The next in the series of “Purpose in Life”. Again, what would you want to be remembered for, and what is/was your purpose in life? For me, and Sarah, a big purpose has been being a doctor. There is nothing more rewarding when trying to help people, especially when it comes to health. But there also can be times when nothing could be more devastating as well. You take care of people the best you can, and do everything you can to help them, and sometimes it just does not make any difference. We have no control over that. I wish we did! We are both in year 28 of practicing in Watertown, and no day is ever the same. Sometimes, you just have to go back to when the process all started and remember what you went into medicine for in the first place.
This picture was taken at the end of my second year of medical school. We had to take a series of Board exams to keep moving on in school. Part One was the worst! The hardest part about medicine was the volume! I thought undergraduate college was intense, but it was nothing compared to medical school. Nothing out there could ever prepare you for the time you had to put in. The first two years were consumed with all of the basic sciences. It was the foundation for going into our clinical years. There is no question the importance of this, but never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine the volume. This picture has me with the “important notes” and review manuals preparing for that Board exam. It either made you or broke you! But medicine involves lifelong learning. Medicine changes so fast it is incredible. You always have to keep learning.
This is the material 2 years ago getting ready for my re-certification Boards for Sports Medicine. We are seeing patients every day, and continuously learning as well. The volume can still be overwhelming. But you also have to practice what you preach when it comes to healthy living as well.
This is Sarah and I running the Halloween 5k during residency. I have to say, we look exhausted. It was not because it was a 5k, but it was during residency. Now we are doing more training/running.
I have always said, you can’t tell your patients to work out, and exercise, and watch your diet if you don’t do the same thing. That is another thing I want to be remembered for–walk the talk! Lead by example. You have more credibility when counseling patients about what they need to do when you are doing it yourself!
This is where I need to stop and think about things now. Everything going on the last 2 years has really been a struggle. You bust your butt to do what you can and wonder if it really makes a difference.
We did not create this pandemic, we are just trying to help where we can, and continue to do what we do, regardless of how some of the days go, or who is taking their frustrations out on you. Everybody is frustrated. We can’t wait for all of this to be gone too. We were trained to take care of sick people, but not to take the abuse that health care personnel have been taking the last several years. It has made the decisions for some people to quit, or retire early, a very easy decision. You can only do so much.
I just have to keep reminding myself that Success as a physician is truly a journey, not a destination, and for sure, not a final destination. I/we are going to keep doing what we can do, and help where we can, and hopefully we can say when all is said and done, we did the best we could. The best we could–always!
Especially as a Family Physician, we emphasize treatment of the patient with the health issue, or disease, not just the disease. We are all human, and we can have some very major health issues, and we can’t always “cure” them, but we can certainly help them deal with it the best they can as well.
This is hopefully what my true purpose in life was meant to be. Make a difference! Help others feel like they make a difference. Because–bottom line–we all make a difference. Live the best life you can. Learn to go with the flow. Expect setbacks and learn how to make the best of them. Ask yourself when you have health issues, “what is it this problem is trying to teach me?”. How is this not only going to help yourself, but others? I thought I had a lot of empathy prior to my health issues 3 years ago, but no question it helped teach me how to have even more empathy. What do we learn from those experiences, and how do we make things better for someone else? Figure out your purpose in life! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day of New Streak: # 1071
