You want to be a doctor. You want a family. But when is the right time?

Training doesn't end — it just changes shape. And the question doesn't go away. It follows you through rotations, night shifts, every pregnancy announcement in your department.

This is for the moment you decide to actually think it through.

What's inside

• A framework for thinking through timing by training stage — intern year, residency, fellowship
• The financial picture: parental leave, stipend realities, and what the numbers look like
• What to ask your program — and what they're required to tell you
• A guided decision exercise to help you stop second-guessing and move forward with more clarity

I'm Mei Carter — physician, mom, and PGY-1 matched into diagnostic radiology. I had my son during medical school and I'm raising him through intern year right now. I built this tool because it's what I needed before I made the decision — and it didn't exist.