Choosing Motherhood and Medicine: The First Questions

Abstract

If you were to ask my children, they’d tell you their mother is qualified to write this chapter because she looks after their well-being and safety, only sometimes at the expense of fun. They appreciate the tragedies avoided and the extra knowledge they gain as a result of all the medical terminology. Yes, I am a mother of a teen girl who is an avid reader, fast butterfly swimmer, strong in self-esteem and intellect, and at times a stellar big sister to her tween brother. He too is keenly intelligent, and he will make music with anything and everything. And when I am working in the land of academia, I am engrossed in curricular planning, teaching, research, and also providing pediatric primary care to children in a community-based inner-city health center. And none of this would be feasible nor meaningful without the support and patience of the love of my life, how lucky I am to have him as my partner.