I'll be glad for a promotion and a raise when it comes. I'll be glad for some adjustments to my schedule; a decrease in clinical time and an increase in admin time. Work sometimes edges into home, and home into work; I think that is natural and inevitable. But I consider all of that to be fine-tuning of an otherwise really excellent arrangement.

Can All be as easily achieved in all the areas of medicine? I don't think so, not yet. So my advice to those making their way up the ranks is to think about what will bring you personal and professional fulfillment, and to work towards a healthy work/ home life balance.

It may be that practice arrangements like mine in medicine are few and far between, but I see them popping up here and there in primary care. Where they are not, then shift work, as in Emergency or Hospitalist work, may be far more inviting to the aspiring physician-mother.

But maybe someone is driven to be the Head of a Department or the Expert in Something, and they feel they will not be happy or fulfilled until they have made the achievement; AND they want to have a family.... In that case, I think the choice of a partner, living close to extended family, and a very organized schedule could help... Personally, I don't believe that these external professional achievements give one true life satisfaction. I think many of us start off thinking they do, and hope they do, but then realize, they don't. Family does.

My way of seeing this: I was trained to do a hard job that I loved. I also wanted to have a strong, healthy family. So for me, I chose carefully. Now, I am doing the job I trained to do and that I love, I do it well, in a great hospital and positive environment. I also spend alot of quality time with my two little kids and my husband and my extended family. "Alot" to me is what I need. I get the time I need with my family.

So I feel very lucky. I have it All. I think we all can, even in medicine, but it takes looking to the future, thinking hard, being honest, and choosing carefully.

A sad day for the Church

Could say so much, as I feel so embarrassed as a christian about the whole Chick-Fil-A political/social/religious whatever you call it. However, this article says a lot about how I feel about it. Again, the church fails to love, and runs people over with a cause.



5 Reasons Why the Church Failed Yesterday

Posted by MATTHEW PAUL TURNER on Thursday, August 2, 2012 · 1,221 Comments

Thousands and thousands and thousands of people proudly lined up to support Mike Huckabee’s “Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day” yesterday. By all accounts, it was a successful campaign, perhaps one of Huckabee’s most memorable actions, a deed that might warrant etching “#ChickFilA” on his tombstone so future Americans will learn of the greatness that occurred on August 1, 2012.

Many of yesterday’s appreciators were born again Christians, people who, I can only assume, claim to love God, put their trust in Jesus, and have a desire that all people hear and experience the Good News of Christ. That fact alone changes the headline of what happened yesterday.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure Chick-Fil-A owners felt loved, made lots of money, and greatly appreciated the somewhat positive press they received all day long. And yes, Mike Huckabee has reason to be proud (dare I say, even cocksure?) of the influence he wields to get Americans to buy chicken. Those CFA cows no doubt love Mike Huckabee!

So good for Chick-Fil-A! And three cheers for Mike Huckabee! And good tidings of great joy to cows everywhere.

Yet, amid all of that CFA-appreciating success, the Church (at least, the part that exists here in America) failed miserably. Every member of the Church isn’t to blame, of course. Many individual churches and denominations played no role whatsoever in promoting yesterday’s Great Chicken Awakening. Some Christians, churches, and denominations even tried to throw a social media wrench into the festivities. Some of those attempts went viral and garnered a great deal of attention. But still, chicken-loving Christians everywhere rallied behind CFA yesterday. The crowds were so big that you might have thought that Chick-Fil-A was giving away free iPads or Cabbage Patch Dolls or freshly fallen manna from Heaven. And while lots of Christians chose not to participate for various reasons, many did and the Church as a whole suffered.

Here’s why.

ONE

Yesterday’s campaign, while I don’t think it should be considered or called “hate,” neither can it be called love. Christians all over America ignored the second greatest commandment: to love our neighbors. Call yesterday what you want, freedom of speech, a rally behind “family values,” a sincere fascination with CFA’s brand of fried poultry… but it cannot be called love. It was not love.

TWO

People felt hate and we ignored that. At the end of the day, regardless of whether or not your Christian understanding of scripture harbors hate or not, a large group of people felt hated. Again, we can debate this point all day long, but that does not change the fact that people felt hatred because of what happened yesterday. Whether or not hate actually existed is not the point, people felt hated. And rather than acknowledging those feelings or trying to understand or engage them in any way, Christians everywhere marched off to their local CFA like it was a cross to bear, a necessity, a battle cry of some sort, the waffle fry’s last stand.

