Embracing Life's Full Circle Moments

#OMED21 Smiles

I have had quite a few full circle moments over the past few years, but the one I experienced today compelled me to write this post. If you've been following my blog since it's inception in 2013, then you already know how much of an inspiration Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee is to me. I was ecstatic when I had the opportunity to meet her in person for the first time as a 2nd year medical student (see post HERE), and even before then, she was the first person I ever highlighted in my Minority Women in Osteopathic Medicine section (that post can be found HERE) . Since that time, I have had many opportunities to interact with her. She was a huge supporter during my time as National Osteopathic Schools Co-Chair of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) helping to fund a committee scholarship, and during my time as National President-Elect of the SNMA she attended the national conference and we had an excellent discourse during the Osteopathic Schools reception. She's such a phenomenal person!

But anyway, back to the purpose of this post. I was absolutely delighted to be a part of this weekend's virtual annual osteopathic medical education conference (#OMED21) as a panelist during the Plenary Session for the conference's first ever Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion track. And guess who led the session? That's right, one of my very own inspirations Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee! It was a great session where we discussed continuing the legacy of Dr. Meta Christy (the first African-American Osteopathic Physician) in addition to systemic biases and other challenges faced by DOs. I truly enjoyed participating, and the recording is available for everyone registered for the conference so feel free to join the conference, tune in, and let me know your thoughts!

Six years ago TODAY! Feeling absolutely blessed :)

So why is this a full circle moment? Because Facebook reminded me that it was on this EXACT day six years ago when I had the opportunity to meet Dr. Ross-Lee for the first time and I introduced her to my school. Today, we had a panel together and she gave my introduction. How crazy is that?!?! It's moments like today where I am reminded of where I came from and that I am on the right track in life. It wasn't too long ago where I dreamed of becoming an osteopathic physician like Dr. Ross-Lee and inspiring people to pursue their dreams as she inspired me to do so with my own. I am literally living my dreams y'all!

Can't break barriers without acknowledging those who paved the way

That's pretty much the post, all I have to say, but I wanted to write a post for my own personal reflection. It's the full circle moments that remind me I'm on the write track and give me encouragement to keep pushing for success. Hopefully one day I can give back and serve as an inspiration to someone just like many individuals such as Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee who provided inspiration and encouragement for me :)

Update: Plastic Surgery Intern Year Month Four

I'm never this cute when I'm at work lol

I'm officially in month four of plastic surgery residency and just realized it's been a while since I've caught everyone up to speed. During my last post, I was in the middle of my second month of general surgery. Since that time, I've completed an orthopedic surgery rotation, and now I am on a urology rotation. I'll do my best to reflect on the highlights of the past few months.

Proud of my daughter!

I normally end with updates on mommy life, but shortly after my last post, my daughter decided to inform me of her very important first color guard performance literally two days before it happened. I was still in the middle of my general surgery rotation, and told her there was no way I could be there, but of course the mommy guilt set in. So, the next morning I asked my chief if it would be okay if I left early the next day to see my daughter's performance, and I was super surprised when he said yes! I was beyond happy and booked my plane ticket a few minutes later, but didn't tell my daughter since I wanted to surprise her. The next morning, I woke up at 5am, rounded at 6am, attended 7am didactics, helped with floorwork (luckily there were no cases that day), and I was out the door and to the airport around lunchtime. I had to catch two separate flights, literally ran to make my connecting flight,  and was forced to check my carry on which was then placed on the wrong plane, but I managed to make it to my daughter's performance right on time :) It was worth all the hassle and she did an excellent job! #ProudMommy

#BlackGirlMagic in the Operating Room!

September was all about Orthopedic Surgery. As a medical student, I never rotated in the field since I chose Plastic Surgery as my surgery selective, so it was definitely a new experience. I got to wear the hood for the first time and I have to say it was awesome. It came with a nice fan and it was great not having to worry about things accidentally splashing or hitting my face. With that being said, all the drilling, sawing, and hammering was not my cup of tea lol. I'm more into soft tissues and being a bit more delicate, but it was a super fun experience. Hand and extremity reconstruction is a huge part of training as a plastic surgeon, so it was nice getting my feet wet on the orthopedic side. My favorite part of the entire month was getting to operate alongside my friend and fellow black female surgery intern. With black females in plastic and orthopedic surgery being in the super minority (seriously, look it up...there are less than 100 black female plastic surgeons in the United States), I was delighted when one of the medical students took the above photo of us. Two black female surgeons, one in plastic surgery and the other in orthopedic surgery, breaking barriers, and living proof it's possible to achieve your dreams :)

Rocking the lead gear on a few urology cases!

As for this month, I just finished my first week of Urology, and I'm continuing to learn a lot. It's been a healthy mix of clinic and operating, and I'm enjoying seeing the diversity within the field of Urology. The last week has consisted of removing cancerous prostates, knocking out kidney stones, and resecting bladder tumors. I even scrubbed into my first hydrocelectomy case the other day. I am always fascinated by how Plastic Surgery incorporates into other specialties, and plastic surgeons work very closely with urology when it comes to things like Gender-Affirming surgery. It's nice getting down the foundations and anatomy that will become important as I progress through my training.  

3 months reading and finally finished!

In other news that likely no one cares about, I reached a huge accomplishment the other day: I finished reading my textbook! My goal at the start of residency was to read one chapter a day. Doesn't seem major, but when you take into account handling the floorwork, operating, and being super tired when getting off work, reading can be hard. I've also been incorporating learning modules and questions into my study routine, so I try to make sure I balance everything equally. During my previous intern year, I was often so overwhelmed with learning how to be an intern, on top of studying for my final board exam, that reading was the last thing I wanted to do. This time around, I feel like an OG, and work-like balance comes super easy for me. I actually enjoy studying and learning, but I guess it helps that I'm finally in my dream specialty.

Making time for food and play!

As for work-life balance, I still believe in the "work hard, play hard" lifestyle. I take my rotations and studying seriously, but I make sure to take time to enjoy Miami life whenever I can. I've learned that people here really love being on the water, so of course, I had to take part in the yacht experience. Additionally, I've tried a few great restaurants, inadvertently got into a Trey Songz and City Girls concert for free last month, and last weekend I went to see Martin Lawrence and other comedians perform and laughed for hours! I am continually thankful to reside in a city that offers the best of both worlds in terms of training and fun.

Life in a nutshell :)

That pretty much sums up the last couple of months. In addition to my urology rotation, I will be participating in a few events this month geared toward my passion of mentoring and diversifying medicine, so I look forward to sharing those experiences. As always, I'll aim to update everyone again next month, and I hope everyone reading this has a very productive and positive week. Back to the grind!