[Fruitfly]

Alright, so, here's the thing. I've been recently diagnosed with ENFP, and they say there's no cure for it... Well, the good thing is, it kind of explained a lot of things for me: the behavioral patterns, the constant itch to go and sacrifice myself for the benefit of the whole humanity, and the like. But at the same time it caused a lot of confusion with deciding what to do with my life, in the professional department.
I have an option of going to med school, or maybe pharmacy. I can also do counseling psychology, but I am worried I will get very tired very quick from all the depressive talk simply due to the fact that I tend to get absorbed by other people's problems way too deeply and have difficulty separating myself from them. Please, do not confuse this with the lack of desire to help the poor suffering souls!
So, I was hoping to see if there are any ENFPs out there, who have worked in or studied any of these things: med, pharm, counseling psych, or something similar?
If you are in the medical field, or pharmacy, how do you deal with the repetitive nature of the work? Are you compensating by hobbies in your free time? Does that make you satisfied with your life? Can you please share your experience?

Thanks very much to all who answers! :happy:

 

[kaycee]

I'm studying to be a substance abuse counselor and I worry about the same thing sometimes. I think it will be important for you to have your own social supports and possibly even a therapist you can talk to when things get overwhelming.

 

[GoGo]

Perhaps the stable environment will be good for you. All enfps are different, as are all personality types. Don't let a personality typing make you hesitate to do something you feel is meaningful.

 

[veingogh]

If going into counseling is something you definitely want to strive for, there are ways to counter the whole "depression" talk. Going into in-home counseling, mentoring, child therapy, and other fields can cut down on how much you have to work directly with the tiring aspects of therapy. I am working towards a double major of art and psychology so that I can help young children with disabilities (autism, down syndrome, physical impairments, etc) through the medium of art. It is a growing area within the counseling world, and I find it fascinating how art can help many children feel better about themselves. They don't have to talk to me about everything that is going on in their lives, and they are still getting counseling. There are many ways to help children and adults alike in counseling without sitting down with them in a room and listening to problem after problem.

I prefer to take the more proactive approach to counseling. I don't remember the person who said it, but one of my favourate quotes is "It is much easier to build up a child than to fix an adult." For many ENFPs, hands-on counseling is a good path to take in the psychology field. It seems to fit well enough, and it still helps people a lot.

Just my thoughts on the subject. Hope it helps.

 

[MaggieRooWho]

I'm a pharmacy tech... the work gets repetitive, but at least for me, I get to interact frequently with patients, so it's not so bad. Most people that I know who have chosen to become R.Ph. or PharmD are Introverts, to be honest with you... sorry I couldn't be of much help in that department. I would definitely recommend going into counseling vs. med/pharm, and possibly an art/music/movement therapy concentration.

 

[WakeHopper]

Hi Fruitfly! Welcome to the forum! I'm checking out the medical field myself and am exploring radiology and stuff but before I get off topic you should go for it. The medical field needs more ENFP's from what I can tell.

At first I was really worried because these teachers kept pushing the need for organization and critical thinking to be the most important... I can do this but my feelings are important too. Then I was reading my textbook and how the health field needs people to treat patients like people! The field the way I see it is lacking this.... I feel like a thing to be fixed more then a person.

So go for it! :happy: This one male teacher must be close to an ENFP and he has jumped from career to career in the medical field and you can tell he's really happy.

He had all of us make name cards with symbols to describe us. Very NF and I love it!

 

[The Great One]

Alright, so, here's the thing. I've been recently diagnosed with ENFP, and they say there's no cure for it... Well, the good thing is, it kind of explained a lot of things for me: the behavioral patterns, the constant itch to go and sacrifice myself for the benefit of the whole humanity, and the like. But at the same time it caused a lot of confusion with deciding what to do with my life, in the professional department.
I have an option of going to med school, or maybe pharmacy. I can also do counseling psychology, but I am worried I will get very tired very quick from all the depressive talk simply due to the fact that I tend to get absorbed by other people's problems way too deeply and have difficulty separating myself from them. Please, do not confuse this with the lack of desire to help the poor suffering souls!
So, I was hoping to see if there are any ENFPs out there, who have worked in or studied any of these things: med, pharm, counseling psych, or something similar?
If you are in the medical field, or pharmacy, how do you deal with the repetitive nature of the work? Are you compensating by hobbies in your free time? Does that make you satisfied with your life? Can you please share your experience?

Thanks very much to all who answers! :happy:

I have a friend who's Dad is a Doctor and is Chief of Internal Medicine for a Hospital. He loves his job and he is ENFP.

 

[vel]

I know one ENFP who is a nurse and she seems to love her work. After volunteering in a hospital for a while, I don't know how medical type jobs can be boring (but then I have pretty high boredom threshold). Being a doctor or a nurse is definitely not same as sitting in a cubicle with a bunch of paperwork. Pharmacy is probably the more boring choice here, but it depends on your mindset I suppose.

