10/14/2026
Right before I went into my interview to be a pharmaceutical rep for Eli Lilly. I threw up in the trashcan in the waiting room, and ran to rinse my mouth. It was a day I’ll never forget, and at the time was one of the worst days of my life. Let me explain.
Almost 18 years ago I worked in the medical field as a representative for home health. The RGV had just become under the microscope for millions of dollars of fraudulent activity and many homehealths were closing. I got the job not really knowing much, but I soon figured out what kind of game it was at the time. No shade to the company I worked for, because they were actually very against sexual harassment and sexual or monetary exchanges , like trips and gifts for referrals. All the same I was was ready to leave, and find a stable and suitable type of income without being treated badly by some drs and or not getting referrals because of the heat they were under ( note some of these closed down and went to jail) so I worked pretty hard to get this interview.
I had to study a lot, and memorize some of their pharmaceuticals. And I passed the first interview. The second one , was for me to fly to Austin, where they would pay for it . I would get hotel +flight. It was to have one job in the RGV and I would get a starting pay of 85,000 per year plus car, plus phone , plus all the benefits and travel paid. I would have to leave for months for training.
During this time I would be sick off and on, I was not aware I was celiac , and that I was allergic to gluten. There are many different symptoms. On the flight there, I already felt sick. I remember eating a pack of crackers, and pretzels, ( both contain gluten ) and just sweating , my eyesight would go sideways, I would feel body aches, nausea, stomach pain, headaches, and have extreme anxiety with hives and skin rashes.
I think the adrenaline allowed me to actually enter the building , and when I sat down, my heart started to beat so fast, and I blacked out and threw up in the trash can next to me. I wanted to cry so bad, but I had waited months and worked so hard for this opportunity. These just didn’t come by. You just don’t get that type of interview, and even though I had a bachelors degree, they could choose anyone else.
So I rinsed my mouth, got myself together, and went in. There were 3 men and 1 woman. They all stared at me so pleasantly and started to ask questions. Everything they asked me . I went blank. I could not remember anything I had studied.
I left there jobless. I left embarrassed. I left sick.
18 years later with my family I have my own small botanical pharmacy and I’m thankful I didn’t get the job.
God leads the path. What wasn’t for me , was a blessing. It took long time for me to get here and I know if I would have told that 27 year old girl all of this back then, would she even believe me ? So if you’re reading this, enjoy the journey. You never know where the story ends.
P.S. there is still lots of medical fraud, stay aware and ask questions.
