Last responders are functioning but not thriving

Hello all,

Thanks so much for your kind words and details about your own paths around habits, good and bad.  I am constantly surprised/proud/impressed with how many of my colleagues paved their own way in this career with and without a strong foundation of support.  A retired police officer enrolled in medical school told me she was “functioning but not thriving.”  Now that you know a little more about the benefits of mental health and wellness, can you also recognize your success and how far you’ve come?

When I look back at my journey, I can’t believe how far I’ve come.  American graduate programs in anthropology, good ones at least, provide students with a foundation in the four subfields of the social science – biological anthropology, cultural anthropology, archaeology, and linguists.  Texas State’s began in this manner, with theoretical overview courses and basics in forensic methods. I enrolled in additional Criminal Justice courses while also focusing on Human Osteology, Anatomy, Pathology, and anything offered with a Paleo- prefix.  By the conclusion of my two-year graduate program, I completed a thesis project examining the effects of gunshot trauma to the infracranium and felt comfortable determining forensic significance, establishing a biological profile, assessing trauma and pathological conditions, writing case reports, and running field searches. 

Out of my cohort of around twenty anthropologists, six were forensic anthropologists.  The archeologists knew what was next – a life of heavy lifting, heavy sifting, and posh government gigs.  The cultural and biological anthropologists (there were no linguists) aimed for PhD programs so they could become professors themselves.  But the six of us were puzzled over our next steps.  The only government gigs we could find were off in Hawaii working to recover missing service personnel (posh?!) or with medical examiners’ offices as death investigators. 

I quickly learned I wanted to be in the field.  I learned I liked working with the experts on scene.  I learned I didn’t want to teach or be stuck in a lab.  Overall, my time at Texas State was critical for building my craft and setting my intentions.  Next week, I’ll tell you how I tested my intentions by trying all kinds of different jobs – some that I loved and some were not for me, all which led me to where I am today.   

Have a great week,

Kat