My journey to becoming a physician assistant started when I was fourteen and I spoke the three words anyone in the medical field knows cannot simply be brushed off, “my chest hurts.” I said these words to my basketball coach during a particularly tough practice.
My mother took me to the emergency room and they sent me to a pediatric cardiologist where they eventually diagnosed me with supraventricular tachycardia.
The cardiologist said I would continue experiencing these pains every time I exercised or my heart rate went up if I did not have a procedure to correct it. They scheduled my heart ablation within the week I was diagnosed. I spoke to the pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon at Nationwide Children’s Hospital only one time. She assured me she has done this procedure many times before and it would be very simple.
Then I met my physician assistant, Casey. Casey was with me throughout my whole stay and thoroughly explained to me how the procedure would work and reassured me that she would be there during and after. The procedure went as planned and Casey handled all of my follow up care. She finally made sure I was able to walk, prescribed some medication, and then discharged me. After that I went home and wrote down the words “Physician Assistant” in my notebook for later research.
I have wanted to pursue the physician assistant profession ever since that day in the hospital.
My plan to pursue my dream of physician assistant school was almost discounted when I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and general anxiety disorder at the age of eighteen. I worked well with my psychiatry physician assistant, Chris, and got on a medication that worked, and I graduated high school without complications. But, the sudden change of moving to a new city and starting college exacerbated my condition intensely and chronically.
I would often have episodes of complete incapacitation for days at a time. In addition to all of this, everytime Chris switched my medication I would get blinding headaches for days and the medication would work for a little while and then stop. At the end of my third semester I was so disappointed in my grades that I was ready to give up, when Chris came up with a new medication combination that worked and kept working.
felt like a whole new person. I got my grades up fourth semester and was convinced I could raise my GPA enough if I kept working hard. I could never have even stayed in school if it were not for Chris, my psychiatric physician assistant. I am so grateful for him, for saving my life and giving me my drive to work hard. I know that to become a physician assistant academic excellence is imperative so I wanted to take the time to explain the discrepancies in my transcript.
During my freshman and sophomore year my grades were not great and I am not trying to excuse that because there really is no excuse for that. But, I hope that Admissions will see past my mediocre GPA and afford me the chance I know I deserve. I have proven my capability and motivation during my last two years of college when I refocused my goals, and through my professional experiences.
If I am granted admission, I am ready to do what it takes to reach my aspiration of providing the highest quality care of which I am capable.
This is what I have but I hate it.
Use some if you want but you can lie. Just make it flow and blame my crappy grades on my bipolar.
