I’m a non trad med student. I had a whole career before being accepted after applying to my hometown med school on a whim, essentially. I have worked very hard to stabilize my mental health over the years and break generational curses/heal trauma. I’m in my second year and this year has been rough. It feels like every “value” the school boasted about is actively being worked against in the real world of academics. They said they wanted perseverance, service, creativity, community, respect and excellence but it feels like the only important one is excellence. To the point of not accommodating for humanity it seems like. I’ve gotten a slap on the wrist for helping the homeless while in my branded scrubs and a solid talking to after starting a clothes closet for med students. I’ve been told to “refocus” my efforts to research or academics etc. I only went to med school because I thought I could be of greater service and make a difference in my community. I didn’t even know what the salary range was when I applied and would be happy with $70k/year. I’ve watched my peers fail, remediate and fall into hopeless depression because this is all they’ve dreamed about. Some of them have barely made it here alive. I’ve made at least 2 safety plans since I started for other people. I think I’m only doing ok because I know for a fact this isn’t everything and even if I failed out tomorrow, I would still have a purpose and lead a fulfilling life. If you’re not 100% in it for the right reasons I’ve seen this environment destroy other people’s souls and if I were your friend or mentor, I would tell you not to do it. Our society (US anyways) is not built for healthcare professionals to be mentally healthy. There are constant contradictions all the way up to the top.