You Go Girl

I respect a strong, independent, do-it-yourself type of woman

I was raised to be someone who can be independent. I was told I should be able to take care of myself, fight for my beliefs, and feel proud of the person I am. I have always prided myself on not relying on others to make myself happy; I am the only holder of my happiness.

The female doctor I am working with, Doctora Marejon, is the ultimate role model for being the type of woman I want to be.

Doctora runs her office with a little sass, a lot of compassion, and a "do it yourself" kind of attitude. She is straight forward with patients telling them exactly what they need to do to change their health. A patient comes in complaining of lower back pain, knee pain, and overall exhaustion and Doctora does not beat around the bush. She tells the patient that the reason she has all these aches and pains is because she is obese. If the patient looses weight and engages in healthy life choices, the pains will begin to go away. The patient did not enjoy being called "obese" but Doctora was stating the facts. She tells the patient exactly what they need to hear and leaves it up to them to make the necessary changes.

I respect that Doctora is so honest with patients. The old method of practice focused on telling the patient as little as possible so they would not worry. Some clinicians continue to follow this protocol making the patient question what is going on. I believe you should be telling the patient everything and laying down all the treatment options so that together, you can be a team to get the patient back to good health.

Not only does Doctora give it her all at the clinic, but she is a medical school professor, an on-call doctor at the Belize City hospital, and a frequent guest speaker on the local radio station providing free medical advice to all listeners. How this woman finds all this time leaves my head running in circles. If she is not at the clinic, she is teaching at the university. If not at the university or clinic during the day, she is working an overnight on-call shift at the hospital.

Doctora told Karilyn one day that she has so many jobs because she wants to provide a nice lifestyle for her and her family. She said we would "laugh" if we knew how much a doctor in Belize made compared to a doctor in the United States. A little research later, I found out the average salary of a doctor in Belize is $40,000 BZ ($20,000 US) a year. I was shocked. This woman has gone through years of medical school and residency and still has to work three jobs to have a lifestyle she desires. While money isn't everything, I have so much respect for Doctora in her quest to achieves everything she desires. She does not complain about the daily struggles, the exhaustion, the students, or any other obstacles she might be dealing with. Everyday she embraces her independent, hard-working self and fights for the things she wants.

Despite a schedule I find confusing just listening to, Doctora is always laughing, telling stories, and checking in with friends and family to see how they are doing. I feel so lucky to be around someone who works so hard for what all that she loves while giving back so much to everyone around her. I cannot thank her enough for showing me how to be a strong, independent, do-it-yourself type of woman each and everyday.