Transitions

Good news for my faithful reader. The fog is finally starting to clear.

This translates into normal life updates in lieu of the incredibly deep life-pondering thoughts that dominated all my previous posts. So you might actually get to know what’s going on in my life instead of sitting there trying to decipher the meaning behind all my heavy thoughts.

In my defense, in talking with other newly grads in my situation I’ve learned that the post-graduation, newly-employed shock is 100% normal. Good to know I’m not alone. It’s basically like going through the five stages of grief. Don’t laugh. If you loved your college experience, it’s gonna happen to you too.
(Although I also had some other factors going into this that made it worse).

Denial: Happened during the summertime, and ended when my roommates and friends returned to school. Oh wait, this isn’t just a summer job, this is going to be my life.
Anger: I would actually say jealousy would be better for my situation. At my roommates (not at them; at the situation) for not being able to hang out anymore, for getting to be around people their age still and for being in an environment more conducive to making new friends. (They’re both in med schools) To experience new exciting changes while my life slowed down and leveled off.
Bargaining: Maybe I’m not in the right city. I just need a different job. Anybody else in my situation would feel the same way. Maybe I need to start grad school earlier so that I can meet people, too.
Depression: Set in when I realized my life for the next year would be mundane. That I really wasn’t going to move back to Manhattan and see all my friends again. That I would never live with that many girls again and have somebody to hang out with and talk to 24/7.That my life was turning into a giant routine. That I really did have to sit in a cubicle for 40 hours a week. I wasn’t making new friends and everybody else was. I wasn’t doing what I was passionate about, ect.
Acceptance: Finding the positives, realizing I was lucky in many aspects, and picking up and moving on. It is the way it is, so I can either be reactive about it or proactive about it.

Grief cycle finally completed. So, my life has picked back up again. And life post-college is good and fun : ). All it took is a little effort.

So now for my normal updates:
After looking at grad schools online I’ve come to the conclusion that KU Med is actually one of my best options. Not only is it nationally ranked but it’s closer, cheaper, and puts me in the network of every single KC hospital. I went in and talked to the lady there/had an interview and she said about 30 people go through the program each year, all from different backgrounds. Med students who decided halfway through it wasn’t for them. Students who got their undergrads in pre-med but changed their minds. Or people like me, with a communications background. It’s literally an 8 minute hop on the highway from my apartment.
The bad news?
Only 1/3 of the applicants get accepted.
I have to take Accounting and Statistics next semester at JoCo (me and math don't get along)
Alongside my job I would basically have no free time and it would take 4 years to complete (2 years if I didn’t have a job).

Can’t hurt to apply so I’m working on doing that and completing other applications to places like Chicago and Texas as well.

It’s funny because the more I realize how busy I’m going to be in the future the more I’m enjoying the fact that what I do at work stays at work and I have the entire evenings and weekends to do whatever I want. I definitely don’t want to take this for granted!

Til next time,
~Julie