So I realize I never talk about school. It’s such a huge part of my life and I haven’t ventured not even one post about it.

So I just finished a two week adolescent medicine rotation. I love teenagers! They’re my absolute favorite patient population. Adolescence is such a weird time… not really fully adult but yet not a child anymore. Many of my colleagues don’t understand the need for adolescent medicine as a special clinic. Teenagers appreciate having adults talk to them and actually listen to what they are saying! I like them because I can yell at them and they understand precisely what I’m saying.

So these past couple weeks I’ve experienced things that I KNOW I couldn’t have related to in my younger days.

First, the Adolescent HIV clinic. While I know that there’s a growing population of young minorities with HIV, putting faces to this epidemic was too much for me. These kids were not IV drug users, homeless, or infected by birth. Yep, they got it the old fashioned way… 10 toes up and 10 toes down knees wide open! It’s devastating to see young people who once felt invincible having to live a life of medical visits and pills. This of course is why abstinence only education DOES NOT work.. we need to talk to our children!!!!! I never ever ever tell my patients not to have sex, I tell them to think about what they’re doing. I met a 21 year old who has been infected for 3 years from her boyfriend. Her family doesn’t understand her, they think she’s making excuses, she can’t find work. Man, I am just too sensitive for this line of work.. I wanted to take her home with me.

Then, I had the opportunity to visit the Adolescent Weight Loss Clinic. I met a 15 year girl who at 5 foot 3 inches, weighed 400 lbs. She recently had lap-band surgery and was in the office for an adjustment. While I am okay with the teens being able to get the surgery, I think it is a tremendous shame that there is a need for it in our society.

I also spent a large chunk of my rotation counseling teens about sex, drugs, parent involvement, and self-esteem. The hardest thing about being a medical student is that once I get rapport with my patients, it’s usually time to move on to something else. I look forward to having my own patients who come for return visits that I can follow for years and years.