Authored By: Whitnee Essenmacher (M3, Class of 2021)
Getting engaged the weekend before medical school started was the highlight of my summer. Choosing a date to get married and plan a wedding during my first year of medical school — definitely one of my highlights of medical school.
The first decision I had to make was what summer I wanted to wed. Once I decided I would prefer to get married the summer after my first year as to not interfere with the USMLE Step 1 exam, the date of July 7, 2018 was set.
Throughout the demanding first weeks of school, my fiancé and I had to choose a venue, DJ, photographer, videographer, and cake maker. Next would be to go wedding dress shopping, pick out the tuxes, and plan some decorations — not to mention create a registry and attend a bridal shower.
Getting a venue was set fairly easily because we wanted it at a golf course near our hometown. We then hired the DJ based off previous weddings we had been to, a family friend for a photographer, and my husband’s friend for a videographer. My husband’s aunt made our wonderful wedding cake, and my mom made all the paper items like save-the-dates, invitations, and RSVP cards.
Then, there was wedding dress shopping. I planned this event for winter break. All of my bridesmaids, our moms, my nana, and my aunt went shopping together to say YES to the dress. Once the dress was picked out, everything else seemed so much more exciting. Reviewing our ceremony and picking out songs was something my husband and I did in the evenings after dinner or while watching TV at night. It was something we had to look forward to doing together.
As most medical students know or future medical students plan on, med school doesn’t leave you much time for anything but studying. Planning a wedding under such time constraints may seem like a pain to some, but it was something that helped me get through many hurdles in my studies. When studying was getting too overwhelming, or I just simply couldn’t study any more, I would choose a wedding task and focus on that for an hour or so before returning to studying. It was the welcomed break I needed, but still made me feel like I was accomplishing something important.
Planning a wedding was my escape from bigger stressors. I know I owe so much of that relief to my mom because she was always available for my questions or my last minute panics of something not getting planned yet. Without her, my wedding planning experience would have been a totally different ball game.
To those interested in planning a wedding during medical school, you CAN do it and you WILL do it!!