‘It’s going to be a new challenge’: Mother of 9 graduates from medical school

A woman with nine children just graduated medical school and now plans to become a neurosurgeon.

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Sarah Merrill graduated from the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Phoenix, Arizona, Good Morning America reported.

Merrill told GMA that she and her family, which includes nine children aged 8 to 20, will be moving to Indiana so she can begin her residency in neurosurgery at Indiana University.

Merrill graduated from Dartmouth College as an undergrad nearly 20 years ago, but put her dreams of going to medical school and becoming a doctor on hold to start a family, KTVK reported. Merrill married her husband during her senior year of college, and began medical school when her youngest was four years old, the station said.

“Its has been a team effort and a lot of flexibility. We’ve had months when I’ve been home a lot and a few months where I was out of state for rotations. My husband, mom, and older kids have all pitched in to take care of things when I was more busy, and I take over a lot of things when I’m less busy with school,” Merrill told KTVK.

Merrill told GMA that she’s ready for the next part of the journey, saying, “It’s going to be a new challenge, a new adventure. But everybody is on board and I think we have a great support system.”

In Indiana, Merrill will be doing a neurosurgery residency for the next seven years, GMA reported.

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