Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-08-26
Marriage Not
For Medical
Students
Be Established in
Profession Before
Considering 1t
By DOROTHY DIX.

Dear DOrOthY DIX am young
man of Is. Since childhood it has
been my ambition to be a doctor,
and have just enrolled in a medi-
cal school 1t will take me four
years to finish the course and shall
have no income during that time. I
have been going steadily with a girl
and the question is-shall I marry
her now, with the understanding
that she shall work or stay with
her parents, with me seeing her
only occasionally, for the next four
years; or should we wait until I
complete my training before mar
rying? She is opposed to waiting
Would the plan 1 have outlined
work successfully? M.
Answer-You are optimistic If
you think that the minute you get
your degree as a doctor you will be
in a position to marry. 1t will be a
much longer wait than four years,
because you will have to serve your
interneship. If you are going to be
| a f1rst-claSS doctor you will have to
take extra courses. When you hang
out your shingle, unless you are a
son of Lady Luck, there will be a
long, weary, dreary time before you
will make enough money to support
a wife.
A young doctor seriously handi-
caps himself by marrying unless
he marrieS girl with money and
position and family influence. For
there are many doors open to an
unmarried man that are shut to a
married one, and women will do
much more to push the fortunes
of an eligible bachelor than they
will one who has to drag a wife
along with him wherever he goes.
The plan that you suggest for
solving your problems is unten-
| able. If you marry and leave your
wife behind you and only see her at
rare intervals, she will be unhappy
and continually telling you how
lonely she is, and you will almost
inevitably drift apart Besides
your mind will be upset by the
unnatural arrangement so that you
will not be able to concentrate on
your studies as you should.
AS long as the girl proposes to
work after marriage anyway, why
not see If she cannot get a lob
in the city in which you are going
to study? Then you could marry
and she could make a home for
you. But if this can't be done.
put off the wedding until you can
see your way clearer.
X X X X
Dear Dorothy DIX am a young
man of 20 and have just returned
from the hospital after having an
operation. The doctor advises me
to take it easy for six months and
| not to lift things or climb stairs.
My father reSents my staying at
home doing nothing and wants me
to take job in which there is quite
a bit of lifting and climbing.
I am earning my way through
school, but all the money I had
saved has gone for my hospital bills.
What should do? Russell.
Answer-Your father is making
a great mistake in urging you to
| go back to work before you are
well. If you do, you-will have a
breakdown from which you may
never recover. Get the doctor to
talk to him about this and he will
| realize how foolish he is to make
you jeopardize your whole future
life for the sake of few dollars
now. Any doctor will tell you that
the benefits of many costly opera
tons are lost by the patient going
back to work too soon. Your health
is your capital and you cannot af-
| ford to risk that.