The Story of How I Didn't Become a Doctor - Part I

My detour from a career in medicine started early...actually, there was no detour; I was never on that path in the first place. Nope. I started out on a different route. I wanted to be a (don't laugh) star.

And I was actually off to a decent start. At the age of 17, I was recruited by a New York City modeling agency. While my friends were getting ready for prom, I was running around Manhattan in a little black dress, portfolio in hand, hoping to be become the next Linda Evangelista.

Within a few months I had lost 30lbs of my 5'10' frame and had a decent book together for go-sees. I was too idealistic and naive to understand how much I didn't know. People had always told me that I was smart, and so I expected to be treated that way. It came as a shock when I was told "shut up", "we are not paying you to think" when I made a suggestion during a photo shoot.

Every morning I 'weighed in', drank a bottle of water, ate one slice of banana bread (my breakfast, lunch and sometimes dinner) and hit the pavement. It wasn't long before my body began to rebel. I was pushing my physical limits when one morning I passed out in the subway and was diagnosed with a raging case of mononucleosis. I came back home to recover, and was thrilled that - due to my sore throat - I had reached my goal weight of 103lbs.

My family doctor was was livid; telling me that I was a disgrace to women. "How can you project your body to other young girls as a role model when you can barely stand up by yourself?", she asked. And she was right. I realized that this was no way to live, and certainly no way to portray living to others. Besides, I was sick of being treated like a mannequin.

It was weeks before I was able to get up and around by myself. By the time I was ready to head back to New York I had already made up my mind that modeling wasn't for me...I had a brain and I was going to use it.

Doctor's Orders

As the days have been getting shorter, my mood is falling slightly. Also, my recent Vitamin D test showed significant deficiency.

I love my psychiatrist; he tells me to up my Vit D to 2000 IU/day....then he stops and says "Why don't you just go to sunnier climate for a few weeks?"

I cannot change Canadian weather, so I am packing up and heading south; this is one of the few times I will not argue with my physician's recommendations :)