Goals

Career goals(December): My current academic goals are to graduate and decide on a secondary school. I leaning toward medical school because I want to be a psychiatrist or a neurologist. I have these goals as I am very interested in mental health.  I am not super sure of anything. I am working jobs similar or close in proximity to these careers so I can observe the process, but that is increasingly hard in mental health. There is limited access for any position relatively close to either of those careers. Unlike being an ORA in which I work in the operating room with surgeons and OR nurses, there are little to no jobs for a psychiatrist. The one job that existed from a while back wanted someone who would work alone with no support. It's very hard to find a job that would allow me to work with them in any capacity. 

(Jan 27.)

My goals haven't really changed since the last time this question was asked. I have made progress toward doing more things related to my personal goals one of those things being more aware of what I can and can't do. For starters, I realize that is more important for me to prioritize rest if I want to finish coding my articles as I have been trying to finish them all in one go. There are too many to do that with, so I have made a point to take it in little chunks. That has been working better and I have completed more articles as a result of that. 

I can focus on doing well in my personal goals by focusing on understanding my neuroscience. By the end of the semester, I need to secure my internship for my major in mental health related to racism. That may have to be postponed because of the classes I am planning on taking in the summer. By this time next year, I will be preparing to go to Japan if everything goes well as well. I also need to make sure I apply for aid if it is available. 

I need to start studying for the MCAT and start doing a study group and books for it. I worry I haven't studied enough for it yet, so I am working on getting the materials.

The big thing that I need to do to succeed in my career path is to give myself a break. I realize that I have been in education for over 16 years now and I think it is nearing the time I take a break to take another look at my goals and my career outlook. I have spent too much time trying to rush things and it hasn't gone well for me as I continually have ignored myself. I have been learning lately about the importance of trusting your body and I have ignored mine for too long and it has caught up to me. I have continually made myself do too many things at once and have done them poorly. I need to do a few things at a time so that I can do them well. I know it may not seem like a big thing in regard to the question, but it is a big thing for me because I never allowed myself to take breaks. Keeping this goal SMART, I have a reasonable timeline and plan for how I will take a break and I plan to take it after graduation in 2024. It is practical and necessary for me to do this. I have a scholarship that covers 4 years of in-state tuition and housing that requires me to take 12 credits every semester. I can not take a break and come back before my degree is finished, so I will take one when I am done. I am also planning on taking the MCAT in 2023, but I want to study more before I take it. 

During winter break, I am going to relax. All of the suggested responses to put here are things I do continually. As I am in the midst of severe burnout, the best thing I can do is put myself first. I will pace myself for the semester and focus on my goals instead of worrying about myself and stressing needlessly. I feel this is important as I have never put my needs first before. I have always done what feels needed, not what feels right. Being able to rest is not something I am saying lightly.

 This spring, I will pace myself in my coursework, focus on healing, discuss moving and job plans with my family and search for available jobs related to my career in some aspect. I am looking for opportunities to delve deeper into my chosen field of addiction neuroscience, but right now I am gaining a profound understanding of the importance of mental health.

By this time next year, I will be finishing up my Japanese Degree after already finishing the remaining requirements for my neuroscience degree. In terms of my internship, I will able to say I learned a lot of transferable  skills that helped me to do this.

(January 2023)

In terms of my internship, we have made progress with the systematic review. I feel the work has been rewarding as we are able to see the progress of our involvement. There were times when I doubted I would come close to finishing one of the forty-some articles we were assigned in the beginning, but I am pleased to say I have brought that number down. In the meantime, I have rediscovered my love for painting and have painted two amazing pictures. I used to hate painting, but after taking a class with an amazing professor, I started to like it. Painting has been a great de-stressor for me and has allowed me to have fun in a schedule that hasn't allowed a lot of self-care time, but I am starting to realize that I define self-care time for myself, not my schedule. 

(Jan 27.) Internship Goals:

I am working on finishing the systematic review and helping to build the database with Dr. Fodstad. I do not know if we will have the time to start getting more involved with it, but it relates heavily to the goals I had when I started of getting exposure to clinical work in a sense. I know we wouldn't be meeting with people directly, but rather going through data which I think will interesting to learn about. 

Career Goals(Febuary 2023)

This summer I will be studying for the MCAT as well as taking 9 credit hours to graduate by the Summer of 2024. I wanted to start studying in January as that would have given me five months, but sadly, my plans were delayed and I started studying in Feburary. It was unavoidable as there were a lot on my plate at the time family-wise and school-wise. Still, my team has cheered me on and I have gained a lot of support from my friends and collegues about my pursuits. 

My internship has confirmed my career planning journey and goals as they have helped me think out my planning for that time. A lot of my plans are dependent on how the summer semester goes and how January 2024 works out, but even then, I want to make sure I am ready in every way possible. I feel that I have done that the best I can. I want to tell myself that it is okay if things don't work out at first because if they are meant to happen, they will happen. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard, and I feel that I can be a hard worker when I first am able to take care of my needs.

I feel confident using my self-knowledge and preferences to make career-related decisions. I feel I need to ask more questions and visit PREPs as soon as possible. I actually am hoping to meet with a MCAT advisor soon, so I am looking forward to that.