Reach for your childhood dream

My story is not unique. I found myself in my late thirties, jumping from one part time job to another. Ten years earlier I had found myself drifting closer and closer towards college graduation without any real idea what I would do with my life. In elementary school everything was so much clearer. I was certain I would become a physician just like my father and maybe join the family practice back home in our little country town.

Well, college in the big city I guess you could say sidetracked me and I found myself looking for something completely different than what at that point in time seemed like a dull life my parents had built for themselves. I had essentially abandoned my childhood aspirations to help people when they were in need the most. I had always known this was my calling ever since I helped set my brother’s broken arm after he had fallen off the tire swing. My childhood years following this were spent caring for stray cats and the neighbor’s dog which would almost daily get scratched on the nose by our pet chicken.

High school brought more specialized learning in biology and chemistry which only increased my desire to become a physician like my father. There came a point when football had become a passion on equal footing with a future in medicine and I had to choose a path. I received an offer for scholarship at a local community college with the promise that a successful two years there on the football team would mean certain acceptance by a four year university of my choice. Two years into community college I blew out my knee on some artificial turf and the popping sound that reverberated through my torso was a sure sign that a university would not come knocking at my door with full scholarship and opportunity to go to the school of my choice. Instead I decided to live at home and attend the local 4 year university with no goal in mind. I assumed I would find my new calling while attending classes but it never seemed to come. Meanwhile, this whole time I was making regular trips to my personal physician for rehab work on my knee. Dr Johnson became a good friend and while I remember thinking about how great a career as physician would be and how that had been my dream when I was a kid, for some reason it didn’t seem like an option anymore. I finished out my four years at university and immediately found myself cycling through a series of short stays at retail and hospitality jobs.

Then one day while mopping my kitchen floor I slipped on a sponge and reinjured my knee. My personal physician had since moved on to the big city so I was assigned a physician assistant for my rehabilitation work. At the time I really hadn’t heard of the physician assistant vocation and started to quiz him about the job and education requirements. When he said that a physician assistant salary was on average about $90,000 I nearly dropped my crutch and jumped up in the air. The care he gave me and thorough attention to my injury reminded me of my childhood interest in a career as physician and the salary range didn’t sound too bad either. I did my research and found that physician assistant salary for those who only achieved an undergraduate degree was up to three figures with only about two years of physician assistant training and accreditation.

I had found a way to reclaim that childhood dream of a career as a physician without years in traditional medical school. This was my chance and I took it! Two years later, I graduated with honors from physician assistant school and landed a job in the same physician’s office my father had recently moved his practice to. I now look forward to getting to work every day. I help people when they are in need the most and have a varied workday reviewing medical records, taking blood samples, interpreting lab tests and educating patients and their families on how best to take care of themselves. I believe my story is one that proves it is never too late to go after your dreams. Go after yours!