When I was a young mom, I was enrolled in an honors psychology class at my community college. The professor said he would fail any student with too many absences (I think 2?).

So when I had a babysitting emergency, I showed up to class with an infant and hoped for the best. I was 19, didn’t have a lot of options. My first professor (English) had been so supportive when he heard my baby coo. I ended up taking 3 classes with him before I transferred to UCLA a few years later.

But my psych professor-

When I was 17, I graduated from high school. Even though I was homeless, I found an independent studies high school that gave me work I could complete “at home” and I did that work mostly at my public library. I remember sitting for hours in my little cubicle at the library on Ivar in Hollywood.

My teacher assigned some pretty important books for me to read for 12th grade English.

I remember sitting at the nurse’s station in January of 2018, writing a note. One of the nurses asked me a personal question and I told her, “You know, I think I finally realized that my life was just meant to be hard.”

She laughed and said, “Come on, you’re a doc. You probably- Had great parents, grew up rich, had an easy life.”

I was still processing the grief of saying a final goodbye to my mom that week. Hospice. So I just politely disagreed and walked away.

When I was a 3rd year medical student, we just couldn’t scrape together enough $ for our kids, rent, and med school costs. I applied everywhere for a job.

Everyone said I was overqualified. One female manager told me that & I said, “But my kids still need to eat.” She hired me. Best boss ever. And I will always treasure the time I spent working at a mall in NJ selling sparkly clothes to little kids. She kept telling me if med school didn’t work out, I could stay.

We’re still friends. ❤️

RIP Jerry Springer. Still annoyed that you exploited me and a bunch of other homeless teens but Rest In Peace. I only agreed to go on the show because he said he’d pay us $200. He was mean on the show and kept getting the audience to yell at us, then brought out some fake psychologist.

And gave us $100 in ones. Steve guarded the door while he ran out of the building.

I’ll never forget the moment I *knew* I wanted to be a doctor.

I was barely 19, sitting in the hospital bed, recovering from an emergency c-section, holding my newborn and listening to the hospital background noise as I rocked her to sleep. I’d never had a “good” doctor. I remember having a pediatrician see me once when I was 5, when I fell off the monkey bars and broke my arm. He’d recommended surgery, but I’d left with a cast. I don’t remember any of the other visits.

Good morning! I would love to reintroduce myself, since I have so many new followers.

I’m a mom of 3 adult kids, wife of a cool guy from Guatemala, fluent Spanish speaker, family medicine hospitalist physician (doing travel work/locums), author, and former homeless youth. Before I went to med school, I taught high school bio and chem for 8 years. I had given up on my dream because I didn’t feel like I deserved to have what I wanted more than anything. I had a lot of self blame for my teen years that I carried with me.

All over the US, interns are starting their medical training.

I’d like to tell you about a very special intern. One who changed my life.

1/ It was June 1998. I had just given birth to my first baby, and I was mesmerized and terrified by the hospital.

People were unkind because I’d received my prenatal care at the free clinic.

2/

#BreakingCodeSilence
#ISeeYouSurvivor

My experiences weren’t typical. Seriously.

I remember the commercials for the “Troubled Teen Industry.” My dad has brochures. He drove me to a group home and threatened to leave me there. 1/ I was 11 when I was forced to visit my new stepmom for a “family meeting” at the psych hospital, where she was staying for depression.

I said a typical 11yo comment: “I hate my stepmom.” I wanted to go home.

Her psychiatrist had a different plan. 2/