Suicide is one of the major causes of death from firearms, as well as homicide. So we need to be addressing suicide prevention and asking about depression and suicide, and we also need to be talking about firearms because they may not come up. If you wait to talk about…
We are not powerless. Unfortunately, there is another shooting every week, which is awful and shocking, but we can move from that and do something about it at any level. Clinicians: Talk to your patients. Parents: Talk to other parents, vote, and look up those candidates who vote for gun…
"As a parent of elementary school children, every mass shooting, particularly ones killing school children like in Uvalde, jolts my doing-the-mom-thing-just-keep-busy-can’t-stop denial. On the last day of school before summer vacation, when the bus doors squeaked open, and my kids hopped off, I experienced a momentary sense of relief. They…
“What are some of the chronic symptoms of prostate cancer that they have to suffer in silence with?” I think probably a big one is a self-esteem and a sense of self, a sense of being strong, and having energy. Their sexual function may be an important way by which…
“Give us some specific ways how you would incorporate lifestyle medicine and nutrition in a typical office visit.” So I think it's highly variable. Patients are very different. They come with different expectations. I have some completely plant-based patients, some who are still eating cheeseburgers a couple of times a…
"You have the power to make healthier choices to reduce your risk for prostate cancer. While things like genetics are out of your control, there is a wealth of research showing that there are simple ways to reduce your risk for prostate cancer that are within your control. Over the…
“How would you fix this if you were in charge of the quality metrics?” I think the intentions are good. I think that we need to be more nimble in reacting to unintended consequences. What I'm objecting to, what I'm describing in the Kevin MD article, is the unintended consequences…
There's going to be five or 10 minutes that you have to yourself, and so you can hit all of those areas of pleasure or enjoyment all at once: simply by going outside, during your lunch break, sitting in the sun, or taking a little walk. Maybe you listen to…
In order to be an effective physician, you have to have the desire to be challenged. Not just a desire to be challenged but the desire to also overcome these important, difficult situations. Sometimes when it feels like the world's caving in on you, you stop. You got to keep…
I would say our greatest hardships and failures often pave the way for our greatest successes. Sometimes when you think that something is the end of the world, and it may seem like the world is bearing down on you, that's going to pave the way for something even better.…
"Empathy, intelligence, and commitment are crucial traits every doctor must have to succeed. However, there is one trait that stands above the rest. One of the most important aspects of an effective doctor is the desire to be challenged and overcome difficult situations. I feel I’ve exemplified that throughout my…
To any physician that's suffering from this horrible disease, just know you're not alone. We all feel unique, isolated, and scared to death. And also, you didn't choose to become an addict. Narcotic addiction: These are very addictive medications. I had no idea that I could become addicted, so you're…
Recovery has to be number one. If you want to get back to practicing medicine, everything will fall into place if you take care of that. Don't take your recovery for granted. If I took one pill, it'd be all over. I don't drink alcohol. I'm a Catholic; I don't…
"During addiction, the brain becomes 'hijacked,' which then 'exaggerates the need for the drug and minimizes the dangers associated with the use of the drug.' This is so affirming because the chemicals in my brain told me I was going to die if the opioid was not available. It was…
If you feel as if you don't have time for yourself and your health and your fitness, set your alarm clock an hour earlier. I thought about that and thought, “That's crazy. I can't do that. I need my sleep. I had a late night. I was on call. I…
My definition of burnout was this realization that I was in a situation that I was powerless to get myself out of. I was in a situation where I was powerless to help the people that needed me most at that given time. For the first time in my life,…
"My own burnout episode forced me into some heavy-duty soul-searching and serious reflection. I got lost in the world of seeing as many patients as possible, battling for more operating room time, and keeping up procedure volumes, prior authorizations, and electronic medical record keeping. I failed to notice early warning…
You need to take care of yourself. You need to keep up with your medications and doctor's appointments and consider speaking to hospice nurses or therapists of some sort. Because you are going through as much as your loved one, only you're watching it on the outside. You need to…
I would describe it as pre-grief before death. Although the feelings may be very much the same. It's the waiting, it's the not knowing. And as I said, it's not talked about very often, so for me, it felt like, “What would happen today? Was anything gonna change? Would I…
"I experienced many deaths when I was a nurse, from babies, kids, young adults, the elderly, and my own family. It was always heartbreaking, but I found that staying with the dying and the family and supporting them in what little way I could made the experience more bearable. I…
“What's your comment in terms of this increasing public distrust of medical institutions?” Some of it is a vast collection of medical information, so you can go to your favorite search engine, put a term in, and get a whole host of things that make you feel like you're an…
With my transition to opioid-free, I went from a mindset that this is a necessary evil for controlling pain for my patients after surgery so that they can achieve the outcome of having a repair or reconstruction to this is not necessary. And I approached my patients with that mindset…
"How do we manage this? All patients meet with the physical therapist before surgery and within two days after surgery. They use transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) before and after surgery. They get a regional anesthetic block from one of our anesthesiologists, supplemented with local injection during surgery. They use…
Lifestyle medicine is the medical specialty that uses evidence-based lifestyle and therapeutic intervention as a primary approach to prevent, treat, and often reverse the chronic diseases that are so common today. And it does that by addressing the root causes. It looks at the whole person and enables people to…