• Home
  • Practice Focus
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
    • How I Do It
    • TRIO Best Practices
  • Business of Medicine
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Practice Management
    • Tech Talk
    • AI
  • Literature Reviews
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Career
    • Medical Education
    • Professional Development
    • Resident Focus
  • ENT Perspectives
    • ENT Expressions
    • Everyday Ethics
    • From TRIO
    • The Great Debate
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Rx: Wellness
    • The Voice
    • Viewpoint
  • TRIO Resources
    • Triological Society
    • The Laryngoscope
    • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
    • TRIO Combined Sections Meetings
    • COSM
    • Related Otolaryngology Events
  • Search

Rx: Wellness: Increasing Your Commitment to Your Own Health

October 14, 2018

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
Print-Friendly Version

Netflix (Vudu/Amazon Prime/HBO … whatever channel): Binge watching your favorite show that will keep your rear stuck on the couch/sofa/bed, away from the computer screen/iPhone/iPad, in the “DO NOT TALK TO ME NOW” zone you create, is an effective strategic recovery plan.

You Might Also Like

  • How Physicians Can Increase Their Own Wellness and Health
  • Rx: Wellness: The Importance of Finding Colleagues You Can Confide In
  • Tips for Increasing Your Physical and Mental Well-Being During COVID-19
  • Otolaryngology Resident Says Art Helps Her Process Ideas on Wellness, Burnout
Explore This Issue
October 2018

Three types of shows to consider:

  1. Watch shows like “Westworld,” in which you don’t understand what is going on (like me) and ask your spouse questions repeatedly, reducing his enjoyment, but at least you watch together on couch or bed and get “quality time” (hold hands for bonus points).
  2. Snuggle with your child/children every night for at least one episode of whatever series. My 12-year-old, Claire, and I spent the past year, with dedication, on “Gilmore Girls” and “Parenthood,” and we just finished “Anne with an ‘E.’”
  3. Indulge in a show only you love. Currently I am addicted to “Mr. Sunshine,” a Korean soap opera (I am not Korean). This is a historic, noble/slave-times-of-war-and-whatever show, and it has everything: samurai swords, guns, bloody violence, attractive characters, slow motion, visually stunning camera work, and romance, which completely transforms me away from the challenges of healthcare, my daily frustrations, unresolved issues, unrealistic budget, etc. It’s better than “Calgon”! (Bubble baths are so 80s, am I right?)

Sleep: That’s it. Just sleep.

Read something, preferably not on a device. (Haven’t you had enough EMR today?) Magazines, books, articles, newspapers (the black and white thing)

Dr. Wei on vacation with her family in Banff.

Dr. Wei on vacation with her family in Banff.
courtesey of Julie Wei, MD

Hydrate: As someone who believes she is a camel, and is delusional that I would win on “Survivor” (no need to eat, drink, or pee … well, rarely), anytime I wear high heels now, by Wednesday or Thursday I wake up at night in excruciating pain with severe cramps in my calves. I don’t drink enough (I am talking about WATER!!! I know you’re thinking about the “good stuff”). Trust me, you’re not either. If your pee has color, drink more water.

Quiet or active meditation (Zumba, spin, cross-fit, running, etc.).

Write in a journal and reflect: What is your “True North”? Are you living the life you want and how you want to live it? If not, keep writing.

Plan non-work time: Do this with as much effort as you do your work schedule. I spent years upset that when I was “free” for family quality time, the rest of my family did not respond when I was ready. If you don’t plan it, it won’t happen. I speak to many physicians who are “victims”: They haven’t been on vacation in “X” months, are “booked” out for clinic for “y” months, and “can’t” take time off. I call “B.S.” So painful to plan vacations, but so critical to have them. Please email me, and I will send you all my recent itineraries for you and your family. I spend more, always on trips involving nature, away from people/crowds. This summer, we did Lake Louise/Banff/Alberta, as well as “glamping” at Autocamp Russian River. (I don’t do tents, bugs, or outhouses, and I must shower). Oh, and I am a foodie, so every trip is about where we eat each night.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 | Single Page

Filed Under: Departments, Home Slider, Rx: Wellness Tagged With: career, physician burnout, physician wellnessIssue: October 2018

You Might Also Like:

  • How Physicians Can Increase Their Own Wellness and Health
  • Rx: Wellness: The Importance of Finding Colleagues You Can Confide In
  • Tips for Increasing Your Physical and Mental Well-Being During COVID-19
  • Otolaryngology Resident Says Art Helps Her Process Ideas on Wellness, Burnout

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

Polls

Have you invented or patented something that betters the field of otolaryngology?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive

Top Articles for Residents

  • Applications Open for Resident Members of ENTtoday Edit Board
  • How To Provide Helpful Feedback To Residents
  • Call for Resident Bowl Questions
  • New Standardized Otolaryngology Curriculum Launching July 1 Should Be Valuable Resource For Physicians Around The World
  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • Otolaryngologists as Entrepreneurs: Transforming Patient Care And Practice

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Continued Discussion And Engagement Are Essential To How Otolaryngologists Are Championing DEI Initiatives In Medicine

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Is Middle Ear Pressure Affected by Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Use?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • Complications for When Physicians Change a Maiden Name

    • Physician Handwriting: A Potentially Powerful Healing Tool
    • Leaky Pipes—Time to Focus on Our Foundations
    • You Are Among Friends: The Value Of Being In A Group
    • How To: Full Endoscopic Procedures of Total Parotidectomy
    • How To: Does Intralesional Steroid Injection Effectively Mitigate Vocal Fold Scarring in a Rabbit Model?

Follow Us

  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • The Triological Society
  • The Laryngoscope
  • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies

Wiley

Copyright © 2025 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved, including rights for text and data mining and training of artificial technologies or similar technologies. ISSN 1559-4939