Have a school-, career- or life-related question for Health Nuts? Leave it in the comments or email healthnutsblog@gmail.com.
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I've always wanted to be a doctor but am having second thoughts about going through med school. Nursing is the only other think I can think of, but I'm not sure it's for me. Can you suggest some other fields where I'd still get to work with patients? -Amy
Sure! There are tons -- TONS -- of other medical careers out there that will still allow you to work with patients and make a difference. From respiratory therapists to nutritionists to ultrasound technicians, you have lots of options. Check out this list of non-doc careers from Experience and poke around a website I love, ExploreHealthCareers.org.
I majored in psychology because I thought it was interesting, but now that I'm graduating I don't know what I can really use my degree for without going right into more school. Do I have to? -Brent
It depends on what you want to do. To be a clinical psychologist or certain type of counselor, yep, you'll probably need to keep hitting the books. But psychology is a broad field, and all kinds of companies want people with psychology backgrounds--in sports, in educational settings, for organizational and product development. Check out this article for some general info, and ask your college's psych department to hook you up with some alumni so you can chat with them about what they're up to now.
I know it sounds stupid, but I'm sort of scared to not be in college anymore and have to find an apartment, make new friends, start my first real job. How much does it actually suck? -Jon
Well, it does and it doesn't. For me, the weirdest part was suddenly being half a continent away from the people I was with basically 24-7 for the past four years. I found myself in a city I didn't know very well, in a sketchy little one-bedroom apartment, and I didn't know what to do with myself! And the biggest surprise, I think, was that I had FREE TIME! I think I forgot what that even meant in college. So I'd get home from my 9-to-5 job, not have any homework or club meetings or parties, and be totally bored.
But it honestly got better really fast. I made a point of making friends at work and looking up old friends from high school, finding a great ongoing volunteer position with Make-A-Wish and joining a local gym. Everything fell into place and felt totally natural within a few months -- and I even started enjoying being a grown up. For the most part.
A few tips:
- Make a point of keeping in touch with college friends -- but don't rely on them. A phone catch-up one or twice a week is great, but don't spend so much time clinging to the good ol' days that you forget to enjoy your new life.
- Remember reading for pleasure? The last thing a lot of people want to do is pick up a novel at night after reading for three classes in college, but when you don't have to read, choosing to read can be fun.
- Join a group, team, club, anything. By volunteering or signing up for a soccer league or joining a book club, you'll have an automatic pool of new acquaintances.
- Get into a routine. Getting up/going to bed at the same time each day, setting up a workout schedule and having a Tuesday evening grocery store ritual make things feel normal, settled and real.
- Have fun! You'll feel cool doing classy grown-up things like joining coworkers for a drink after work and decorating a new apartment. It's a change for sure, but it can be a good one.
Thanks to alexanderdrachmann for the photo!
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