The Now Effect: Breaking Free from Waiting and Taking Control

Things are not automatically going to get better. Are you waiting for that to happen on some level?

You feel exhausted, and depersonalized, like an absolute cog in a fast spinning wheel. 

When I experienced burnout and moral injury it was more than the symptoms and its impact. These words give our experiences very dry diagnoses. 

💔For me burnout was a loss of dream and heartbreak. 

I grieved my lost dreams to serve my patients to the best of my abilities and hopes. I grieved the inability to care for my family and my needs because I was so depleted. THAT was my burnout consequence. Seeping into every aspect of my existence. 

I have since done so much to rebuild and create another dream, a massive part of which involves supporting other early career physicians so they do not suffer in quiet loneliness like I did. 

Last week I shared my journey through this heartbreak and loss of dream in an interview with Dr. Todd R. Otten, M.D., and Joshua J. Judy, MSF on the Ripple of Change Podcast, Early Career Physician Challenges & Support with Dr. Amna Shabbir 

🌱Key Takeaways from our conversation:

🪷Don’t wait for things to get better. To sort themselves out. Unfortunately, that just creates maladaptive coping mechanisms and suppression. With the intention to improve-take action! Get up, and take a walk. Write. Talk. Get professional help. Do something. Anything. Action will be rewarded with results. 

Do not just vent daily to loved ones and yourself, do something about it. It can be a very tiny shift that accumulates into a big change. It can even be something very simple. While venting and sharing with friends and family is OK, and has its own benefits, persistently staying in this space is likely not very helpful for you. Is this sharing albeit chronic complaining, creating any actionable item for you? Are you leaving these conversations feeling worse than you did before you started?

🪷Don’t get complacent. If you feel pretty settled into your daily routine as an early career physician, your panel is ramping up, no big problems- that’s great. This is EXACTLY the window to ask yourself, how can my life get even better?

 How can I burnout-proof it for the future? 

If you are a medical trainee and miraculously, you feel OK at this very moment- use this opportunity! Take 5 minutes out and list:

what is working right now for me?

How can I keep doing more of that? 

🎧Tune in to Listen to the full conversation- HERE