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Student Pharmacist is YOUR online publication featuring must-read articles written by APhA-ASP members. Catch-up on all the latest every Tuesday & Friday! Want to submit an article? Contact the SPM Staff.

'Fearlessly Authentic': If I can, you can
Jamila Negatu
/ Categories: Student Magazine

'Fearlessly Authentic': If I can, you can

Afaq Alabbasi: "My favorite part about being a parent is watching my girls grow and learn new things every day."

By Afaq Alabbasi

“Are you sure you want to do this? You do not even speak English!”

This is just an example of the things I heard when my husband and I decided to go to college in the United States. I cannot say that I did not feel supported from family and friends, but I wanted to start with these quotes to show you where I was and where I stand right now in life.

My husband, Ahmed, and I left Saudi Arabia in 2011 and came to America to achieve my dream of being a pharmacist. Leaving my country and family was not easy; however, it was one of the best decisions I have made. When we first arrived at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, I said to myself, “How am I going to do this?” After a couple of deep breaths, I told myself to stop thinking about pharmacy school and start by learning the language first. Life is hard and sometimes we have no control over it. But we can control how we respond and react to whatever we face. After so many happy, sad, exciting, disappointing, and cheerful moments, I got accepted at the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Pharmacy.

APhA–ASP, my second home

The first question people ask when they know I am involved with student organizations, especially APhA–ASP, on top of being wife, mother, student, and pharmacy intern, is “How do you do it all?” I struggle to answer this question because I never think about it! I decided now for the first time to sit down and come up with an answer and the only thing my brain is telling me is that I do it because I simply love what I do!

Because I was fortunate to have such a great educational life, I promised myself to help others in the community who were not as lucky. I fell in love with APhA–ASP and what it offers for student pharmacists. Within the walls of APhA–ASP, I have gained more than I expected. APhA–ASP became a home for me where I found great mentors who have helped me grow in the pharmacy profession. Their endless support and encouragement impacted my life both personally and professionally. I have also made friends that push me to be the best version of myself.

Coming from the other side of the world, APhA–ASP has taught me to find what unites us rather than focusing on what makes us different. Through my involvement and volunteering in APhA–ASP, I was recognized as both the Student and the Volunteer of the Year during my first year of pharmacy school, which inspired me to do more. Because of that, I served as the Operation Diabetes Chair during my second year, and the Patient Care Vice President as a third-year student pharmacist.

No more fear

This year’s APhA–ASP presidential theme “Fearlessly Authentic” is a great description of student pharmacists who go above and beyond in the profession. At the beginning of my pharmacy school journey, I was terrified of public speaking and having a conversation with people because I was scared of making grammatical mistakes or that my accent was hard for people to understand. Gradually I realized that I was limiting myself from doing what I love because of my fear. I decided to take the word “fear” out of my English dictionary and replace it with “challenge,” and I made a promise that I would always challenge myself to do anything that I was afraid to do.

I also never wanted pharmacy school to stop me from growing my family, and I did not want the fact that I was a mother and a wife to stop me from being an outstanding student pharmacist. As of now, I am a mother of three beautiful daughters ages 7, 4, and almost 1, who mean the world to me. My favorite part about being a parent is watching my girls grow and learn new things every day, seeing the life through the eyes of my girls as they discover the world, and all the snuggles and kisses we give to each other, which is the most beautiful and satisfying thing in life.

I have to be honest, sometimes I want to be alone and cry whenever I feel overwhelmed because pharmacy school is stressful. However, I learned throughout my pharmacy school journey some ways that helped me successfully balance my personal and professional life, and I would like to share them with you.

1. Believe in yourself and know deep in your heart that you have the potential to do more than what you think.

2. Find your support system and use it. For example, my parents and my husband are my number one supporters who are always there for me.

3. Stay away from people who affect you negatively. You need to build an environment that will help you succeed.

4. Make a weekly “to-do” list and prioritize it. I learned a cool tip: if anything I need to do would take 5 minutes or less, I do it first! Try it, it’s a life changing tip.

5. Enjoy what you do and appreciate the opportunities life has given you.

6. Do anything that would energize you or help control your stress. For example, I like to bake cookies and cakes, belly dance with my girls, and FaceTime my parents.

Your pharmacy school journey is about 6 to 8 years and you have the choice to make it the best years of your life. If there is anything I would love for you to take away from this article is that if Afaq can do it, you can do it! I have gone from literally not knowing how to write a sentence in English to authoring an article for Student Pharmacist. It is unbelievably awesome and things keep getting better!

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