138. Sandi DuBowski, Documentary Director/Producer of Sabbath Queen and Trembling Before G-d
The 92 Report
Sandi DuBowski discusses the one-year anniversary of his film Sabbath Queen, which he spent 21 years making. He reflects on the journey of the 21st-century radical rabbi and how it has shaped their life. He discusses the inspiration behind his film, Tomboychik, the concept of which was developed after conversations with his grandmother. The film is a living video memorial to her spirit; it won several awards, including the Golden Gate award at the San Francisco Film Festival and the Whitney Museum program, and launched Sandi into the film world. Documentary Films and Festivals ...
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137. Lili Barouch, Sports Cardiologist and Triathlete
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Lili Barouch, a cardiologist, went to medical school at Johns Hopkins. After moving to Baltimore, she became a cardiologist specializing in heart failure and transplant. She joined the faculty in 2003 and worked on basic science research, research lab, and inpatient and outpatient care for heart failure and transplant patients. Lili stayed in this role for about 10 years before transitioning to outpatient cardiology. She moved to Howard County, Maryland, where her children have grown up. Founding the Sports Cardiology Program Lili started becoming more athletic around 20...
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136. Tanya Selvaratnam, Multimedia Storyteller and Advocate
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Tanya Selvaratnam shares her journey from high school to present day. She moved to New York after graduating and worked at Columbia Law School’s Center for Chinese Legal Studies. She also assisted Anna Deavere Smith on her show “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992” about the LA riots. Tanya went back to Harvard for graduate school, studying Chinese language and the history of law. An Adventure in Theatre After her father passed away, she returned to New York, where she was working on the Beijing Women's Conference. Wandering the streets one day, she came across The Performing...
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135. Bo Rutledge, The Transformative Power of Higher Ed
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Bo Rutledge, a professor and dean at the University of Georgia Law School, opens the conversation by talking about his parents, who made sacrifices to support their children's education, and how he felt called to serve and worked for the governor in California where he met many inspiring civil servants. A Graduate Degree and Long-Distance Relationship In Scotland, he obtained a graduate degree and met his wife Birgit, who is Austrian. They had a wonderful year together overseas and then spent three years in a long-distance relationship while Bo attended law school and...
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134. Dan Tabak, Litigation Partner and Treasurer at Harvard Hillel
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Dan Tabak, a lawyer and treasurer of Harvard Hillel, spent three years at Columbia Law School, he then worked as a litigator at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, but took a year off to clerk for a federal judge in Brooklyn. He went back to work at Simpson Thacher before moving on to his current firm, Cohen & Gresser which operates primarily in New York City but has offices in London, Paris, Dubai, and Washington, D.C. He currently lives in Scarsdale, New York with his wife and two kids. On the Board of Harvard Hillel Dan joined the board of Harvard Hillel during the...
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133. Kirsten Dirksen, From TV Producer to Unexpected YouTube Success
The 92 Report
Kirsten Dirksen, An Unexpected Career as a YouTube Home & Lifestyle Content Creator Show Notes: Kirsten Dirksen majored in economics and math, but found creative writing to be her passion. She decided to become a magazine writer and interned at the NBC affiliate in San Francisco, where she worked for free for about nine months. Working at NBC and Moving a Women's Network After her internship, she went to work with the NBC elite, which was the old chronicle enterprise. Kirsten became the music person, interviewing bands and creating unique stories for interviews. She eventually moved to New...
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132. Bonni (Grant) Theriault, Supporting 130K Adult Learners into Employment
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Bonni Theriault initially went to business school and worked as a business analyst at McKinsey for a few years, where she worked with consumer products for companies and marketing. After working at Pepperidge Farm for a couple of years, she decided to build her own company and joined forces with a woman who was the head of advertising at Campbell Soup, and together they launched a brand strategy company where they worked for companies like Cadbury Schweppes, Johnson and Johnson, and Stryker. From Marketing to Coaching to Global Emergency Care After 13 years at the company, Bonni...
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131. Gideon Yaffe, Brain Injury Survivor
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Gideon Yaffe and his then girlfriend-now wife, Sue Chan, drove across the country after graduation to San Francisco, where they had no jobs or prospects. Gideon had applied to graduate school in philosophy but didn't get in anywhere. They got married and his first job was at a pet store, Gideon worked there for a while, then at a computer magazine. Studying Philosophy at Stanford While hanging out in San Francisco, he started reading Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past, which he loved and found to be hugely rewarding. This inspired him to apply to grad school again and this...
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130. Steven Chao, Lucking into Building a Great Healthcare Consulting Firm
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Steven Chao, a US-born second-generation college student, shares his experiences growing up in South Carolina and feeling overwhelmed upon arriving at Harvard in 1988. He found solace in joining the Collegium Musicum, a classical musical singing group at Harvard, which helped him find his footing and connect with people from his class. From Biochem to Game Design to Consulting Steven majored in biochemistry, which expanded his social circle and helped him find happiness. Steven's parents were both PhDs and pushed him into the MD PhD program. However, he faced challenges in...
