I remember sitting in the doctor’s office with my parents as a child and listening to their visits after having been brought along to help translate because they had immigrated to the US and didn’t fully understand English.

I also remember sitting there and wondering why no one was talking about the work my parents did or the stresses they had going on in their life that were clearly triggering and likely causing their symptoms. 

It’s what initially inspired me to become a primary care physician. I knew I wanted to be the doctor who listened and took into account a patient’s whole story in their care.

Now, after practicing as a physician for over a decade, it’s become clear to me that trying to help people manage all their stress, overwhelm, and health concerns in a quick 15 minute doctor visit, is nearly impossible, and honestly…I burned out trying. 

Add to the mix, having kids of my own, and all the struggles and challenges in the journey to have them.

I felt overwhelmed with the guilt of not being as present as I wanted for my kids, and disappointed that the mom they saw most often was the stressed out, overwhelmed, burnt out version of me.