I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew. I moved to Houston in August to go back to school in the hopes of pursuing a PhD in Public Health. It has been quite an adventure since I’ve moved. Just getting my stuff here was a huge ordeal! Dealing with movers and the weather was much more expensive than I budgeted.  Hurricane Harvey flooding complicated the delivery of my things. The move was supposed to cost me an estimated $1700, but it ended up costing $3000! I missed the first week of classes waiting for my furniture to arrive, so I was already behind academically. This was a very big issue because returning to school as an older student with a physical disability definitely was going to be very challenging.  The fact that my background is not in the social sciences AND the fact that the program is in “Health Promotion and BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE” definitely has made the transition more challenging.  I was prepared for the “Health Promotion” aspect of the program through my work with mAss Kickers Foundation, but not the “Behavioral Science”/ psychology aspect of the degree. Good thing that this was caught early on. The combination of a lengthy break from academia and a weak background in social science research led to the decision that maybe I should pursue an MPH in Behavioral Science and Health Promotion instead of struggling through a PhD program. Will have to consult more people… The intent to pursue a degree in Public Health is still there, but maybe a PhD is not appropriate yet. For the first time in a while, I am not able to do what I want.
The reality of the situation is frustrating, but all is not lost. A few weeks ago, I met Lex Frieden. He is “a chief architect of the Americans with Disabilities Act” located in Houston. I am very excited to announce that I have the opportunity to work him next semester at the Texas Institute of Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR). It will be an excellent opportunity to learn more about disability advocacy directly from him and apply my rehabilitation/non profit knowledge to his current work in rehabilitation research. Most of my focus since my brain tumor diagnosis has been on oncology related issues. I have done a few things in the disability community, so I’m very excited to learn from Dr. Frieden and get more involved in rehabilitation research. I still am very interested in the role of physical activity/exercise in tumor/cancer survivors, but I think that physical disability and exercise/physical activity could be another factor worth studying… You can’t always get to do want you want, but you have to be resilient and be able to adapt. Things have been challenging since I’ve been in Houston, but I’m starting to adjust…