My Story

I knew, as I walked across the stage in my black gown, with that tasseled square hat precariously balanced on my head, that I wouldn’t be in medicine forever.

I loved learning.
I loved helping.
I loved making a difference
in people’s lives.

But, I knew this way of helping people wasn’t MY way.

Being in the hospital didn’t light me up.

The clinic felt like working on a human conveyor belt.

I couldn’t honor the part of my introverted nature that wanted to BE with the people I served.

I wanted to impact lives AND play to my strengths.

By trying to fit into the persona of who I thought I was expected to be as a physician, I was shutting out parts of me.

Yet, I had pursued this big goal. I’d dedicated my time and effort, made sacrifices, and taken a prized place in the world of medicine.

I couldn’t just step away.

I made a deal with myself.
I would immerse myself in the role of physician, knowing I’d given myself permission to step away once I’d reached my self-imposed finish line.

Then I became the best doctor I could be.

The next two decades were my playground for developing strategies to nurture myself and support my energy while also striving to be a conscientious, caring doctor and colleague.

Though these methods served me well for many years, I started to increasingly feel like I was playing someone else’s part. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was living according to someone else’s rules and expectations.

Then it happened.

I didn’t really see it coming.

I slowly started losing myself.
My interests.
My hobbies.
They faded away.

Looking back, a lot of it was self-imposed.

My independent,
introverted personality sent me deeply inward.

I faced it alone.

I was afraid to let people down.

I didn’t ask for help,
and because I was so private, no one knew to come.

I quit playing to my strengths.

I could only see how I was failing to meet expectations that weren’t mine.

Does this feel familiar to you?

Interestingly, I felt dread and numb at the same time. I wanted to jump out of my skin and escape. Despite having made many positive changes on my own, I felt trapped.

I knew I couldn’t stay in that place any longer. I didn’t know exactly what the future held, but I knew continuing to “stick it out” wasn’t an option.

Fortunately, I sought out the help of a stranger. A coach. And that became the beginning of my new journey.

I started seeing options.

I leaned into my strengths.

I gave more weight to
my needs and values.

I let myself have fun again.

I experimented.

I moved toward what I wanted instead of giving away my energy to what I didn’t want.

I opened myself to possibility.

And I landed here.

The first 15 years of my career in medicine were about creating strategies to care for patients and also support myself as I functioned in someone else’s model.

The last 5 years were about letting go of others’ expectations, exploring what was possible, and shaping a model that aligned with MY values, skills, and personality. I let go of feeling guilty for not being the person others wanted me to be.

I’m not a believer of living in regret.

But, I do wonder how things might’ve been different if, from the beginning, I’d had the advanced support, tools, and resources I have now.

Instead of trying to endure within the system, I could’ve helped recreate it.

This is one of the reasons I decided to change my career, leave medicine, and focus on helping introverts in healthcare who are suffering from burnout or contemplating an exit from medicine.

I realized the world of medicine might change if we, the caregivers, felt free to give ourselves the empathy, support, and nurturing we give to others.

How would the experience of being in medicine shift if we demanded FOR ourselves the excellence we demand OF ourselves?

That’s why I’m here.

That’s why I created my coaching business.

Despite how it may feel now, your world is full of possibility.

Enough about me.
It’s time to put the focus on you.

I want to help you get back to the excitement of that first day of your medical training.

I want you to have something to look forward to again.

If you love medicine and patient care, but feel crushed by all the demands, there are ways to honor your needs and feel excited again.

If you’re not sure that you have it in you to continue your role in healthcare, you can let go of the guilt and open up to making your experience the best it can be.

That’s how you create the space to make decisions grounded in the feeling of wanting to move forward rather than of desperately needing to escape.

In the end, that might mean staying.
Or it might not.

If you’re ready to escape the feelings of apathy, irritability, and resentment caused by the increasing demands and decreasing rewards of being in medicine, let’s talk.

It’s time to honor and prioritize yourself. It’s time to elevate your energy. And it’s definitely time to drop the guilt over wanting something better.

Are you ready?