My Journey From the Farm to Psychiatry

*This article originally appeared in the June 2025 issue of Psychiatric News, published by the American Psychiatric Association. Reprinted with permission.

As part of PRMS’ ongoing efforts to support the behavioral healthcare community and to promote the organizations that work towards this mission, we are pleased to highlight the Senior Psychiatrists, Inc., and Dr. Jenny Boyer, MD, PhD, JD. Dr. Boyer reflects on her life journey and shares valuable wisdom.

I was raised on a dairy farm in rural Oklahoma at a time when women were expected to marry and have children. There was emphasis on good character and hard work, but not on academic learning. I went to church three times a week and was “saved” at age 8 after the minister struck a match and said it was like the fire in hell. But a Turkish farmworker who lived in our home taught me that not everyone was an evangelical Christian, and we ate with Indigenous people who taught me that their land was stolen from them. Still, I did not know anyone who was a Black person or Jewish or Catholic.

I learned that I was part of the family team at age 4 when I was letting the clutch out of the hay truck, allowing it to move forward so the men could throw the bales in the back. As a child, I sat with dying members of my family, taking my turn like everyone else. I herded 50 cows to the dairy barn. I entertained myself by walking in the creek with a big stick to kill snakes.

I went to public school in a town with one stop sign. I lived so far out in the country that I spent three hours on the bus each day. When I was 14, I told my father that I wanted to become a doctor. He said I was not smart enough, and that I would never be happy since then I would not marry and have children. Further, it was not God’s will. Years later, my father apologized and said times had changed.

Five Degrees of Education

I did not have access to higher math or science, but I did have religious education, reading the Bible daily. I also read all the books that the mobile library would allow me to take home. I went to college with the support of my mother and brother. I attended Oklahoma Baptist University, where I dropped out of Campus Crusade for Christ after admiring a faculty member who wore an armband the day after Martin Luther King was killed.

After I was selected “outstanding freshman woman,” I was advised to transfer to the University of Oklahoma, which I did. I finished bachelor’s, master’s, Ph.D., and J.D. degrees there. Because I had been afraid I would not get into grad school, I had applied to law school. When I got into both programs, I did both at the same time. Law was a great general education about the rules of society.

I practiced as a clinical psychologist for 15 years before going to medical school. I had a patient die of a brain tumor while I was doing cognitive behavioral therapy. I had anxious patients who also had undiagnosed diabetes. I wanted to know more. I also gained confidence in my ability to stand up for what was right. I was chair of the Ethics Committee for the American Psychological Association and argued against torture and against prescribing without going to medical school.

While I was on the faculty as a psychologist at the University of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City, I applied to medical school there. While I was still on the psychology faculty, I was transferred to the Oklahoma City VA when research funds ran out. But the men stayed on the faculty, and I was told this was because they did not have a husband to support them as I did.

I breast-fed a child while I was on the psychology faculty and was told that this was sexual in nature, though I was completely covered. A child psychiatrist rescued me; he went with me to the chair’s office and said he would care for my child if I needed help. I pumped milk so he could feed my daughter.

Changing What Needs to Be Changed

I worked while I was in medical school, as I’d learned on the farm to never buy anything you did not pay for upfront. I was the oldest person in the medical school class and finished residency at age 51. I was hired back into the same psychiatry department where I had been a psychologist. I was appointed to the state medical licensure board. I got involved with our APA district branch, the Oklahoma Psychiatric Physicians Association; became speaker of the national APA Assembly; and eventually served eight years on the national APA Board of Trustees. I also represented Oklahoma in the AMA House of Delegates for 14 years and was chair of its Senior Governance Council. I am now once more chair-elect of the council.

I have been a fighter against ageism since I sat with dying family members as a child. I have been seeing older veterans via telemedicine. They inspired me to write about Medicare reform and age discrimination. I have helped to change policy about age discrimination in both APA and the AMA. I am now the Senior Psychiatrists’ delegate to the APA Assembly.

I have been in the minority for most of my professional life. I have experienced decades of prejudice. My recommendation is to take giant risks to change what needs to be changed—don’t seek approval, instead trust your own judgment.

When I was in the APA Assembly last time, I was asked why some people are “MAGA.” I replied that we are all subject to being blinded to other perspectives if we only surround ourselves with those who think as we do. Allowing for diversity allows us to use less “groupthink” and to better accept one another. Though we will not agree on everything, at least we will have more perspective. If we allow people to express themselves in private—such as voting on boards or in elections—we also get more diverse opinions.

I heard a lot of diverse opinions when I first traveled to large coastal cities. I was told when I was on the APA board that I did not think like the rest of the members. I come from the country’s heartland, and I am proud of it.

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