As physicians, we’re typically pretty good at assessing how others feel, both physically and emotionally. Unfortunately, we’re often less adept at identifying how we personally feel, especially emotionally. When we’re in doctor mode (which is pretty much all the time), what I call “Doctor Brain” kicks in. We’re constantly on high-alert, looking out for danger. We’re so focused on everyone around us, stopping to check on our own emotional health isn’t natural. Thus, stress and unhappiness become our normal.
Welcome to my brand new podcast, Stress-Less Physician. I’m your host, Dr. Sara Dill. I’m a board-certified dermatologist, pediatric dermatologist, and life coach for doctors. As a dermatologist, I was happy with my success but miserable overally. I couldn’t shake that overworked, non-stop stress that plagued me. I couldn’t obtain the elusive “work-life balance” others talked about.
So I set out to find the solution, and I did. In my coaching practice and through this podcast, I share with other physicians what I’ve learned and how to change their outlook like I did. I learned that stress is a symptom and thoughts are the root cause. And I’m here to help others learn what I have. Let’s start with how to feel better.
What You’ll Learn
- Recognize emotions
- Four basic emotions
- Note bodily sensations
- Don’t just work harder
- Pinpoint your emotional flavor
- Reinforcement of emotions
- How long emotions last (at first onset)
- Perpetuating the cascade
- Meaning makers can direct their feelings
- How to feel better
- Reframe where your emotions originate
- Find the cause
- Know and name your feelings
- Describe your physical response
- Believe new things
- Embrace emotional adulthood
- Happiness blocks
- Frequency of emotions
- Negativity bias
- Doctor brain
- Feeling better practices: How to…
- Set daily intention
- Ask upward spiral questions
- Conscientiously cultivate gratitude
Contact Info and Recommended Resources
Connect with Sara Dill, MD, The Doctor’s Coach
A bit about me…
I’m Sara Dill, MD, board-certified dermatologist and pediatric dermatologist. I went through life getting straight As, following the rules, and getting into the right schools (Harvard, UC San Diego, Brown). I believed the way to be a good and successful doctor was to work hard, always say yes, and put patients (and everyone else) first.
But while I was successful, I felt perpetually stressed out, overworked and unhappy. I was always looking for that perfect work-life balance, which never appeared. So I became determined to solve this problem. I had worked too long and hard to simply accept being overworked and stressed out for my whole medical career!
I took a sabbatical from practice and studied life coaching. I completed two life coach training programs, numerous other courses, read 100s of books, and used coaching to transform my own relationship to work.
What I learned was that stress is a symptom. It all has less to do with the actual hours you work than with your thoughts about your work.
With this knowledge, I took control of my life and stopped being just one more overworked and stressed out doctor. So can you! But you don't have to take years and read hundreds of books to figure it out. I did it so you don't have to. And I’m here to help. Using a combination of coaching tools and mindfulness, I coached myself back into a thriving dermatology practice I truly enjoy. With the rest of my time, I coach other physicians on how to stress-less and enjoy their work and life more.
