6 Tips to Get Inspired for Burnt Out MDs

So, how can you get inspired if you're burnt and crispy?

1. Change your job. Go academic if you're a community doc or vice versa.  Work locums tenens in Australia or New Zealand.

2. Take some time off to recharge. Relax in your favorite country. Maybe someplace where you're currency will stretch much further.

3. Add to your expertise. EMS, U/S, Critical care, or whatever niche you choose

4. Be the change at work.  Try to associate with positive people and avoid negative people.

5. Remember your purpose in being a doctor.  Dig out the files and re-read your medical school application essay, residency program essay, and even college essay.

6. Consider a life coach. Three MD life coaches to check out are: Dr. Heather Fork, Dr. Philippa Kennealy, and Dr. Michelle Mudge-Riley.

5 Stages of Physician Burnout

I was reading Dr. Graham Walker's article, Operation Burnout. It made me ponder, why do nearly 70% of emergency physicians feel burnt out?  Even more concerning, ER docs also have the highest burnout rate of ALL specialties.

Burnout is contagious. It's like MRSA and should be called a "staff infection" because it has a tendency to spread.

Ruptured MRSA abscess (via Wikimedia)

Haven't you noticed that when negative people are around you, it has a tendency to bring your energy down as well?

Jerry Edelwich, author of Burnout, writes that there are 5 stages of burnout:

1. Enthusiasm - When you first start the new position, you are super excited and everything is fresh.

2. Stagnation - Things become routine and everything becomes boring.

3. Frustration - By now, the new car smell has worn off and you see the imperfections. The frustration builds at work.

4. Apathy - It feels like you have no power to change anything, and you decide to go with the flow. The longer you stay in this stage, the harder it is to get out.

5. Inspiration - If you're able to get out of apathy, then you realize you can change or change your environment.

Have the courage to be happy and inspired.

On Rest and Balance

I finished emergency residency on June 31, 2011.  Some of my co-residents started their jobs the next day and accordingly began earning a salary immediately.   Even with the the looming student loan payments, I needed a rest.

I chose to go to San Marcos La Laguna in Guatemala.  My initial travel plan was to go to San Marcos for medical spanish lessons, then Antigua, then Copan Ruins in Honduras, and lastly spend four days getting scuba certified in Utila, Honduras.

Once I got into the small town by Lake Atitlan via shuttle & tuk-tuk, I realized that I could not leave San Marcos quite yet.  I decided to change my entire travel plans and stay in one spot.

San Marcos is special because there is a tranquil energy vortex here.  There are also a number of healers and wise people in this spot.   They use massage, Reiki energy healing, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, cranial-sacral massage, crystals, meditation, yoga, and the Mayan Calendar.

It was definitely a change of pace from allopathic medicine.  I used this time to rejuvenate myself from the twelve years of training to be an emergency physician.  It was a pleasure to interact with people of the San Marcos community and take time to slowly enjoy each moment.  Some days, I would simply lay in a hammock and stare into the clouds or watch the hummingbirds.

I learned many things about myself, my path in life, and the importance of balance in life.  When I came back to LAX a few days ago, I was saddened about what I had left behind.  But I also realized that I can create my own balanced life by planting the seed of tranquility.  As my friend says, "Creer es crear." Thank you, San Marcos La Laguna.