 

[yesiknowbut]

I'm not ENFP, but I am a doctor.

I think the ENFP personality would be a great suit for medicine. In any case there are so many different career paths within medicine any personality will find a home.

The only worry would be the inherent distractability of the Ne-dominant personality. You can't afford to forget to do stuff. Howver as another Ne-dominant, I find that the structure of the working day and the fact that we mostly work in teams is enough to negate my tendency to wander off into a reverie when I should be doing something important for someone.

I struggle with the emotional side, I'm either missing the point totally or unable to detach and distressed, and have found myself in a field where difficult emotional stuff doesn't visit often. I think Fi would make that aspect easier, to be honest, although I'd guess you would be less likely to find yourself in a technical/ interventional field. This has been studied with gender, and there may be a correlate with the supposed F-dominance of women.

 

[RobinsonCrusoe]

There was a similar question not too long ago from another ENFP member here who kind of reverse-engineered the process like you did, and figured out that he wanted to do something in the medical field. the link is here: pretty interesting read and should give you something to think about as he fleshes out his thinking process a bit more:

http://personalitycafe.com/education-career-talk/21232-dr-enfp.html

IMO, ENFPs learn best from DOING. Touching. Experiencing. Immersing. Never from an anonymous internet forum. Think about your own past. The most memorable experiences all involved you DOING something, rather than sitting at a desk and memorizing facts from a textbook.

The only way you'll know if it's right for you is to do it yourself.

Of course, there ARE some caveats to be aware of. I'm not advocating blindly rushing into anything, especially if there are penalties later that you can't foresee.

1. make sure you do not incur any debt along your path. Debt = Killer of Dreams.
2. make sure the decision is not emotionally-charged.
3. TRY something out if it's in any way possible. Is there a hospital you can volunteer at for a few months? Perhaps a doctor you can shadow?

the sad truth is, ENFPs learn AMAZINGLY well from our own mistakes. it's really the only way we've ever learned.

 

[the purple aria]

I'm an ENFP and I'm currently in nursing school. I used to think that I wouldn't be able to handle the emotional aspect of the work so I thought I would work in ER. You know, less opportunities to get attached to patients. After some clinical experience, I realized that my over-caring for others is a great trademark. Instead of running away, I should embrace it. My patients love it when I take the time out to get to know them, love it more when I do a little something extra for them and I enjoy going the distance for them. I'm now working as a patient advocate for oncology patients and I'll either go into oncology or pediatrics when I get my license..hmm well actually that's still up in the air. To be decided next year. :laughing:

And honey, don't worry about getting bored at work. If you opt for a career in health care, you're in for a trip. Sure there will be documentation and certain protocols that will become repetitive after a while. But at the same time, you'll be faced with all sorts of anomalies and fun (sometimes crazy) patients every single day. Don't worry about what you can and can't do now and just study something you love. When you get some experience in the field, you'll figure out your limitations and work your studies into a career that you'll strive in.

 

[Dreamer_Dynamic]

ENFP CNA/medical field hopeful

I have been searching for the same types of questions as you, OP. I'm 3/4 of the way through my masters in public admin (decided recently to add a certificate in health care admin) and I signed up for a CNA course to become a certified nurse assistant. I have considered nursing in the past (and now I'm considering all medical and quasi-medical jobs like doctor, occupational therapist, speech pathologist, nurse, psychiatric aide, therapist, psychologist.....). I figure the CNA is the most basic certification you can get in the medical field to work with patients to see if I like it. I do not plan on being a CNA for a career but rather as an entry level thing to get experience. It is a short program and relatively inexpensive (less than 1k) and I'm still going to be doing my classes for my masters (blah) so it's low risk.

I start my program in a few weeks--we do classroom work and clinicals with patients. I'm also a bit worried about the attention to detail part (and blood.... hahaha), but I feel that working with patients will be rewarding. I like to make people happy and comfortable and get immediate feedback/reassurance, so on the selfish side I'm hoping this CNA program will open the doors for me to see what kind of medical career I'd like that would satisfy that.... We'll see!


But yeah, if there's a way for you to volunteer or get some clinical experience it will probably help you decide! As one of the other posters put, we DO learn by doing That's why I think I've maybe been doing things wrong all along with my government and public admin degree (sitting in front of a desk and dealing with so many mundane, non-human details...).

Good luck, let us know how it goes!!!!

