Desert Magnolia

When I graduated from Oriental Medical school I had some preconceptions about what my life would be like as a practitioner. I envisioned a hectic but rewarding practice, the daily rigors of balancing the art of medicine with the business of business, and a sense of constant growth and development as both a physician and a human. Those preconceptions were spot on, but with a stutterstep in between graduating and practice that was comprised of endless board exams study/completion, continual self-doubt during the board gauntlet (was I really cut out for this? could I really get through all of the silly exams without doing permanent brain damage? would I ever be able to pay back the ginormous loans I'd amassed during school? etc.), then, finally, licensing. After which realities present that require contemplation and action (or nonaction if you prefer.)  Where to practice? How to make a living while a practice grows? To accept insurance? Deciding to practice with former school col...

To say my life is full of blessings would be a gross understatement. I am incredibly blessed in countless ways. My marriage is working. After 30 years of give and take, raising a family, riding the roller coaster that is life in the modern world, we're solid. We still love each other, and are closer than I ever recall our being. Our communication has strengthened, our shared goals have morphed into simpler but infinitely essential tenets - often with our kiddos at the center. My health is good.  I still need to work on my stress levels, which continue to ebb and flow as I navigate this new profession I've launched.  My kids are great. My son continues to redefine himself after 10 years of East Coast schooling/working for NYU in the Middle East. He's fine. He's contemplating any number of futures. We'll see what he comes up with next.  My daughter, well, she's amazing, and is navigating the rigors of being an analyst at the world's largest brokerage of...

Among the 4,912,000 details that a new practitioner makes, whether or not to take insurance ranks among the highest. Pros?  More patients. Cons? Unbelievable administrative burdens. Credentialing. (Kind of like having your wisdom teeth removed, sans anesthesia, and giving birth - at the same time.)  Both clinics in which I practice accept insurance, everyone whose business opinion matters recommends accepting insurance (and jumping through the hoops required to do so), and my practical self says just bite the bullet and do it. Bullet bitten.  Process underway. I've been told it can be days, or in fact weeks, before any news comes from insurance companies about whether they're considering you, their panel is currently closed, or they want to negotiate with you. I am in that space right now, and have been told by my colleagues/mentors that now is the time to take a deep breath because once the credentialing is complete, things get a little nutso, what with tr...

Life has taken on a new rhythm now that I'm practicing. There are clinic days, there are private practice days, and there is the weekend. At least, sometimes there is the weekend.  Sometimes the weekend is for practice. Sometimes it's not. Sometimes one weekend day is a clinic day. I'm learning to adapt to a changing schedule. What I'd really like, though...is to have a full week, followed by an empty weekend. I can work really hard all week knowing I have a couple of days to catch up on life, domestics, rest, etc. This may be my many years in corporate life projecting on my new career. I'm not sure if that's it, but my preference would be to have a slightly more normal schedule. Honestly, when you first start practice, you accept patients mostly on their terms, because, mostly, you're just delighted to have patients to treat at all. But after awhile you realize that setting some time boundaries is good for everyone. And preserves a sense of order dur...

Friends of mine who graduated before me and have therefore been in the practice trenches for awhile have often shared stories of how differently they are practicing than they thought they would practice. Everyone had preconceptions in school, developed business plans around those ideas, then entered the real world as practitioners and often changed, dramatically, their intended directions. Funny, but now that I am a seasoned 3 month practitioner (ha), I am realizing that what we thought we knew in school is nothing like real life, and that flexibility is key to growth and survival, moving forward. I thought, for example, that I would launch a mobile practice focusing on retirees, but as I've connected with a clinic and am feeling more at home there, I am not sure I want to be on the move all the time. Also, as I've begun to develop my greater mission of focusing on bridging Oriental Medicine and Western medicine, I am close (I think) to establishing a working relationship ...

"Mom, there's something special about him. He's kind, he's romantic, he's so smart. I think I'm falling for him," she said. He is all of these things and more, and over time my sweet baby girl and her love have explored life together, have move in, have tackled daily logistics and worked together to help develop each other as individuals. He comes from a lovely family from the East coast, a family with which we have grown close over the last few years. They're funny, they're intense, they're Italian, they're foodies, they're very family oriented. And, because of yesterday's events, they will be joined with ours as our offspring unite in marriage. Our baby girl is engaged. And we couldn't be happier. The look on her face as we Facetimed last night was incredible. She was overwhelmed. She was joyous. She was filled with joy and hope and love. And her new fiancee was grinning like a loon, happy that the elaborate schem...

It is done. I am practicing, and every single day I wake up and smile, wondering what new challenges will come my way. Because every single day, a new challenge presents itself. Tough cases, practice considerations, long and short term goal development, all represent constant challenges to every aspect of my being. I am a doctor now, in charge of supporting wellness and healing. I am a businesswoman, in charge of planning and growing a healthy, thriving practice. I am a Mom, still, and realize that though my offspring have long flown the nest, they will always need their mother, and I am always on standby should a moment arise where I can support or guide or simply listen to my babies. I am a wife, of almost 30 years now, and that role has evolved once more into a closer partnership, this time with the rigors of grad school replaced with the reality of practicing Oriental Medicine in a modern world. Each day I thank the universe for inspiring me to pursue my heart's drea...