Comments on: Reflections of a Millennial Doctor: Burnout

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Wed, 30 May 2018 22:42:10 +0000

Haha.. I’m finding that avoidance isn’t necessarily always a bad thing 😉 In all seriousness though, it’s been a huge work in progress to limit my exposure to toxic environments since that’s something that I seem to launch myself into in order to “help”.

I’m honoured by your compliment especially since you are an accomplished and published writer yourself! I’m very intrigued by your book – I may just have to check it out!

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Wed, 30 May 2018 22:37:05 +0000

In reply to Accidental FIRE. I agree, there are several paths that lead to burnout and my biggest frustrations with my job may be totally different than someone else's even within the same profession. There are good moments at work, but human nature is to dwell on the bad, of course, so that's something I'm trying to work on as well. Thanks for reading and I'm off to check out your blog as well!

By: Melissa Yuan Innes/ACL$

Melissa Yuan Innes/ACL$ — Wed, 30 May 2018 00:53:46 +0000

You’re an fantastic writer. I’ve no doubt you’re a top notch physician, but most importantly, you’re a human being. I’m so glad you cut back to 30-35 h/week to try and save yourself. Can’t wait to start reading your work!
P.S. I’m an ER MD. I run away from meetings, extra paperwork, and most especially, toxic people, including bullying patients and colleagues. I hope you will, too.

By: Accidental FIRE

Accidental FIRE — Tue, 29 May 2018 22:26:36 +0000

Wow, amazing post and great writing. I think burnout manifests itself in similar ways across professions, although the paths to get there can be very diverse. I have a ton of respect and admiration for what you do as doctors, and to me it seems like such an incredibly hard profession to stay in, despite the fact that you’re directly helping people. Good luck, I look forward to hearing more from you going forward!

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Tue, 29 May 2018 16:19:55 +0000

The dread is real! When my husband pointed out I got “grumpy” on Sunday evenings, I knew something needed to change. No real tears on my end, just tantrums. Not really a better alternative!

Thank you for reading!

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Tue, 29 May 2018 16:17:35 +0000

In reply to Financial Wellness DVM.

Haha.. my dad told me last night, “You’re such a millennial.. I wasn’t allowed to have such a crisis when I was your age.” It was such an ego check – I definitely am able to have this existential crisis I’m having now because I’ve been privileged enough to live in the U.S. Not many people are afforded the chance to go off and do something else, so I’m going to take this opportunity to be more intentional with the rest of my course and hopefully have more meaningful and impactful experiences.

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Tue, 29 May 2018 16:08:37 +0000

In reply to xrayvsn.

I read somewhere that the biggest thing that contributes to happiness is control of our own fates/environments, or at least the perception of control 😉

I do think it’s time to take control back of our lives and our careers… perhaps then it will spill over into the business that is medicine. You’re right though – the way it is now, this is definitely not sustainable, especially when young docs like me are planning their exit from the system within 5 years of getting out/

By: Millennial Doctor

Millennial Doctor — Tue, 29 May 2018 16:01:41 +0000

In reply to Crispy Doc.

It sounds a little strange to say it, but I’ve finally accepted the fact that I’d be most happy working a 30-35 hours a week. There’s a lot of guilt that comes with this because of the fact I’m so privileged I’m able to do so, but what I was doing before cutting back was not sustainable.

I’ve been encouraged by so many others’ stories on various blogs and decided to move from the cheering section to putting my own story out there. Thanks so much for reading and cheering me on!

By: VagabondMD

VagabondMD — Tue, 29 May 2018 11:53:20 +0000

In reply to Millennial Doctor. All of our stories are unique but share some common elements. The good news is that my story appears to have a happy ending. Yours will also. Peace.

By: Lil S

Lil S — Tue, 29 May 2018 03:26:41 +0000

Thanks for such an honest post! You are not alone. I hope your situation continues to improve as you cut back on hours and focus on some long overdue self care. I don’t typically call myself burned out, but cried actual tears as the culmination of a solid 24 hours of dread preceding a string of nights (hmm…).

I look forward to reading more of your writing on the requisite physician blog! 😉