Trust me on this one, friend. You cannot go wrong from here on out as long as you emphasize your strengths and
keep in mind that you are the only one who can say whether or not you succeed. Your actions from here on out will determine whether or not you
obtain your goals in life. Select the best school in terms of a pre-med program, get positive references and letters of recommendation from whomever you can,
either from high school or otherwise, and go for it! Make sure that the university you attend has an accredited program, has a good academic reputation, and can
help set you up with internships / residencies in your field of study.
Have fun while at university, but please do not squander the time you have there on second-guessing yourself, partying too much (every weekend), or
letting your problems in the past catch up with you and threaten your sense of self-esteem and well-being. Carefully consider who you are roommates with and
strive to have only roommates who fit your personality and who can bring something to your life, instead of taking away from it. Don't let negativity and self-doubt
creep into your mind for long, as both have a tendency to stay there if you let it. Don't put off whatever you want to do in life, just go out and do it as soon as you can
because when you are looking back on your 20's you should have few regrets, if any.
Study hard, learn whatever you need to to succeed, and never forget why you are at university in the first place! High school is the gateway to college; if you had
a few poor grades in high school, they will not go on your permanent academic record after you graduate from a university. The only record that matters is the one
you create after high school. As a Computer Science graduate, I consider myself as having two GPAs from college; one GPA is the one that matters to me the most, and that's
my CS program GPA. I graduated with a 3.33 CS GPA and a 2.77 overall GPA. What happened? Nobody told me what I just told you in the above paragraphs, so I had to
find out for myself the hard way. Please, from the bottom of my heart, take these words seriously and don't let arrogance or pride get in the way of you doing well in your
non-program classes, such as General Education classes and classes for any minors you want to take. If you don't like the class, try to choose another one or just slug through it.
Never lose sight of what you want to accomplish in your life, and where you have been. Knowing that you could have taken a much worse path in life
is a huge motivator to move forward in a positive direction, from the first day of freshman year to your first day at your first job in your career as a physician, and beyond.
Good luck to you. I can't go back and do it all over again at 17 myself, but I can help others who stand where I stood to understand what they need to do, and not to do.
As a father of two at the age of 31, I sometimes wish I could go back and change some critical events while I was at university, but I only have my future to work with.
To answer your initial question directly, you certainly did not screw up your future! You're only 17 right now. You have a long, fulfilling future ahead of you. 8^)
