Life Update: One Year After Match Day

This time last year, I felt lost. I spent months anticipating Match Day, and the results were a big shock to us. We had spent so much time discussing radiology residency, so his prelim year location was a bit of an afterthought. We had hoped to stay in the Dallas area for at least a year, so I could stay at my job for at least a year. Obviously, that didn’t happen.

When I found out we were moving to Chicago, I cried. I was leaving my dream job to move to a city I had never visited…only to move back a year later. At that point, it felt like the worst case scenario. A year later, I know I will cry when we leave Chicago. It took me about two seconds to fall in love with the city, and our adventures here have been better than I imagined. I have been honest about how hard this year has been, but I will never feel like it wasn’t worth it.

The best piece of advice I received after finding out about our Match Day location was “you can do anything for a year.” At the time, a year in Chicago sounded like forever, but here we are, talking about where we want to live when we move home. As much as I will miss Chicago, I am also super excited to watch Chris become a radiologist.

I am part of an online group of doctors’ wives, and before joining that group, I had no idea how many people don’t match every year. It has really put things in perspective for me and made me appreciate where we are, and where we will be in the future. Throughout the whole process, I never had a worry that Chris wouldn’t match, and now I understand what a blessing that is.

What I thought was a major plot twist in our lives became an opportunity to enjoy a new part of the country. This time last year, I was mad at the Match process. Today, I’m thankful for all the unexpected blessings.