Late one evening, after hours of combing through Quicken and wrestling with the numbers, I found myself sitting at my computer—overwhelmed, exhausted, and defeated. The financial strain of medical school loomed over me like a dark cloud. No matter how carefully I budgeted, the truth was unavoidable: our monthly loan stipend fell far short of…
We often say it’s hard to keep going when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. But I think it can be even harder when you do see the light—because that’s when the exhaustion catches up with you. For me, this always hits during pregnancy. I’m fine until about 36 weeks.…
There have been several studies examining medical marriages and relationship satisfaction. One study found that most partners or spouses (86.8%) are happy and satisfied in their relationships. Interestingly, the number one predictor of satisfaction wasn’t the physician’s specialty, work hours, or practice setting—it was the amount of time the couple spent together (and awake!) each…
Have you ever felt frozen by a decision that feels impossible to make? Or filled with doubt, confusion, and overwhelm–wishing someone would just make the decision for you? Me too. Every time my husband ends one phase of his medical career and moves on to the next, I feel like we end up in the…
Did you know that willpower is a finite resource? It’s true. There comes a point when you can’t just keep telling yourself to keep on. I was reminded of that this week as the stress level at our house continues to mount with our upcoming move. I found myself frequently reaching for my favorite chocolates.…
You may not naturally connect with the members of your spouse’s family. Still, it is essential to remember this: the number one priority with in-laws is to form a relationship with them that does not hurt your marriage. There are several proactive things you can do create just that kind of relationship:
Question: We are second year medical students. First year medical school was rough–and we have lots of layers to our situation. One of them is that we have two kids under 4-years old and we live 2000 miles away from family. My main question is how to manage a relationship (romantic/connected/sexual and being vulnerable) with my…
Dear Parents, What an exciting opportunity for you to see your son or daughter progressing in his or her career as a physician! You are the ones that were there, encouraging this process for years: reading bedtime stories, attending parent-teacher conferences, helping with hours of homework and those dreaded yearly science fair projects, and teaching those all-important…
We all crave more. More money, more success, more recognition, more love, more time, more friends, more beauty—the list goes on. It’s as if having more makes us feel like we’re more: more valuable, more worthy, more complete. But the trouble with chasing more is that it creates an endless cycle of discontent. Discontent is…
One afternoon, while my husband and I were snorkeling off a fairly remote beach in Kauai, I learned a frightening lesson about how quickly one can drift off course. As we swam through the crystal-clear water, we were captivated by the underwater world of colorful fish and vibrant coral reefs. With our heads and our…
It’s funny for me to tell our children about the days when there was no email, internet, or cell phones. I certainly don’t feel very old—I’m not very old!—but those days feel like a lifetime ago. Technology has changed almost everything about our lives. It allows us to stay connected with anyone at almost any…
Question: We are second year medical students. Our first year of medical school was rough and we have lots of layers to our situation. One of them is that we have two kids under 4-years-old and we live 2000 miles away from family. My main question is how to manage a relationship (romantic/connected/sexual and being vulnerable) with…