Hi everyone

[SueC]

I just discovered this board tonight since my husband had to go back to the hospital again! I was wishing I had a support group of doctors' spouses to complain to and decided to find one on the internet, so here I am! Anyhow, my husband just started his first year of fellowship in pulmonary/critical care. We have 2 girls aged 2 and 1 which keeps me pretty busy, though I often am a little starved for adult conversation. I'm so glad to have found this site!

[DCJenn]

Welcome aboard, we're glad to have you.



There are lots of people who have similar circumstances to you. Feel free to come and vent or support or complain or 'listen' or whatever.



Jenn

Hi Sue. My husband finished a fellowship in Infectious Disease last year.....We went into the fellowship thinking that it would be so much easier than residency and boy were we surprised by how malignant it was!!! How many years is the fellowship? Did you all have to move for fellowship or did he continue on with fellowship after residency?



I know what you mean about being starved for adult conversation!!! We have three children, ages 7,6 and 3..and...there are times where the only adult that I have to talk with is my husband when he finally comes home...It can be really hard to cope sometimes. I had my first two children pretty close together too....they do keep you busy, don't they!



Welcome to the group!



Kris

[SueC]

Hi Kris and Jenn,

In answer to your question Kris, his fellowship will be 3 years long. He just finished a med-peds residency which was 4 years long and was at the same hospital. So, luckily we didn't have to move. I can't imagine moving to a new city with 2 babies and a husband that works all the time, that would be so lonely! I have lots of friends who are stay-at-home moms, but all of them have husbands who work normal hours, so I don't think any of them quite understand what its like to practically be a single parent.

As far as the fellowship, I was in a rude awakening for how tough this is! It feels just like intern year, though back then we didn't have kids yet.

Glad to meet you guys!

[Meenah]

Hi Sue,

My husband and I are "older". He is triple boarded, Pulmonay, Critical Care, and Internal Medicine. I am a nurse, ER and Endoscopy (Gastroscopy, Colonoscopy and Bronchoscopy!!!!) We have four children (2 each) ages 16, 17, 18 & 19. Welcome. This is a great place to talk and listen.

Luanne

[SueC]

Thanks Luanne--sounds like my husband has chosen a similar career path as your husband. He takes IM boards later this month, and plans to get board certified in pulmonary and critical care, too. It kills me how expensive each exam is! Luckily, he decided against getting board certified in peds as well, since he doesn't plan to practice in that area.

[houseelf]

Sue,



I wonder just how many of us stumbled upon this web site during a particularly rough night with hubby on call or otherwise gone at the hospital. Hopefully these first few months of his fellowship aren't indicative of how the entire three years will go. I can completely sympathize with your observation---raising kids as a quasi-single parent can definitely strain the best of us, especially when our friends live more normal lives.



Anyway, it sounds like you will find a lot in common with the members here. Just dive right in!



Kelly

[Phoebe]

Hi Sue- I related to your comment about being starved for adult conversation. I am home most of the time with my 10 month old, although she has many converstions, most of them aren't coherent except for hi, mama, dada and kitty.



You will find lots of support from great people here.



My husband is in his third year of a neonatology fellowship and looking forward to finally finishing medical training. The first year of my husband's fellowship resembled his intern year. It was definitely hard, but we made it.



What part of the country are you in? We are in the midwest.



Looking forward to seeing you on the boards.



Jennifer

Hi Sue



I discovered the board the same way--waiting around late at night for my husband to return from the hospital thinking how great it would be to find a group of people in the same situation. There must be a lot of us out there--clicking away in front of computer screens!! My husband just started his "bad" year of a gyn onc fellowship - but we were warned that it would be worse than anything we had been through by a friend who followed the same training path a few years ahead of us. It is living up to its reputaion so far.....but its only a few years. Looking forward to getting to know you.



Angie

[SueC]

Thanks for the welcome guys. In answer to somebody's question (I can't remember who now) I am from the midwest, too. Kansas City to be more specific.

Welcome, Sue! I can imagine that you are a very busy woman with two kids running around! I guess one isn't even running around, yet? I'm Claudia, wife of a 4th year general surgery resident - 1.10 years left. Not that I'm counting or anything! I can also relate to your cravings for adult conversation! I moved here last summer after our wedding and haven't really found a job or any other outlet for meeting friends so most of the time, it's just me and the pets! Look forward to chatting with you!

[mommax3]

Glad to have you with us, Sue. I am Sally, SAHM to three boys who are 7, 4, and 11 months. My husband is an OB/GYN for the Air Force and has been done with residency for a little over a year. We moved to Wichita Falls, TX last summer (just before I had my youngest) and I really haven't made any friends yet. This board has helped me keep my sanity many times. I look forward to getting to know you better!



Sally