 

[Libber36]

I am so glad I found this thread. I am applying for nursing school and I am a bit intimidated about the attention to detail that nursing entails. Its good to hear that ENFPs do well in the medical field because I wasnt sure about it and was second guessing myself. I really want to do nursing because I have always had this need to take care of people and this thread has helped me confirm that I can do it

 

[Zster]

I am in vaccine R&D for an animal health company. I went to vet school and then grad school in pathobiology. Neither school nor work is EVER repetitive or mundane. There are jobs in either field that tend to be though (I very specifically avoided QC and manufacturing, neither of which allow room for improvisation). Like you, I could not handle the emotional and often downright depressing aspects of clinical veterinary practice. ENFPs can do wonderfully in the health sciences. I am definitely strongly ENFP and loving my job!

 

[lovinUsuju]

Ohhh, can you imagine?! An INTJ Doctor and an ENFP nurse, they would be like the super couple!!! Man...I dream big...

But yes, I am currently in the Medical Field, well, Dentist Field? (Dental Asst) to be more specific. I love it! Working with people of all ages! Plus, because the hours are not that long, I don't seem to always be looking at the clock wondering if work is almost over. Plus, the schooling wasn't that long and cheap. I really encourage people to go for the Dental Field because it has such a great need.

 

[CupofCuriositTea]

i've been thinking about becoming a dietitian! ^u^ I love learning about different foods and drinks and how they affect your body, mind, and soul. ^u^ It's all so intriguing to me, and becoming a dietitian would also allow me to directly help a variety of patients as well. I love interacting, inspiring, and helping others. ^u^ Also, I've read that the workload isn't too stressful and that the job is pretty flexible, which is what something ENFP's especially kinda need. ^u^

 

[Logical Ambivert Feeler]

im an ENFP and a medical student...sometimes I think I'll get bored when it comes to being a doctor...but sometimes I think id love it...
I think the good thing is hat its a set career path, theres no room for me to wander to other careers because it is so competitive and demanding and CHALLENGING....which is something i like

also being an ENFP would be great for a doctor...the instant rapport..actually CARING about your patients and also the INTELLIGENCE we have in making links...we really are gifted in this and its so important in medicine when considering systemic illnesses

as long as you have a few Js and Ts in your friendship group and medical team just to point you in the right direction from time to time when you do get bored or too emotional....it should be amazing

 

[eburian]

Hi, So I am new to the forum and have recently been rediagnosed from an ENFJ to an ENFP. My analytical rm, who also visits PC, and who out of many of my friends I enjoy dearly ,believes that my cognitive patterns and usage of FE over NI are closer matches and internalizing her observations and judging my experiences I have been starting to agree. However, I do realize that compared to many ENFP's I know I tend to want to follow schedules more- then a/g my rm tells me part of this is me being socialized to be a J for a long time for my parents- but yea I'll explain that later if ever you're interested.

Glad to meet all of you and happy this seems to be a board full of active users yay! . As far as the medical career discussion topic, I am in the progress of applying to graduate school in the field of public health with a concentration in international health and promotions/ education or behavioral health. Right now, I am finishing my personal statement for the schools. I have also thought about Nursing, physical therapy, and becoming a dietician in the past. Unfortunately, I learned that science classes weren't exactly my thing. Although I still have a soft spot for it ( those of you who are nurses should read Tilda Shalof- nurse author she's amazing!) I since have realized from the way I've performed speeches for classes focus more on the communal societal aspect.

I am a little worried that whatever job I end up doing from this field might get repetitive. Sometimes I feel I can avoid the mundane pattern of life if I work for the WHO and continuously travel which is one of my idealistic goals but then a/g I do know that whatever position it is bound to get less exciting. The best advice I've been given/ have learned from my own life experiences about not getting burned out by your job is to be "creative" about it/ have outlets- hobbies personal or group/ have people you can talk with. My mom, for example, teaches teachers reading strategies and for her powerpoint employed her passion in art to develop a funny scenario of word play.

As far as attachment, I always get attached to people very easily even if situations where I try my hardest to have a balance between trying not to get involved and being on the sidelines about it (letting the person know I'm there). My secret for that is to have a strong sense of identity and to be realistic about your goals with the other person especially if they are a patient and you are setting up a treatment plan for them. Also having a diary where you can vent your emotions or frustration at the end of the day might be helpful. However, as a doctor, nurse, or even psychiatrist it is essential to maintain that person's treatment and know that you are doing the best you possibly can to help them.

 

[LissieRae]

Curious...

I am right now trying to figure out what I want to do. I get all A's and love all of my classes so it is hard for me to pick one career, but my parents want me to be in pediatrics or a nurse practitioner. I want to be something in the more creative industry but given the current economy, I won't because I want a stable career where I'm not worried of being fired.
I'm worried that I will go to all my school and realize I hate the medical field because there isn't really room to switch careers, there are restrictive rules, a lot of repetitive tasks and not enough times for me to be creative. I guess I'm looking for some reassurance that the medical field has all the things that I want.

 

[Coccinellidae]

I want to become a nurse and if there are any ENFP nurses out there, then please... shout it out!