Category: Wellness

• Practicing Self Compassion for Physicians

  

  Do you have an overactive inner critic? A little (or maybe not-so-little) voice in your head that is eager to pounce on any misstep you make, amplify any mistake, berate you mercilessly for being less than perfect? These vicious self-judgments come with a high price, increasing the risk of depression, anxiety, burnout, and other stress…

• How to Overcome Early Career Physician Setbacks & Thrive in Recovery 

  

  I shared my past struggles with substance use disorder during training, including a relapse during my fellowship. My career as a surgeon was not over as it turns out – instead, we’re just getting started.

• Overcoming Addiction In Residency & Fellowship

  

  Dr. McKeown tells her story of battling, and overcoming, addiction in both residency and fellowship. She tells her story so that others struggling with addiction or substance abuse can know that they are not alone.

• Switching Gears When You Leave The Hospital

  

  How can you protect yourself from the experience of being a resident? How does anyone unplug when they’re leaving their shift or long day at the hospital?

• Long Distance Relationship In Residency Training: A Practical Guide

  

  You and/or your partner have matched into your desired specialty for residency training, congratulations! Now what…

• Things I Wish I Knew Before Residency

  

  I thought that in exchange for leaving behind a place that helped me grow immensely, I would be entering a friendly, inclusive residency program to embark on the next phase of my life. Please learn from my mistakes, and value yourself and your own worth.

• Refusing All Cooperation With The Heart’s Death

  

  It has been almost a year and a half, and while my depression is still a part of my life, it isn’t my whole life. Showing myself kindness did not make me a bad doctor, and it’s the reason I am still here today. 

• Getting A Pet In Residency

  

  I knew without a doubt that I would get a dog at some point in my life, but I had a lot to consider before taking the leap in residency. This was a common discussion in medical school, and I had heard both sides plenty of times.

• Existential Crisis: A Medical Nomad Lifestyle

  

  My worries stem from the fact that I have been a nomad for so many years. I jumped around so much, rotation to rotation, hospital to hospital, city to city, office to office, year to year. Besides the Camry, nothing has been mine. Every apartment I rented has been temporary…

• “Mama’s at Work” – Perspective From a Doctor’s Spouse

  

  It’s the pain of seeing someone you love get mercilessly beaten down and the pain of not being able to do anything about it. The pain of repeating the same vanilla condolences: “I’m sorry, that’s hard, I can’t imagine, it’ll get better,” and the pain of watching those words stare back at you in empty,…