Cooking has always made me anxious. It’s not that I produce horrible food when I do make a meal, I just don’t seem to have the knack of getting all the parts of the meal to be finished at the same time. One thing my career change created was a little more time for projects, and I decided that would be my opportunity to work on reducing my anxiety and improving my cooking skills.
Read MoreThese days, it’s not hard to get me to eat my vegetables - I love vegetables! - yet the phrase has been rattling around in my head. Despite knowing what is “good for me” (like those veggies), it can be challenging to motivate, and I can no longer rely on a wise elder to command me into action.
Read MoreJanuary 1 holds such promise! New Year’s Day: a fresh start for everyone, everywhere. On this day, it is still possible to “get it all right” in 2023. Exercise more! Drink less! Lose weight! Save money! Learn Spanish! Get organized! The temptation is to change every bad habit into a good one, in one great effort, beginning on a single day, as if by wishing it were so, we could create a new reality for our lives. In my 50+ years, I’ve made my fair share of New Year’s resolutions. This year, I’m doing something different.
Read MoreI wondered what the last day would be like - would I be happy or sad? anxious or excited? exhausted or energized? Would the patient interactions on that day feel different than those of the previous 20 years? And what would life feel like the day AFTER the last day?
Read MoreThis week marked the beginning of a big change: I shared with my partners, team and patients that I will close my practice at the end of November. Our youngest child is a senior, and the nest will be empty soon. My work in value-based care will generously allow me the flexibility to travel while working. The COVID pandemic has been difficult for healthcare workers everywhere; it certainly contributed to my decision to take a break from clinical medicine. For all these reasons, the timing is right to make a career change to administrative medicine.
Read MoreI went back to running outside this week as the weather in Kansas turned to spring. I am a planner by nature, so I always check on various must-haves before venturing out: temperature (which ranged from 80 degrees to snow this week!), wind (anything less than 10 mph is golden, up to 20 mph is tolerable), when the sun comes up and how much time that leaves me post-run before I need to be ready to roll for the day. I prefer to run at first light, in those perfect moments before the sun is above the horizon. Some days all the details line up, other days I head to the treadmill in my basement. Today was one of the perfect days: temperature low 40’s, wind speed 7 mph, sunrise 7:04am.
Read MoreSo many things during this pandemic have been scary and negative: the overwhelming sense of something big and bad coming, the all present not-knowing of a new virus run amuck in the modern world, the fear for loved ones’ near and far, the anxiety of wondering if each decision made was the right one. It’s easy to get sucked into the down side of life and just stay there, wallowing in the worry.
Read More