changing lanes?

Career-wise, that is. I'm thinking about it. I've been the "peds girl" almost since the beginning of medical school...I've always had a heart for the kiddos. Then second year, I entertained the notion of "triple boarding" (in pediatrics, psychiatry and child psychiatry). I've had a heart for children with eating disorders for a long time, and working at diabetes camp during medical school showed me how prevalent mood disorders are in the type 1 diabetic population (as well as in other kiddos with chronic diseases). I thought training in peds and psych would really help me if I wanted to work with either of those populations.

As third year has progressed, I realize that my favorite parts of medicine are the communication aspects. The physical exam, ordering and interpreting studies...that's all fun and great...procedures aren't really thrilling to me...but I am always most invested in my patients psychosocial issues. Hmmm. So that got me to thinking about psychiatry...which I haven't actually taken yet. We'll see if I like it. I'm pretty sure I would specialize in child and adolecent if I do it, which obviously remains to be seen.

Already I've encountered some of the stigma against psychiatry in the medical field. Some of my classmates ask, "won't you miss the medicine?" Which I understand, but really...psychiatry is a medical specialty. A lot of people are understandably surprised that after so many months of being so excited about pediatrics I could possibly change my mind.

And then some Christians think that psychiatrists are doing the work of Satan. Eeek. But that's another story.