Well...I'm still standing. I don't know how, though. At times, I'm so exhausted that I don't care about anything but sleep. I think there is an underlying problem and am currently waiting on some test results from my doctor. Hopefully it is something treatable and I can get better and then refocus.
In the last few days/weeks, I've begun to sway towards oral surgery. This is a dental specialty. It's the same amount of schooling as anesthesia. Oral surgery is 4 years of dental school + 4 years of surgery residency. They are trained in numerous facial surgeries including several cosmetic procedures. They also have more training in anesthesia than any other doctor, besides an anesthesiologist.
I've been considering oral surgery because it would allow me to do all the work on the patient. That's what I really want. I don't want to hand off my work to a tech or nurse and then "check" their work. They make very good money and in some instances hold both a DDS and MD degree. I would get to own my own practice as well. I could do surgeries early in the morning and consultations in the afternoon.
One of the most appealing aspects of dentistry for me is the flexibility associated with the schooling. I could do a residency in oral surgery and if I don't like it or the field changes I can always go back to general dentistry, or even cosmetic dentistry. Unlike medicine, in which you have to train for the specific doctor that you want to be, dentistry trains you to be a general dentist. That's always a back up plan and I really like "a way out" so to speak. I feel like I would have more options in dentistry.
However, anesthesia is my first choice. Anesthesia all the way. I love the idea of it. I think it fits my personality better than OMS(oral surgery). Anesthesia is typically a field where the physicians are laid back, calm, and collected. What originally attracted me to the field was the ability for me to ease people's fears associated with surgery and anesthesia. I want to control and eliminate pain. Anesthesia is one of the few specialties in medicine where this is possible, with immediate results. Additionally, anesthesia is the only specialty where the doctor prescribes, administers, and monitors drugs given to patients. I consider it a "behind the scenes" job because they are passively involved. I often hear from anesthesiologists that the job can be described as 98% boredom and 2% sheer terror. For some reason, I like that idea. I would like being the go to guy in the hospital when shit hits the fan.
Dentistry school is a little more difficult to get into so I have to look at my competitiveness when deciding. I also plan on shadowing several oral surgeons. I don't plan on making my decision for at least several months. I'll just be weighing my options and try and get through summer school.
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