University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Fam Med. 2022 Sep-Oct;20(5):484-485. doi: 10.1370/afm.2866.
I grew up on food stamps, unlike many of my medical school classmates. Prostitution and drug deals were regular occurrences in my neighborhood. A man was shot to death in front of my childhood home. After I left my hometown, I was finally able to heal from those devastating circumstances and build a safer life for myself. Difficult questions surfaced as I considered where I wanted to work as a physician. To gain more clarity, I chose to return to my hometown as part of a monthlong clinical elective. This experience facilitated vulnerable introspection. I learned to honor the fact that my hometown is a place of tenacious, struggling, beautiful people. I had to accept that while I experienced survivor's guilt, people are agents of change in their own lives. To serve others, I owe it to myself to be safe and heal my own wounds first. Ultimately, I decided I want to partake in the story of humanity's inexorable will to survive in the face of structural barriers.
我是吃着食品券长大的，与我的许多医学院同学不同。在我的街区，卖淫和毒品交易是常事。一个男人在我童年的家门前被枪杀。离开家乡后，我终于能够从那些毁灭性的环境中恢复过来，为自己创造一个更安全的生活。当我考虑作为一名医生在哪里工作时，一些难题浮现出来。为了获得更多的清晰认识，我选择回到家乡进行为期一个月的临床选修。这段经历促使我进行了脆弱的内省。我学会了尊重这样一个事实，即我的家乡是一个坚韧不拔、苦苦挣扎、美丽的人的地方。我必须接受，虽然我经历了幸存者的内疚，但人们是自己生活中改变的推动者。为了服务他人，我首先要确保自己的安全并治愈自己的创伤。最终，我决定参与人类在面对结构性障碍时不屈不挠的生存意志的故事。
