A single mother relying on welfare to help her and her young son get by will soon finish her residency program and become the emergency room attending physician at a new hospital.
Dr Amanda Lamond-Holden was in for a shock when, at 18, she discovered she was pregnant.
Through years of hard work and sacrifice, the brave mother-of-three will now be running the emergency room at a new medical centre in San Diego.
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Inspiring: Amanda Lamond-Holden graduated valedictorian from college and went on to become a doctor after resorting to welfare after unexpectedly becoming pregnant at 18
Busy at work: She finishes her residency Saturday, and will go on to be an ER attending in August
But her dreams of becoming a physician were put on hold, as she discovered she was pregnant during her freshman year of college.
The scared freshman moved back in with her parents and transferred to a community college. A social welfare program – CalWORKS – allowed her to spend 20 hours a week working in a surgery centre.
Her mother quit her job to help out with her grandchild.
Because of her difficult situation, Dr Lamond-Holden’s friends and family would often advise her to seek a simpler path – perhaps getting an associate’s or bachelor’s degree rather than pursue another four years in medical school.
Family ties: The doctor says she couldn't have done it without support from her parents and sons
Others said more bluntly that it would be impossible for her to handle the difficult course load while simultaneously caring for her child, to which she responded: ‘Why can’t I have both? Why can’t I have my baby and also still become a doctor?’ 10News reported.
The determined mother was valedictorian of her class at UC San Diego, with her then-2-year-old son Brayden at her side, then attending UCSD Medical School.
Somewhere in between all of the studying, she met and married, and had two more children. Joey, 9, was born right before her first year of medical school, and Benjamin, 1, was born while she was in residency.
Last year, she was also named chief resident at UCSD Medical Center.
Advice: The new attending has advice for anyone overcome with the weight of their dreams: ¿No matter what people tell you, you can make your dreams come true'
Now, with her husband and three children by her side, Dr Lamond-Holden will finish her residency and move on to be the attending physician for the emergency department at Palomar Medical Center.
'No matter what people tell you, you can make your dreams come true.'
Her sons, she said, have been a tremendous support for her throughout the years, as have her parents.
Braydon, now 15, told 10News: ‘Pretty much my whole life she’s been studying to be a doctor and trying to raise me right, and I’m just really proud of her,’ he said.
Meanwhile, the new attending has advice for anyone overcome with the weight of their dreams: ‘No matter what people tell you, you can make your dreams come true,’ she said.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2163854/Its-long-journey-Inspiring-story-single-mother-went-welfare-ER-doctor.html#ixzz1yiiNAtAu