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129. Rebecca Hollander-Blumoff, Law Professor and Adventurous Baker
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Rebecca Hollander-Blumoff shares her journey from college to law school. After deferring her law school for a year, she spent a year in Spain to gain language and cultural experience. She then went to law school in Cambridge and clerked for a federal judge in New York before going into practice. Rebecca was initially interested in becoming a federal prosecutor but realized she first had to go into practice. She worked for a small boutique litigation firm that did about 60% white collar criminal defense and about 40% civil litigation. While she loved being a counselor to her...
info_outlineGenève Allison, an attending physician in infectious diseases, shares her journey since graduating from Harvard. She took a leave of absence from work in 2023, which was not something she would have predicted but turned out to be one of the best things she's done. Her journey began with working in a research lab and meeting physicians, leading her to pursue medicine as a career. She went to the University of Massachusetts Medical School and completed a residency in infectious diseases before returning to Boston to pursue infectious diseases at Tufts.
Methods of Recovering from Burnout
During the pandemic, Genève experienced burnout and emotional exhaustion. She sought support from her primary care doctor, who helped her get a medical leave for three months. This allowed her to heal from the trauma and work on toxic habits that can lead to burnout. She believes that we don't talk enough about taking care of ourselves in society, and she wants to share her experience on the 92 Report to inspire others to reach out for help.
Genève's leave of absence was a time for her to try everything, including therapy, journaling, and writing exposure therapy. She used specific therapy notebooks to process traumatic events and write about them in detail, which helped her dissipate the stress and improve her mental health. She also participated in a pottery class, which was enjoyable and allowed her to get out of her perfectionistic stressful mindset. Genève talks about the fundamental need to make things with our hands, such as building a shed, baking, knitting, gardening, and pottery. During the pandemic, baking became a major concern, and people talked about sourdough as a solution. The conversation also touches on the importance of taking time off from work to maintain a healthy lifestyle, such as playing the flute or attending therapy sessions.
A Physician’s Personal Experiences during the Pandemic
The conversation shifts to her personal experiences during the pandemic. She felt scared that she didn't care enough to be a doctor, which led her to take time off. However, she found that her caring barometer was off, and she realized that she had to care for patients and their well-being. She talks about experience as an infectious disease specialist during the pandemic. She describes the surreal and bizarre situation of being the only person on her train to go to work, especially in the pediatrics where the inpatient pediatrics floor was converted into an adult Intensive Care Unit due to the need for ventilators. Genève shares her experiences with fighting with elderly chaplains who would enter patients rooms with COVID, despite not having vaccines yet. The suffering experienced by patients dying of COVID was beyond what the physician was prepared for. Patients were not allowed to have families present at their bedside, and nurses were at their bedside when they were dying. This was unimaginably painful for both the patient and their family. The emotional labor that comes with being present at a loved one's death is also difficult to witness.
Factors Leading to Burnout
Genève explains that a mix of things led to her burnout, including perfectionism, type A behaviors, and restlessness. The pandemic magnified these issues, as the work was never going to be done, and recommendations were constantly changing. She realized that she needed to take care of herself and figure out fixed beliefs that she couldn't prioritize. This led to therapy and the realization that she needed to prioritize herself over her work. She discusses how her approach to work has changed over the years. She now takes secondary prevention, such as avoiding smoking, exercising, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. She now focuses on self-care and taking care of her mental health, which has helped her avoid burnout in the future. Genève uses an analogy of a heart attack, where people talk about secondary prevention because they don't want another heart attack.
Healing from Burnout
Genève talks about her skepticism about their energetic capacity and their decision to say no more often. She mentions that she has said no to various activities, such as being part of a research committee or helping a research group. She also mentions that being tired is not a character flaw but a human emotion. She talks about acupuncture and that some studies suggest it has no scientific impact, but the placebo effect may play a role. She acknowledges that there is a lot of literature on the meridians used in acupuncture and the physiological correlates of these effects. During her training in California, she became best friends with a physician who had trained in both allopathic medicine and acupuncture and herbs. They worked together on a residency and have since worked with a group where she does acupuncture for patients undergoing chemotherapy to alleviate side effects. Her motivation for doing acupuncture was due to physical symptoms of burnout, such as migraines, dizziness, and neck pain from stress. She experienced an immediate improvement in their well-being after receiving needles in their legs, which she continues to maintain.
The Field of Infectious Disease
Genève talks about why she was interested in the Infectious disease field. She mentions that it is a fascinating field that involves solving puzzles and figuring things out when others cannot. It's a satisfying field where doctors can make diagnoses, create treatment plans, and see people get better.
Influential Harvard Professors and Courses
Genève shares her experiences with mentorship and support from Carl Liam, a professor of biology and an IQ theologist. His mentorship and belief in him made a huge difference during their sophomore year, helping her become better mentors and learn that stumbles are normal parts of life. She emphasizes the importance of seeking help for medical professionals, as many doctors commit suicide every day due to fear of losing their licenses.
Links:
https://www.tuftsmedicalcenter.org/PhysicianDirectory/Geneve-Allison.aspx
https://www.besselvanderkolk.com/resources/the-body-keeps-the-score
https://www.medscape.com/sites/public/lifestyle/2023
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_and_Medical_Leave_Act_of_1993
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22641-emdr-therapy
https://www.acgme.org/globalassets/PDFs/ten-facts-about-physician-suicide.pdf
https://iwgdfguidelines.org/allison/