The idea of an emergency physician doctor writing a book about meditation, even while working in the ER and teaching medical students and young doctors, may seem unusual and strange.

 

As with most things, necessity drives change.

 

As an ER doctor, I lived in constant noise - chaos outside, pressure inside. For years I pushed through, ignoring the warning signs, until burnout hit me. Pneumonia put me in a hospital bed, admitted through my own ER. It was a wake-up call - I was caring for everyone but myself.

 

That crisis forced me to stop, to breathe, and to find another way.

 

Meditation became one of the most important tools in that healing process. I’ve come to understand, deeply and personally, the transformative power of meditation and the unshakeable mindfulness that it creates. It’s not just a practice I lean on when things get tough; it’s become a cornerstone of how I now live and work.

​

I share this story because burnout is too common in our profession. We can’t always change the system, but we can change how we care for ourselves within it.