I couldn’t imagine life after my first year of medical school. When asked about my future, I just couldn’t imagine it. I knew the future existed out there, somewhere, but I couldn’t see my place in it. I believed my survival in my car accident was a fluke. It is a miracle to still be living. There has to be a reason for that.

Spending the summer abroad was a reminder of life outside of medical school. I had spent a full year in survival mode. In Curitiba, Brazil, I felt free from the stressors of school. I could reflect. I could prepare for the next leg of the race.

I was in a culture I did not know. People spoke a language I did not speak. And, even though I was on my own, being in Brazil reminded me that I mattered. People were kind, and I didn’t feel like I had anything to prove. I survived and I could finally breathe.

Everyone I met was so full of life. At my lab, I met a woman named Monalisa, who greeted me each day with contagious joy. Other members of the team were welcoming and every day I learned more about the culture around me.

Curitiba was diverse, like the United States, and I enjoyed blending in, at least until I spoke. I did not know Portuguese, but in respect of the people in the country, I learned a few phrases to help me communicate. During my internship, I gave a presentation in the local language to a class of medical students, and in the end we all preferred that I spoke English.

This was my first time conducting research abroad in a clinical setting, which helped me learn about many barriers in access to medical care in a global communities. I also learned about how education impacts medical access care and services. On average, women with higher education had less children to care for than those with higher education levels. This impacted many other socioeconomic factors, including anxiety and depression levels, as well as willingness to undergo testing and ability to understand their newborn’s genetic mutation.

I learned that family is among the highest values in Brazilian culture. In other cultures, I observed that if you have your health, you have everything. In Brazil, family is everything. That’s what I love about culture: it reveals our similarities and highlights the beauty in our differences. We live in different places, and yet we are each searching for the same peace of mind, body and Spirit. Healthcare is different across cultures, yet the goal is the same in every culture.