Career Talks
I watched Oprah 2 weeks ago when she announced that the program would present "the secret" to making more money, losing weight, finding the love of your life, and achieving job success. The essence of The Secret by Rhonda Byrne is "the law of attraction." Everything in the Universe vibrates on a particular frequency. When you think in harmony with the frequency of something, you attract it to you. If you think about wealth, you will receive wealth. If you think instead about your debt, you will receive more debt. You attract what you think about; your thoughts determine your destiny. According to this idea, we alone are responsible for each and every thing that happens to us, not because of the actions we take, but the thoughts and energy we project. So remember the process: ask, believe, and then receive. To cut the long story short, I have been preparing for this for a long time. When I entered Pisay for high school, I did it with the thought that I could enter UP Diliman easier then go to Medical school. Just 4 days ago, I finally got my PRC license to practice Medicine in the Philippines. I was only in Kinder when I said I wanted to be a doctor, and I worked hard all my life to get to where I am now. Never mind the difficulties or intrigues along the way. I viewed them not as a hindrance to my goal but as a challenge that I wanted to do better, to be better. My close friends all know that ever since 2nd year in Medicine, I wanted to be a dermatologist. Hindi dahil sa kaartehan or dahil sabi nila benign. People think that going to the Derma means facials and getting injections or medications for your acne. I think they are misinformed. I've had keratosis pilaris since I was a kid and ever since, I've been going to different dermatologists for half of my life. 6 UP-trained doctors to be exact. It helped me deal with issues I had with myself and my self-esteem. It helped me view and learn about my disease and I was literally "consumed" by it. To the point that it was my goal in life to help patients who "suffered" as much as I did. Less than a month ago, we took the same Internal Medicine exam as the 96 IM applicants and 58 Dermatology applicants. I tried to Study for it but who can read 2 volumes of Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine in 5 days? Certainly not me! Last Wednesday morning (Sept 5), I had my interview with 7 PGH Dermatology consultants and the Chief resident... and that same afternoon submitted my application to Makati Medical Center. Both Training Institutions have their own strengths but it has always been my goal to train in PGH. Loyalty award na nga dapat eh! I had coffee with Sir Norman last Sat and again his question for me was "Ano ba talaga gusto mo? Derma or PGH?" because I really didn't know what to do with my life. He offered me some options if I dont get accepted like working in a Pharmaceutical company, moonlighting, do Research, apply for a teaching position. I wanted to do it all.. hindi ko alam kung paano.
I just came from Makati Medical Center today for their Dermatology Residency Qualifying Examination. It was a 100 item exam based on the book, Andrews' Diseases of the Skin which was scheduled from 7:30 - 9 am. We left feeling bewildered by the questions. It was partly my fault. I was reading around 30 pages only for four days. I knew that I had been trying to read close to 400 pages yesterday in an effort to cram information. Most of the diseases in this book were foreign to me. I had a lot to learn!
And as I was on Quirino Avenue on my way home, my cellphone rang. Unknown number.
"We're pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to the Dermatology Residency Program in PGH. Congratulations.. etc."
I froze for literally 5 minutes in disbelief. I wanted to shout for joy pero nahihiya naman ako sa Chief Resident baka isipin niya hehe ang jologs..
You can imagine my exhilaration now. Let me breathe for a moment to let it all sink in :) In 2 weeks, my life has changed.
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