[JKratzer]

Go for it. I'm about 6 months into your exact plan and I'm very pleased. I graduated in the spring pre-med and delayed applying to graduate schools. I play poker as my only income and wasn't planning on doing it long term. I just got back from traveling around Europe in November. I will be applying to med schools here in the next couple months.

I was very unsure of my plans when I originally decided to do it when I graduated. Now I am very happy that I went with it, I think you'll always regret not taking a chance and trying something you love if you don't do it now. You will probably never have another opportunity to pursue this so definitely go for it.

As far as what to tell your parents, you could start by showing them your original post.

Best of luck,
JKratzer