USVI - Lucy Schuhmann, 48, tourist from KY, St. John, US Virgin Islands, 19 Sep 2019

[meanmaryjean]

So if she graduated from med school this spring - she clearly did not "match" for an internship / residency as those begin July 1. This is a BIG DEAL in the world of medicine. And not scoring well on the exam (forget the acronym right now) is also a big deal.
Given the comments on social media from those who know her about her not being in contact while on the island - very worrying.

 

[Scoutce]

So if she graduated from med school this spring - she clearly did not "match" for an internship / residency as those begin July 1. This is a BIG DEAL in the world of medicine. And not scoring well on the exam (forget the acronym right now) is also a big deal.
Given the comments on social media from those who know her about her not being in contact while on the island - very worrying.

I was also thinking that not matching for residency would be a huge deal but.... the timing. It’s been months since that could have happened. Matching is in early May or late April- I can’t remember. But surely someone would have noticed a major depressive episode before now?

 

[Odette765]

Not matching for residency and scoring poorly on the boards could have manifested a major depressive episode. I would hope a forensic psychologist is helping with the search and knows these events leading up to her disappearance. Seems like the people on her Facebook missing page are clueless to this as well. Praying so deeply she is found very soon, alive.

 

[meanmaryjean]

Matching is usually March IIRC. For the uninitiated - not matching means you are a med school grad but without at least a year of internship - you cannot practice medicine. Six months post- graduation your student loans payments start. THAT could explain the timing of this disappearance if it is indeed voluntary. MOO

 

[Odette765]

Are you not able to try to match another resdiency program after a certain waiting period? That seems so harsh to not to be able to ever practice medicine if you don't match that first go around? It seems like Lucy was a perfectionist so I am sure this was extremely hard on her How can one just vanish though in the very small Island of St. John? It seems she would have been found by now? Where could she be? So very sad Maybe she escaped her old life and is starting a new somewhere. I just pray she is alive.

 

[meanmaryjean]

You can match for the following year but it is an annual process in the US.

 

[meanmaryjean]

United States Medical Licensing Examination | Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here is a link to the USMLE (multi-step licensing exam for physicians)

 

[zecats]

I was also thinking that not matching for residency would be a huge deal but.... the timing. It’s been months since that could have happened. Matching is in early May or late April- I can’t remember. But surely someone would have noticed a major depressive episode before now?

Maybe family did notice and just aren't commenting. Lucy may have gotten more depressed as time passed and then, if she considered suicide, perhaps St. John is a place she wanted to be during her last moments. I'm totally speculating here, and I wish it was not even remotely possible.

I do wonder how and why she hasn't been located, especially if it's thought she did not fall and that she would have been found if in the sea.

 

[Odette765]

Being the family hasn't even gone down to the Island to help search, nor offer a reward for her safe return, I believe they must know something more than we do. I don't care though, I would still be down there helping search for her. Just makes me sad that nobody from her family is down there? Wonder if there were problems with them as well which could have contributed to her depression. And where is the coast guard in all of this? I would have thought they would have helped search the ocean more aggressively.

 

[bubbles12]

I agree with what both of you have said. I speculate that this is what the issue is and why they aren’t down in St. John looking for her. As time goes on I’m just hoping to have answers for her. Such a sad sorry that hasn’t been solved yet.

 

[Odette765]

Have the owners of the airbnb mentioned anything out of the ordinary about her behavior? Did she go out at all in the evenings? Have any restuarants or cafes mentioned seeing her or with someone? Yes, just very sad and yes so many questions left to be answered.

 

[spangled]

I'm in the middle of a major depressive episode myself and funnily enough have also just taken myself away for a week with nobody really knowing where I have come.

Nobody would have any idea I'm so down, it's just time alone away from people. Also doesn't mean self harm is an obvious option. Travelling alone can make you very vulnerable.

 

[Kitten72]

I'm in the middle of a major depressive episode myself and funnily enough have also just taken myself away for a week with nobody really knowing where I have come.

Nobody would have any idea I'm so down, it's just time alone away from people. Also doesn't mean self harm is an obvious option. Travelling alone can make you very vulnerable.

Hey.....if you need to talk I'm here. I don't know you. You don't know me...but I've been there, I've wanted it all to end just to have peace. Message me You got this

 

[Odette765]

I'm in the middle of a major depressive episode myself and funnily enough have also just taken myself away for a week with nobody really knowing where I have come.

Nobody would have any idea I'm so down, it's just time alone away from people. Also doesn't mean self harm is an obvious option. Travelling alone can make you very vulnerable.

Praying for you friend.

 

[AzPistonsGirl]

for Lucy and for @spangled - a big fat hug. One of those good ones, not too tight, not too loose, but intimate enough to convey love and humankindness and hope and safety. I'd be happy to be on the other end of a hug like that right now too. Virtual will have to suffice. xo

 

[Odette765]

I mean it still could very well be an accident or an abudction case. Nothing is yet confirmed, but you would think and hope they would have been down there for moral support if anything?? Just doesn't make sense to us Just hoping and praying for a miracle and that she is found alive.

 

[GuyfromCanada]

The National Park Service announced Wednesday it was downscaling its search for a Kentucky woman who has been missing on St. John for two weeks from a wide search to a limited, continuous response, according to Nigel Fields, superintendent of the Virgin Islands National Park.

More at NPS Downscales Search for Missing Kentucky Woman | St. John Source

Where could Lucy be?

 

[?mysterian?]

The National Park Service announced Wednesday it was downscaling its search for a Kentucky woman who has been missing on St. John for two weeks from a wide search to a limited, continuous response, according to Nigel Fields, superintendent of the Virgin Islands National Park.

More at NPS Downscales Search for Missing Kentucky Woman | St. John Source

Where could Lucy be?

Thank you for posting that link. It certainly sounds like, from what was reported, a pretty thorough search was done of the area where her backpack was found.

Where could she be?

 

[zecats]

Thank you for posting that link. It certainly sounds like, from what was reported, a pretty thorough search was done of the area where her backpack was found.

Where could she be?

Nothing else known about what she may have been doing for the entire day before she went missing. It's assumed she was hiking because of her found pack. I grant you, it seems strange that she left personal belongings behind. But if hiking that trail, wouldn't she have been located long ago?

Maybe she went out boating with someone, or for a swim. Chances seem to me that since she has not been found, she is no longer on St John or she is in the water. JMO

 

[Occam's Zebra]

I found information supporting that Lucy earned a Master's in Public Health in May 2018, and that she was a second-year medical student in the spring of 2016. Going to medical school in one's 40s isn't super common, and med school is a huge investment no matter your age. If she took her boards and did poorly, it's possible she was overwhelmed by that and second-guessing her life choices.

The FB missing page has a ton of comments, some of which suggest foul play, however.