Rewriting the Rules at Fifty: Shedding expectations and reclaiming joy
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
Release Date: 10/31/2025
Rebuilding Your Circle After Burnout
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Dr. Nikia Smith discuss: The different symptoms of burnout How important it is to understand the types of rest Healing in community The cure for burnout isn’t what you think “Self-care is not the cure for burnout. It is engagement with both yourself and others.” -Dr. Nikia Smith Dr. Nikia Smith is a board-certified anesthesiologist, wellness coach, and retreat facilitator. She’s also the founder of She Is Fire Forged, a transformative wellness brand...
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The Walls We Build: Self-Protection That Turns into Self-Isolation
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Dr. Sunny Smith discuss: Being lonely in a room full of people How to tear down the walls we build Not believing everything we think “We are meant to live in community with others. When we are vulnerable, authentic, and truthful, we open ourselves up for real connection.” -Dr. Sunny Smith Dr. Sunny Smith is the Founder and CEO of Empowering Women Physicians, the most effective physician coaching program documented to date. Dr Smith brings her background as an awarded...
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Making New Friends in Midlife
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt discusses: Friendship used to happen by proximity — now it requires intention The hidden fears that stop women from reaching out Where new friendships actually form in midlife “Friendship is built through repeated small moments, not one big one.” - Dr. Sasha Shillcutt , my new, short, on-demand course, is designed to be your toolkit for making small changes that add up to a big reset. In just three easy modules, you’ll walk away with your personal plan...
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What Adult Friendship Really Looks Like (and Why It’s So Hard)
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt, Krystal Eicher, & Wendy Guth discuss: How “having it all together” can keep us from meaningful friendship Why friendship is so important for women leaders and entrepreneurs Why “messy” friendships matter “Women have shared wisdom and the ability to listen to problems without the need to "fix” things. We have empathy, compassion, and can say, “me too,” that can help us more than answers to our problems.” - Serendipitous Rebel Guest Bio: We’re...
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Friendship in the Digital Age: Fake Connection vs. Real Community
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt discusses: Digital familiarity is not emotional intimacy Why high-functioning women are especially vulnerable to fake connection Your nervous system can’t regulate through a screen Real community requires intentionality in a digital world “Fake connection fills your time. Real community fills your soul.” - Dr. Sasha Shillcutt , my new, short, on-demand course, is designed to be your toolkit for making small changes that add...
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Reinventing Your Career After 40: Your Experience Is Your Power
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Lindsay Pinchuk discuss: How to reinvent your career after 40 How to protect your boundaries when you are in a career transition How to find the community YOU need to thrive “When you don’t want to put yourself out there, when you want to cancel the girl’s night out and stay in, the answer is always NO. GO. Get in front of your girlfriends. Go on the girls trip. ALWAYS say yes. You need other women to thrive.” -Lindsay Pinchuk Lindsay Pinchuk is an award-winning...
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When Women Hurt Us: Healing Female Wounds Without Hardening
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Dr. Zarya Rubin discuss: The importance of Vitamin “J” How to downregulate our nervous system Our stress response and why it is important to understand in building female relationships “Social media is the Saber-tooth tiger of our generation.” -Dr. Rubin Guest Bio: Dr. Zarya Rubin is a Harvard-educated functional medicine physician, TEDx speaker, and burnout expert, specializing in helping smart women heal from chronic stress and burnout that...
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Loneliness and Your Nervous System
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Guest, Dr. Ashley Smith discuss: Loneliness is a call to action How to break out of thought spirals How to create authentic connections in the busy years How to turn anxiety into a positive response "We are intended to live in community, but we are living in a hyper independent society, and our nervous system is craving real connection." - Dr. Ashley Smith Guest Bio: As an award-winning psychologist, international speaker, author, and co-founder of Peak Mind: The Center for Psychological...
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The Power of Women Gathering: Connection as Healing
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Dr. Erica Howe discuss: How successful women get so isolated How to come back after a failed friendship How communities of strangers can be the place to find your true connection “When I am struggling, my default is to withdraw. But it is only when I reach out and am vulnerable with my friends that true healing can begin.” - Dr. Erica Howe Dr. Howe is a board-certified Hospitalist and a nationally known educator, wife, and mother to three crazy kids. As a prolific speaker and...
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Loneliness in Plain Sight: Why So Many Accomplished Women Feel Alone
The Brave Enough Show for Women Physicians
In this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt discusses: Loneliness Doesn’t Mean You’re Broken, It Means You’re Human Busyness Is the Most Socially Acceptable Form of Isolation The Armor That Protects You Is Also What Keeps You Alone Connection Is Built Intentionally, Not Accidentally “The ache you feel isn’t weakness, it’s your nervous system asking for belonging.” - Dr. Sasha Shillcutt , my new, short, on-demand course, is designed to be your toolkit for making small changes that add up to a big reset. In just three easy modules,...
info_outlineIn this episode of The Brave Enough Show, Dr. Sasha Shillcutt and Cy Wakeman discuss:
- The power of re-remembering
- Finding your voice in your 50s
- Reinventing yourself and leaving past versions behind
“At some point I started to realize I had lived a dream life. I am just not sure it was my dream.” - Cy Wakeman
Cy Wakeman:
Drama Researcher, NY-Times Bestselling Author and Leadership Consultant
I am a drama researcher, a career I discovered accidentally and have since quantified how much drama there is in the workplace. Our research has shown that the average employee spends nearly 2.5 hours per day in drama – gossiping, tattling, withholding buy-in, resisting change and stepping down from accountability.
Drama is emotional waste – any unproductive thought or behavior – and like any other waste in the workplace, I believe drama can be eliminated through great mental processes. My work is focused on giving leaders tools to recapture that emotional waste and upcycle it into results.
I started Reality-Based Leadership in order to teach leaders and individual contributors ways to lead in reality that diffuses drama in the workplace. We have formed that into an organization that does leadership development, speaking and training, and publishes unconventional tools and leadership programs to use to diffuse drama in the workplace.
The Table is a private, safe society for women physicians to gain work-life control. Sasha's community is off social media, a protected place for women to find out how to manage things like time management, gender bias, and navigating egos in the workplace. It's private, confidential, and the mentoring you have always wanted in a safe, closed environment. Join our community created for women physicians like you today!
Invite Dr. Sasha to Speak at Your Next Event!
Dr. Sasha Shillcutt is a top empowerment keynote speaker and Vice Chair of Strategy in the Department of Anesthesiology at the UNMC. In 2016, Sasha was awarded the national American Medical Association's Women Physicians’ Inspiring Physician Award by her peers. Sasha’s greatest passion is empowering and encouraging others to achieve well-being in their professional and personal lives. She speaks frequently to executives and leaders on the topics of professional burnout, resilience, and gender equity.
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