IN-PERSON COURSES
ONLINE COURSESWhich professionals really need yoga? Doctors. It’s a burned out health care world. “Roughly half of the physicians in the United States suffer from burnout, and every specialty of medicine is affected.”
Last week, I received this email from a doctor: “There is big problem with physician true burnout, stress, suicide, depression, etc. Mental health is hard to address with the individual – they don’t seek care, don’t want to be tagged, and don’t want to be thought of as incapable, etc. It is so problematic.”
There are about 8 million health care workers in the U.S. but many are unhealthy. Other clinicians in the health care system aren’t doing much better. Studies show that nurses are stressed out, eat too much junk food, don’t get enough sleep, and have an increased cardiometabolic risk.
So how do yoga professionals help bring the lifestyle-changing, transformative practices of yoga to clinicians who desperately need them? One model is Work Well NW, developed by my friends at Three Trees Yoga in Tacoma, Suzy Green, Jeni Martinez, and Karen Schwisow. Check them out – they are doing amazing work.
My mother was a nurse for over 40 years and now she is suffering from dementia and all she remembers are her worst experiences. I tell people all the time when they go into the medical field to get the help they need along the way to process the things they experience!
I’m so sorry to hear that Lea. It’s such hard work and for many it takes a huge toll on their health.
thanks for sharing
Oh my goodness, this is so true – My daughter is a nurse, and her health is challenged at the age of 38. I in fact know many nurses! The hours, the stress, the long shifts without proper sleep or nutrition – and yet there they are taking care of all of us. Not to mention surgeons who may be underslept, overstressed, improperly nourished, etc. It is a HUGE problem. I know that YOGA would help.