04/25/2026
Another type of USMLE story:
1. Indian doctor female gets "arranged marriage"d to an Indian Engineer male who is working "on-site" in the US. The US tag works wonders!
2. The female shifts to the US, no questions asked. She did grow up believing that all her achievements should be aimed at finding a suitable husband. This is what her parents made her believe. They also made her believe that whatever an Indian set of parents say is always true.
3. So, that brings her here. The US is a great place initially. She loves the social security and quality of life. She loves her life...for a month
4. The husband struggles to keep his position here in the US and keeps busy at the office. The "housewife" stays at home. One day it starts to snow. It snows for 6 months thereafter.
5. The wife realizes one day that all movies in her Netflix subscription are finished. She is a doctor who can't write herself an antibiotic. She has seen lesser people the entire year than the number she would see in a day in India. She has few Indian-American friends but they turn out to be the worst people on the planet. She has still not gathered enough courage to talk to the Americans, let alone make friends with them. She wants to work but she is on H4 visa. Every minute seems long, just like this point.
6. She decides to ask the husband when are they going back, gently, coz she does not want to hinder her husband's progress by thinking about her own. It's against her cultural values. Meanwhile, the husband switches his job from "Wipro" to "Target". He fears she will finally say it out loud that she wants to go back. In comes the solution to everything, the "first baby"!
7. After a mild to moderate fight about whose parents would come to the US to take care of the kid, the husband's parents come and stay with them (they had a son, they are entitled to everything). Funnily, the parents who were always against their kids moving to the US coz they had their kids only to support them in their old age, who were wondering where did their brainwashing and guilt manipulation failed, get happy for the first time about their son being in the US when he provides them an all paid trip for months to the US. After telling the entire city about the fact that their son has not abandoned them (concealing the fact that they can't afford nannies in the US), they arrive at the US. These old Indian parents get so frustrated in the US in a month or two that they pledge to never return.
8. The plan works! Kid keeps the wife busy for 3-4 years. The doctor becomes a full-time housewife and more than full-time mom. Then the kid starts school. The wife gets bored again. Now going back is not even an option as the husband has filed for a Greencard and the kid is a US citizen. One day, at YOG 5 years, she remembers that she is a doctor too! She makes a fake profile and passively keeps checking USMLE pages on Facebook and posts about chances of residency for people with GC and more than 5 years YOG.
9. Indian males want at least two kids. They did not achieve that huge number of 1.324 billion without any talent. The chief reason is that they are not traditionally responsible to take part in the "bringing up" process at all. Make an Indian male work 50% to take care of the kids and that number will fall overnight! The "second kid" comes into the picture. The fake account gets deactivated.
10. The husband's parents will not be fooled again, while the wife's parents still feel insulted about the last time. This time is tougher for her with no help from the husband (coz someone has to work while you keep sitting all day at home with kids), with a toddler at home, and no parents. If only there was an "undo" button, but there is none.
11. At YOG 10 years, both kids are going to school. The fake account is activated again but does it make sense to study now when you are 35+ already?
12. Husband takes a trip to the hospital one day and realizes how great are physician salaries in the US. Three times more than his!!?? He comes back home one day with First Aid book in hand. He says he will completely "support" her and that she should follow her "dreams". The kids are grown up now (and he has to do nothing) and she is a citizen too. Even funnier he asks lovingly at dinners, " How many questions of UW did you finish today honey? Let me know if you need my help in any way possible."
13. The fake account with YOG of 10 years starts posting questions asking, "Will I have more chances to match if I am a citizen (coz that is the one thing I got in the entire deal)?" and for the USCE options but limited to one city coz who will cook the food for the husband and the kids while she is in some other city doing that fancy USCE thingie for 2 months?
14. In an unfortunate series of events, a doctor is made to sit at home for years. Not all of them regret it and it's totally fine if they are happy going through all this but most of them are devastated and depressed by how things played out. Some faults of the system, some faults of her own, truly a sh*tty bargain regardless.
15. This story is more common than you would imagine.
Disclaimer: Completely fictitious account. Just a reflection of my thoughts on the matter. No discussions desired.
Credits: Sharma
