You want to know how I felt when I had no work for so many months despite having a masters degree? Not good. Definitely. I was mentally prepared to wait for 5- 6 months for the work permit to come through. But it was just taking forever to happen.
Ah, Yes, the wait was frustrating. But, I was going to 2 clinics in New York City for observership during that time. And that was immensely helpful too because I got a feel, an idea of how healthcare functions in the US. Plus I had to take up a few courses to get credits for my visa. So I was doing that as well. All this kept me occupied. I mean, there was nothing else I could do about it. I was doing the best I could do under the given circumstances. So there was no point cribbing about it anyway.
Of course, I missed my family the most for sure. But with video calls and stuff like that, it got better with time. Luckily for me, 2 of my husband’s friends’ spouses were staying in the same building. And they became my biggest support system there. We were just married. And it was my first time in the US. So we’d go out often to explore the city and try new restaurants and stuff like that. So that was good. My husband and I like travelling. So we travelled quite a bit too in the last 3 years.
During the week, of course, we – building friends would meet up for coffee and go to the gym together. Of course, I did feel low sometimes. And cried too. I am a little emotional in general, I guess. But it doesn’t take me much time to come out of such moods too. I would watch a series on television or watch a movie. And that would cheer me up. I think I did see television more than usual during that time just to keep my mind occupied.
9 months later, my work permit was nowhere close to coming through. Plus there was news going around that it might get revoked. And that really frustrated me to no end. I had come to India then for a month when that news was going around. My husband also realized how angry and frustrated I was. I knew that if I went back to the US, I would be in that same state of mind. So we decided that I would stay back and start working here in India. We wanted to wait till we got some concrete news about what was happening about the work permit. We first wanted to know, at least approximately, by when I would get the work permit if it did not get revoked.
So, I started working here in Breach Candy hospital and that helped me a lot. It made me realize that I can bounce back again into work. I worked for almost 5 months here. By then the date for the work permit to get revoked had also been pushed back. And our process had reached a step further. Now it seemed like we’d get through and get the permit before it got revoked.
Also just working here in Mumbai had elevated my mood. I guess I was in the right state of mind. I had started feeling that now even if the permit gets revoked, I’ll be able to do something and work somewhere. And that the US was not the end of the world. And I was sure that if they didn’t allow me to work there, I’ll figure out something else. For sure. That realization was very important for me at that time. So that way I was glad I had decided to stay back here and work.
We missed each other a lot during those 5 months. For sure. But my husband was travelling to LA for work every week then. So that worked out well for both of us too. And I guess even he was just very happy to see me work here too.
When I finally started working there – work-wise everything was pretty good. Everything was very clean and organized. So that was also a big plus point. I got a chance to interact with people from all over the world because NY is home to people from all over the globe. So that was also a unique experience. The only challenge that I faced now was that I was living away from home. I mean being out of your comfort zone itself is a challenge, isn’t it? Plus the weather there is really cold. And adjusting to that was a real challenge for me.
Well, India has always been home. So I don’t see any challenges of living here or working here as yet. It feels nice to be back with family. I really missed our street food and just Indian food in general there. So it’s good to be back to all of that.
And yeah…. I definitely miss our home back in the US. It was our first home together – our own little world. We had set it up from scratch. So definitely I miss that. And also I miss my other sister and nephew who are in Florida. She was the only one who had a bittersweet feeling when we told her we are shifting back to India. Obviously, she was happy for us. And more so for my husband, because he had got into a good management course. But she was also upset that I was going away from her.
Hmm… yes. The long wait for my work permit was the frustrating part. I was prepared to wait for some time but I started getting annoyed and irritated because it kept getting extended. But it was not like I was sad and frustrated at all times. We were newly married and it was really nice to set up our home and decorate it. We were getting to know each other and understanding each other. And like I told you earlier, we travelled a lot and my husband made sure I was happy and occupied. And of course, once I got my work permit and started working it all fell in place.
But we get to see the larger picture only in retrospect, don’t we? So, actually, my wait for the work permit did turn out to be fruitful in the end. I really liked the place where I worked. It was a sports medicine clinic and all my colleagues were very nice and experienced. I learnt a lot from them and from all the patients I treated there. I am sure that experience will be helpful for me even when I start practising here.
So what? I know. Maybe it was not a very pleasant experience. But things did work out in the end. And the best part of it all was this – that I got a chance to work in a niche that I loved the most. So it’s okay. Yeah. Things change for the better when the time is right. That’s right. There isn’t much else we can do about it, anyway. So we learn to grin and bear it all, don’t we?