Switching back to pre-med; mentally ill pre-med student

First off: damn, that list of forums was a bit overwhelming.

Upon entering college, I was a neuroscience major and pre-med. I took intro to chem and bio, which I eventually dropped because I was failing. I decided to become a philosophy major instead and enter my school’s pre-law program. Now, I am considering switching back to pre-med. I’m not sure of what to do.

First, I need to clarify that I was having a rough first year. Unfortunately, I had a psychotic break. I was having minor hallucinations and became delusional. I was also rapid cycling throughout the entire school year. I have bipolar disorder type 1 with psychosis, but I wasn’t diagnosed until after my freshman year, so I was unmedicated and not in treatment. On paper, I managed academically, but I actually completely floated into space. I didn’t go to class for three months. Thankfully, my teachers pitied me and I did not fail any of my classes. I took a year off of school and I am now stable. After everything, however, I think I want to go back to pre-med. This would require me to retake intro to bio and chem.

Has anyone else made a 360 in pre-med? Is anyone else a pre-med student while also dealing with severe mental illness? Would doing this look absolutely horrible to med schools (I want to get into a top 30 med school)? Is med school even doable as a nut case? I feel like the answer is obvious – “do whatever you want, it is your education” – but I need validation and advice lol. Would med schools view me as unreliable? I mean, they can’t discriminate agaisnt me for being mentall ill, but why would they choose me over someone else who has the same scores, grades, and overall credentials?

I apologize for the length of my post – I am gregarious and an over-thinker.

i’m a current high school student who often goes back and forth from wanting to become a lawyer or a doctor. i’m currently interested in bioengineering/political science. i’d recommend finding mental health care, taking a semester off to sort things out, and rethinking your options. i do not recommend medical school, it will wreck your mental health even further and make you shackled with debt. if you are serious about medicine, then maybe becoming a PA or nurse will be wiser. i recommend picking some sort of stem major and a philosophy minor. good luck.

OP, I am sorry to hear about what you have been going through.

Having said that, unfortunately I don’t think your chances of getting into a T30 medical school are all that great. Look up the numbers, but I think the acceptance rate is 50% to begin with. On top of that, students getting in are A-students or very close to it. I am sure other posters here will have excellent suggestions as to what you CAN study, that may be able to involve you being part of that world, though.

I think med school is still in the books for you.

Top 30? Don’t know about that…

The overall acceptance rate for med school is like 40%…and most T30 med schools have 3-6% acceptance rates. Med schools in generally don’t usually have acceptance rates over 10-15% anyway. Just try to get into a US med school, whether allopathic or osteopathic. You can do fine from either.

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