Personal Narrative: My Medical Experience

I began taking advanced placement classes to challenge myself, to be the best I can be. Although it was difficult to maintain good grades, practice 10 hours a week for the swim team, and working a part-time job, I enjoyed the push and the outcome I received at the end. Due to wanting to be in the Medical field, I took Honors Anatomy and Physiology in order to learn more about the human body; prepare myself for the memorization and the use of note cards. All the information felt like my head was bottled up, I wanted to enjoy my high school years, because “they pass by so fast, make the best of them” my brother would constantly say to me but failed to mention if I really wanted to do what I loved, I had to let all that go and focus on school; which became my biggest responsibility. There were times where I just wanted to take the easy way out and drop the class, but I knew no good would come from that; instead I balanced out my schedule by prioritizing my time between school, practice and work.

At the age of 16 I began looking into competitive swimming techniques, teaching myself each stroke and repeating them; wanting to be better than just a doggy paddle and a deep breath underwater. My junior year of high school, I

joined the swim team; each practice was tiring; feeling as every breath I took wasn’t enough, having a hard time keeping up with the rest of my teammates; I pushed myself while the rest of my body wanted to shut down. The first swimming competition arrived, I waited for my event to be called and it finally was. “Event number 7 heat 1”, I climbed up, “swimmers take your mark”, held a tight grip at the end of the block while my head was in between my bent knees, prepared and focused. In that moment I remembered those long hours at practice, the sweat and exhaustion, realizing this is where it all mattered and the horn goes off, using all my force, pushed off the block, dove in and tried to swim the best I’ve ever swam before to earn what I have worked for. First place. This experience helped me realize that I won’t just get what I want easily; things take hard work and dedication in order to achieve them.

Due to swimming I found a job teaching kids how to swim.

I taught beginners ages 4-7; most were afraid of the water, in order for them to get in the water and learn, they needed to know that I wouldn’t let them go. I had to build a bond which each swimmer; gain their trust and speak to them in a way they will understand me. Not only did I build relationships with the kids, but with their parents as well. They saw the way I worked with their child, see if I was a good enough coach for them; talked to them about their kids and explained where they were and how they have been improving. I was nervous talking to parents and kids in a way they’d trust me, but over time my confidence started rising; social skills began to improve with both kids and

adults.

Through my experiences I learned to take responsibilities and prioritizing by getting stuff completed and not procrastinate when there’s a lot on my plate, be independent by not needing others to get myself as far as I want, work hard because nothing is life is just handed, and enhanced my social skills by building great relationships and increasing my confidence. Each one has helped me get a step closer to what I’ve dreamed of always being and when I look back, I’ll be more than grateful for everything I came across; they got me to where I am.