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156. Practical Ways To Feel Connected This Holiday

Release Date: 12/09/2025

Dr. Erin Hurley: Discernment, Energy, and Better Decisions in Medicine

Create Meaning in Medicine

Why does everything feel urgent, important, and exhausting at the same time? In this episode, Dr. Joanne Sotelo and Dr. Erin Hurley unpack the missing skill many women in medicine were never taught: discernment. From over-documenting charts to spending type-one energy on type-two decisions, they explore how learning to pause, clarify priorities, and manage both time and energy can transform patient care, leadership, and life outside of work. This conversation offers practical frameworks and mindset shifts to help you move off autopilot and into alignment. Key Takeaways To Listen For Why...

165. Dr. Joanne Sotelo: A Wake-Up Call for Women in Medicine

Create Meaning in Medicine

If you’ve been telling yourself you’ll change when life “calms down,” this episode is your sign that the time is now. Dr. Joanne Sotelo and Dr. Erin Hurley offer a compassionate but honest wake-up call for women in medicine, reminding us that high-functioning does not equal healthy. They explore the real cost of burnout, the importance of reclaiming personal agency, and how identity shifts, especially with the rise of AI, are forcing physicians to rethink fulfillment, purpose, and self-leadership. Key Takeaways To Listen For High-functioning is not the same as healthy. Doing all the...

164. How To Know It’s Time To Transition In Medicine

Create Meaning in Medicine

Feeling stuck or waiting for certainty before changing course? In this episode, we unpack agency for physicians, how guilt and obligation keep us small, and why shifting your brain’s filter toward options opens new paths. Hear scripts, supports, and next steps to move before burnout. Press play to choose your next move. Key Takeaways To Listen For When the system feels fixed, what does agency look like Can you re-aim your RAS to notice options instead of limits Where do guilt and obligation skew choices, and what reframes help How do you move at 60–70% certainty instead of waiting for...

163. Direct Your Identity, Direct Your Life

Create Meaning in Medicine

Feeling like your life is being chosen for you? You’re not alone. In this episode, we explore why identity, not willpower, drives behavior, how to break out of autopilot, and ways to choose who we’re becoming as medicine advances. Press play to build awareness, set values aligned with goals, and make your next step intentional. Key Takeaways To Listen For What changes when you stop living by default and insert a reset How identity outperforms motivation and how to write it into habits Which better questions break autopilot and open real options How to choose who you are before what you...

162. AI in Medicine Meets Improv with Dr. Susan Shelmerdine

Create Meaning in Medicine

Is AI sharpening care or eroding our humanity? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Susan Shelmerdine to unpack responsible AI in medicine, the mental health risks of overreliance, and the skill of discernment. She shares how improv rebuilt confidence and why connection must stay central. Press play to use AI wisely without losing yourself. Key Takeaways To Listen For What to do when AI is banned in a clinic without losing efficiency or safety Why discernment beats raw knowledge in medicine’s AI era How to use AI without frying your focus When loneliness creeps in, what replaces the...

161. Boundaries In Medicine That Protect Time And Energy

Create Meaning in Medicine

Why are women physicians praised for teamwork yet penalized when we say no? In this episode, we unpack the hidden curriculum and redefine boundaries as clear rules that protect time, energy, and patient care. Press play to protect your yeses and set limits without apology. Key Takeaways To Listen For What boundaries look like in medicine, set clear rules for time, energy, and workload Why self-compassion matters, view boundaries as protection, not rejection How to spot overcommitment, pause, reassess roles, and reset before burnout The pause script “My schedule is full. I’ll review and...

160. Reclaim Your Energy With Physician Coaching

Create Meaning in Medicine

Still trying to handle everything alone? This episode explains why “be strong” becomes a cage for women in medicine and how real support and coaching change energy, clarity, and confidence. Erin and Joanne define what coaching is and is not, and share steps to build boundaries and resilience. Press play to learn how support speeds growth. Key Takeaways To Listen For Why “be strong” can trap high achievers in overwork and isolation How real support replaces lone-ranger thinking and restores energy What coaching is (and isn’t) for physicians, plus the therapy boundary How a coach...

159. Boundaries and Better Habits With Community

Create Meaning in Medicine

Feeling stuck on autopilot, you didn’t choose? In this episode, we reveal how tiny, repeatable habits and the right community can shift energy, protect time, and make medicine feel sustainable again. Learn why your “top five” people shape your routines more than willpower, and how simple boundary scripts and 1% course corrections help you finish notes sooner and breathe easier. Press play to see how awareness plus support turns goals into lived habits. Key Takeaways To Listen For What “good autopilot” looks like and how to build it into your day How 1% change (no-snooze rule,...

158. Micro-Joy At Work: Faster Recovery And Better Patient Care

Create Meaning in Medicine

Feeling stretched thin? In this episode, we show how three minutes of play can reset your nervous system and protect against burnout. We unpack the brain science behind joy, then share quick rituals, between patient resets, and simple team games that boost creativity and connection. Press play to learn small moves that restore energy fast. Key Takeaways To Listen For How joy resets your nervous system and sharpens focus Why playful breaks boost energy, teamwork, and creativity What drains play from women physicians, and how to reclaim it Where to anchor micro joy: before charting,...

157. Building ADHD-Friendly Routines For Focus And Calm With Dr. Brittany Bell, MD

Create Meaning in Medicine

What if your ADHD isn’t a liability at work but your sharpest edge? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Brittney Bell to unpack how women in medicine can turn neurodivergent traits into creative leadership through simple systems, self-kindness rituals, and personalized environments. We also explore psychological safety, reframing productivity, and the courage to pivot when the old rules no longer fit. Press play to learn practical moves you can use this week. Key Takeaways To Listen For Could a 60-second self-kindness ritual reset your nervous system and shape every choice after? ...

More Episodes

Craving a holiday that feels meaningful, not manic? In this episode, we look at how old patterns, perfection pressure, and comparison steal the season, and how reflection, boundaries, and simple systems bring back connection. Learn to delegate, trim gifts, protect sleep, and choose what matters most. Press play to design a calmer, more connected holiday.

Key Takeaways To Listen For

Why old holiday patterns persist and how a 50% simplification cuts stress and boosts connection
What two-question debrief to run after gatherings to repeat wins and fix friction next time
How to set time-boxed visits and exit rules to stay calm with tricky family dynamics
When to swap gifts for experiences or donations to match values and ease pressure
Start designing for connection first by subtracting tasks that block presence and joy

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

Connect With Us
Do you want to hear more from the ladies of the Create Meaning In Medicine podcast? Discover more empowering content when you go to https://www.createmeaninginmedicine.com!

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