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I am a biomedical researcher at the University of California San Francisco, where I study a syndrome of pregnancy called preeclampsia (sometimes also called toxemia of pregnancy). It is one of the most common causes of high blood pressure and death in pregnancy, and can affect both the mother and the baby. Since no one knows what causes preeclampsia, the only way we have to treat it is to deliver the baby right away. Since it can strike any time in the second half of pregnancy, this means that the baby may be premature, sometimes too young to survive, and so making a decision to save the mother from preeclampsia can also mean making a very sad choice about the baby. The goal of my work is to find out what causes preeclampsia so that some day, we can treat or prevent this terrible condition so that no parent will ever have to face this choice again. I originally wanted to be a physician, and I was a pre-med student
at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign when I started
there. In my junior year, I did an internship with a local physician,
and realized that it really would not be a good career choice for
me. I really enjoyed my science courses, though, so I decided to
see what it would be like to work in science. After getting my B.S.
degree in Biochemistry, I worked as a technician in a lab at U of
I for three years. Here, I was able to do experiments that were
designed by a professor, and see what it is like to be a scientist.
I soon realized that I wanted to be the one who designed experiments
and entire research projects, not the one who did others' experiments,
so I decided to get my Ph.D. I love my job- it is like solving puzzles all day! The coolest
thing is that I get to work on something that I believe will help
people live healthier lives. I get to pick my work hours too, so
I have the freedom to come and go as I please. One thing that is
hard for some people who are scientists is the long hours. Even
though I get to choose my schedule, I frequently work long days,
and sometimes have to come in on weekends. But in the end, I don't
mind because I get to work on exciting projects and do what I love.
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