From Medicine to 3D Visualization: Alena’s Inspiring Journey and Her Impact on Teens

From Medicine to 3D Visualization: Alena’s Inspiring Journey

“While you’re thinking you’re not good enough, people with half your talent are achieving great heights” — this is the motto of Alena Shevchenko. And it works. Alena has been a musician, a doctor, and an interior designer. At the peak of her success, she left everything behind and moved alone with her three-year-old son to conquer Cyprus. Instead of resting on her laurels, she opened a school for 3D interior visualization and went to study in Milan. Read about Alena’s amazing and inspiring journey in our article.

Changing Lives Through Education

While Alena embraces life to the fullest, her school is changing the lives of others. Several teenagers with unique stories and children from low-income, large families study there for free.

Music: “I did my homework at my mother’s friend’s house for a whole year”

I was born in the city of Grodno into a family of doctors. We have an entire dynasty of doctors, spanning five generations. My parents achieved a lot in medicine, and my grandfather was a legend in surgery.

From the age of six, I dreamed of being a musician and performing with an orchestra. My mother didn’t really want to send me to music school, so I persuaded her to let me attend a music studio at my regular school. For a whole year, I studied at the studio and went to my mother’s friend’s house to do my homework on her piano.

After a year, seeing my persistence, my parents bought me my own piano and enrolled me in music school. At the same time, I sang in a group, studied choreography, and performed at concerts. After the 9th grade, I prepared to enter a music college, but a month before the entrance exams, I changed my mind. I decided to follow in my parents’ footsteps and dedicate my life to medicine.

Medicine: “Not only his team but also the opposing team came to support the boy in the hospital”

My parents never insisted that I choose medicine. But they talked about it so interestingly and passionately that I couldn’t help but be drawn to the profession.

Studying at a medical university was not easy, but it was interesting. I met many friends, wonderful people, and amazing teachers there. After receiving my cherished red diploma, I moved to Minsk to work as an anesthesiologist and resuscitator.

I worked as a doctor in the 6th City Clinical Hospital in Minsk in the anesthesiology and resuscitation department for 5 years. I completed my postgraduate studies and residency and wrote my Ph.D. thesis. I loved my job — we had an excellent team of anesthesiologists, nurses, and surgeons. We still communicate and are friends with each other’s families.

All the most interesting cases are medical secrets. But there are two cases that have stayed in my memory for a long time and that I can talk about.

Once, a man, our colleague, a doctor with intestinal cancer, was admitted to the surgery department. He needed to have part of his intestine removed. The operation lasted more than 12 hours, and I was the anesthesiologist. After that, the patient spent several days in intensive care. A month later, a repeat operation was performed. One day, I was sitting on the summer terrace of a café and saw him playing tag with his granddaughter. My world stopped for a moment from happiness.

There was another case when a coach brought a teenager with a sprained ankle to the emergency room in the evening. This unfortunate accident happened right during the competition. Not only his team but also the opposing team came to support the boy in the hospital, and they couldn’t be sent home until the morning. It was nice to see such friendship.

But my life wasn’t just about work. I was actively renovating my apartment and often went to a hardware store where a guy, the owner’s son, helped me choose everything I needed. As a result, I fell in love with both interiors and him. A year after we met, we got married, and two years later, we had a son. I happily went on maternity leave.

Marriage: “We separated suddenly. I still don’t know the reason”

Those were wonderful five years of marriage. We bought a house, raised our son, planned trips, and my husband’s career was rapidly developing. We separated suddenly. Practically in one day, at his initiative, without scandals or arguments.

For me, it was like a bolt from the blue. To be honest, I still don’t know the reason. But I know one thing: you shouldn’t hold on to a person who can so easily refuse you. The world doesn’t end when someone stops loving you.

To distract myself from the separation, I immersed myself in all kinds of activities and fulfilled my dreams — those that weren’t related to family. I participated in the Mrs. Minsk contest, graduated from a motorcycle school, bought a motorcycle, and started practicing mixed martial arts.

I remembered my musical education, bought a white electronic piano, and played a lot. I completed courses in mobile photography, did photo shoots for brands, and modeled myself.

Thanks to my parents and my ex-husband’s parents for helping me with our son, so I had time for all this. Self-development, studying a new profession, friends, and the most beautiful blue eyes of my son in the world helped me through this period.

I have a normal relationship with my ex-husband. Now, my son and I live in two countries, and my ex-husband builds his business and travels the world. Every two months, we meet in some country, the three of us, and spend time together.

Interior Design: “I already have a standard of living that I once dreamed of”

My maternity leave was coming to an end, and I started thinking about what to do next. I realized that although I liked medicine, I didn’t see my further development in it. I remembered that even before my maternity leave, I took courses in interior design, construction drawings, and visualization. I arranged to start working as a designer’s assistant. I gained experience and, at the same time, developed my blog.

I started doing design projects for my girlfriends and acquaintances for free. Then, clients appeared for whom I did one room at a time. Gradually, the number of square meters and orders increased, and I had three assistants.

And everything seemed to be going well. I already had a standard of living that I once dreamed of. But I knew it was time to move forward — only a voluntary exit from the comfort zone gives growth. My parents reminded me that I once wanted to study in another country. And I decided to try my luck in Cyprus.

Cyprus: “After a month, I was hired by a Turkish company”

My son and I flew to Cyprus on May 30th. For the first couple of weeks, we explored the island, traveled, met new people, and made friends. The biggest difficulty for me was the separation from loved ones and the change in my daily routine. But gradually, I found new friends, a gym for workouts, beauty masters, a kindergarten for my son, a favorite café, and quickly integrated into the new life.

After a month on the island, I went to a Turkish developer’s company, showed my portfolio, and was hired as a designer. It was a valuable experience. I was very interested in learning how work is organized in foreign companies. Besides, I significantly improved my English and started learning Turkish — all communication in the company was in these languages.

Now, many people are buying real estate in Cyprus. So, in parallel with my work in the company, I started helping to furnish apartments for new owners for their move or rental. In the future, together with a very famous brand, I plan to open a school there.