THREE

By rallying behind CFA, Christians put an issue above people. And it’s impossible to follow Jesus when issues trump people. Jesus never said “love God, love causes.” That is not the message that gets preached in churches all over America on Sunday mornings. I’ve heard a hundred different explanations from patrons of yesterday’s rally and nearly every one of them gives precedence to “the cause”. We can’t embrace love, mercy, hope, and peace when our causes (or a place of business) trumps people.

FOUR

Once again, the mass actions of Christians built another wall of distrust between the Church and the GLBTQ communities. Nobody was surprised that the CEO of CFA is against gay marriage. Nobody was surprised that Mike Huckabee made the decision to rally support behind CFA. And nobody was surprised that Christians took Huckabee’s words as marching orders, leading the charge with more passion, delight, and Instagram pictures than what we express for so many more important issues facing this country. If Mike Huckabee had declared yesterday “Homeless Appreciation Day,” would the response have been even half as large and loud? Yes, I know; that’s an unfair question. But we’re Christians, so we’re very familiar with the use of unfair questions to make a point.

Once in a while, our culture needs to be surprised by how much we love people–all people. Once in a while, our culture needs to be overwhelmed with joy that we are involved in the greater story. Once in a while, our culture needs to see us being a part of the solution and not the problem. But yesterday? There were no surprises. And no surprises only builds more distrust, not peace, not grace, not hope, and not love.

FIVE

Yesterday’s hoopla surrounding CFA did nothing to prove that Christians don’t hate gay people. Oh I know that most Christians will say, “I don’t hate gay people!!”

But did supporting CFA Appreciation Day prove that?

Trust me, I understand that most people who ate chicken sandwiches at CFA yesterday did not do that as an act of hate. I get that. And that’s cool and all, but did the act of going out of your way to CFA prove that to be true? Do you think that the GLBTQ communities believe you? Would you, if you were gay, believe you?

Now before you answer that, remember that yesterday’s CFA Love Day was just one action in a long line of many. Because let’s face it: Christians go WAY out of their way to “hate the sin”–i.e., by voting against gay marriage, voting against civil unions, voicing their angst about gay people adopting children (just to list a few). Is it possible that Christians lose the ability to truly “love the sinner” because they’re so busy “hating the sin”? Do Christians put anywhere near the energy into “loving the sinner” as they do “hating the sin”?

All I know is that the GLBTQ communities are becoming quite used to feeling unloved by Christians. And with good reason.

How many times do we hear Christians say something like, “I don’t hate gay people. I may not agree with their lifestyle. But I don’t hate them… “

If you were gay, would you believe that? Think about it. Would you feel loved by somebody if they included rules, context, and/or explanations about your lifestyle every time they spoke about how much they don’t hate you? Only when talking about gay people do Christians feel the need to preface their “love” or “non-hate” with some variation of “I don’t agree with your lifestyle, but…” Christians don’t talk about any other group of people like that–only gay people.

So, I want to believe Christians when they say “I don’t hate gay people.” But sometimes proof of that is necessary. And yesterday did not prove that. Honestly, yesterday proved little more than how shallow Christians can be sometimes.

Not only did supporting CFA Appreciation Day declare that Christians believe that an issue is more important than people, that declaration was made by the mass consumption of junk food. That fact doesn’t need a punch line. It is a punch line.

Yes, on some level, yesterday was successful. I’m sure that today CFA feels really loved. And I’m sure Mike Huckabee feels loved, too. And I’m sure lots of people, many Christians included, feel great pride for supporting the cause. But there’s also a large group of people, good people, people you might disagree with, that today, feel really unloved.

If it’s true that Christians don’t hate gay people, today would be a really good day to prove it.

Seasons of Change

I sometimes feel like I am always making these huge life decisions. Like change follows my shadow. I can look back and savor those few months here and there when life was just...stable. There were no big decisions to be made, I was just living in the season.

Five years ago I decided to move to the U.S. Then I decided to stay and do nursing school. Then I met Noah and we decided to get engaged. Then decided to get married in New Zealand. Before we got married Noah decided to apply to graduate school. That led us to Minnesota.

For about a year life was simple. Noah was in graduate school. I was working as a nurse and finishing my bachelors. Life had purpose and direction. There was no worry about the future because we just knew we have to be here and get 'er done.
Sigh. That was then.

In May Noah graduated - which meant that our season, and reason for being in Minnesota, had ended. And thus our season of transition, again, has arrived.

We are in a flurry of change related activity. Pending the outcome of a graduate school application I have in New Zealand, we are preparing to move back home. Noah is applying for NZ residency, I am applying for a NZ nursing license and Noah is looking for work. We are doing research about moving companies, looking into living situations and planning our travel. Its intense! and soooo much paperwork!

