What happens when doctors get involved in trying to change the world?
Why did you go into medicine? I’ll bet at your medical school interview you said it was to help people. There are so many complex reasons for choosing this career. For some it really is to help people, to make life better for others or to advocate for those who don’t...
Return to work anxiety
It’s 10pm and here you are again, curled into a ball, phone in hand, the harsh bright screen lighting your face as you scroll through social media trying to ease the heavy feeling in the pit of your stomach. I know you’re feeling anxious about going to work. I know...
I love my job
I couldn’t always say this. I would tell people what I did and they would get this romantic look on their face and say “Oh, I bet you love it don’t you?” I never knew how to answer. I wasn’t sure I could answer with anything more than ‘it’s complicated’. Sometimes it...
What we know matters but who we are matters more.
I’ve been thinking about Jacinda Ardern stepping down as PM of NZ and what this means for women in leadership. Some are looking at her decision to step down as a failure, as confirmation that you cannot succeed as a sensitive, compassionate leader. This couldn’t be...
Are you an activist?
What comes to mind when you think of activists? You may not think of yourself as one but I think that you are. You see, activism doesn’t just involve gluing yourself to structures or protesting in the streets. If you believe passionately that something can be better...
Battling your inner perfectionist
I dusted off the Christmas music books and sat down at the piano to play, anticipating the familiar sounds of festive music only played for one month a year. The joy as my fingers touched the keys started to turn to frustration. Hang on a minute…this is supposed to be...
You don’t have to get every “berry”
We’ve just returned from a busy weekend away. Time to ground ourselves and harvest this week’s produce from the allotment. As I harvest a bumper crop of raspberries my mind wanders to concern over the fact I’m pottering around in thin leggings and harvesting...
Adding joy
I lay in bed, listening to the sounds of the neighbourhood, fragments of light making their way in from around the blinds. I contemplated the night ahead. As everyone around me arrived home from work, flipped on their kettles, cooked their dinner and settled down in...
Do you have to strive for bigger and better?
Do you feel the pressure to be ‘bigger and better’ all of the time? To be constantly improving? You feel the need to change things for the better but you can also be really hard on yourself. You keep adding things to your plate, but you’re already so tired. Sound...
What do you love?
I remember when my father died. I was heartbroken. It felt unfair and bleak and surreal and all of the things on the emotional roller coaster that grief brings us. And yet, I was so so grateful to have had him as my dad for 30 years. That profound gratitude gave a...