Its also really expensive. NZ nursing license: $500. Residency application: $1200. Medical exam: $300. FBI clearance cards $60. IELTS exam for nursing: $185. Plus passport photos, notorized documents, courier fees and FLIGHTs! arrg, I could think of so many fun vacations we could have gone on right now.

Its also hard because we are feeling like right now we are preparing for this huge change, but we don't even know if its going to happen. If I don't get accepted into the grad programme, we probably won't move right away.
We want to stay, save money and travel. But we certainly don't want to stay in the Midwest (no THANKS!).
Which means a cross country move (because we love the Northwest!) and new jobs.

We are so ready for change, but powerless to really do anything about it right now.
I feel like I am in this wierd transition period where nothing is happening but we know something will, so we have to prepare for it, but we can't really.
Confusing right?!?!

I am learning a lot about myself and about being content in all seasons, even this one. I also am being forced to let go of things that I cannot control and trust that God will take care of us no matter what.

I think that's always going to be a season that I am in.

{Projects}

I wanted to show you some of my fun summer projects.

The first is me re-painting a set of drawers I picked up at a garage sale a few months ago. It was an icky mustard yellow color with bulky brass handles. I followed the Young House Love tutorial here : http://www.younghouselove.com/2009/02/how-to-paint-furniture/

I chose low VOC paint (worth the extra few dollars to save you from breathing in harsh chemicals forever) in Antique Grey. I also primed with low VOC primer.
I found cute glass handles at Home Depot and they look perfect!

Really wanted a set at Anthropologie but seeing that those handles alone would have been triple what I paid for the whole dang drawer set, I decided against it.

Before:



After:





{PROJECT NUMERO DOS}

After picking the first harvast of summer strawberries at our favorite orchard, I also attempted my first batch of home-made jam.
Per my Grandma's advice, I followed the directions on the SureGel box. She has always had the freshest, yummiest jam and I wanted to relive my childhood memories.

Pretty much this is how it goes:
1) have fun buying super cute 8oz mason jars with lids
2) Sterilize said jars and lids in boiling water, wash with soap before.
3) Mash up strawberries (2 cups for my recipe)
4) Mix a (ridiculous amount) of sugar in with the strawberries
5) Heat pectin with water
6) Mix pectin with strawberry mix
7) Boil mixture for two minutes, never stop stirring!
8) Pour into sterilized (and still hot!) jars
9) seal jars quickly, leave out at room temp for 24 hours
10) Freeze for up to 1 year, refrigerate for three weeks (thaw out in the fridge!)

It turned out just as expected, and husband is overjoyed. The nurse in me is slightly petrified about getting ecoli/listeria/salmonella poisoning knowing that can still incubate in the freezer and then grow when thawed....but I am just not going to think about that right now! (or ever....)

Summer is here!

So summer is here! and it has brought with it many wonderful memories so far. Our second year anniversary, and my first attempt at home-made jam for one (or two?)!
Hubs has been busy plugging away completing his thesis and he is finally done. His defense is in two weeks.

I have been working full time, soaking up the summer sun as much as possible, and things keep coming along with medical school dreams....

For our two year anniversary we had coffee in the morning, a walk in the flower gardens, and then lunch at a fancy schmancy steak house. It was a blast. I love Noah more than I did the day we married, but in a different way than I did the day we said "I do". We have made it through the fire and class V rapids, and his dedication, commitment and love for me gives me butterflies deep down in my soul. We just feel like an old married couple now, and I love that feeling of contentment and routine. He's my partner and we will forever be side by side. Hopping into bed at night with him still makes me feel excited. I just love that.

on one of our car trips we were listening to the radio and this awesome song came on. Hubs and I started singing it together, and it was like reading our vows all over again!

{I won't give up: Jason Mraz)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1-4u9W-bns











When I look into your eyes
It's like watching the night sky
Or a beautiful sunrise
There's so much they hold
And just like them old stars
I see that you've come so far
To be right where you are
How old is your soul?

I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up

And when you're needing your space
To do some navigating
I'll be here patiently waiting
To see what you find

'Cause even the stars they burn
Some even fall to the earth
We've got a lot to learn
God knows we're worth it
No, I won't give up

I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily
I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make
Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use
The tools and gifts we got yeah, we got a lot at stake
And in the end, you're still my friend at least we did intend
For us to work we didn't break, we didn't burn
We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in
I had to learn what I've got, and what I'm not
And who I am

I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
Still looking up.