The harms of adverse childhood experiences are well-known. But positive experiences can affect future health, too
I was recently working with a young mother who struggled with depression and anxiety in…
Category: Off the Charts
Why is maternity leave for doctors such a complete mess?
I was sitting in my car around 4 p.m. on a Friday, waiting in the…
Krystal Cascetta, Lindsay Clancy, and the impossibility of being a mom in American medicine
In Igbo-Nigerian culture, new moms receive exquisite care from their own mothers, mothers-in-law, or surrogate…
Affirmative action improved public health — and carried a high personal cost for Black physicians
I should be irate and despondent about the Supreme Court’s scrapping of affirmative action in…
A physician’s Mother’s Day gift: reclaimed time with my children — and for myself
As a child, I fondly remember running through the kids’ aisle at Video World with…
‘Why would I want that?’: My sister’s simple question reshaped my physician job search
My younger sister has just started college, and she was thinking about pursuing a career…
What racism in medicine takes from us
During my freshman year of college, Cornel West, the renowned philosopher, had been invited to…
Operating at a loss: Our health care system depends on physicians donating their time
During my third year of residency, I staggered my work hours in an attempt to…
My pregnancy made me fear for my career as a physician. It doesn’t have to be that way
I cried when I found out I was pregnant with my second child. While I…
‘Who is going to protect me?’: Ratings app aims to remove bias from the birthing experiences of Black and brown mothers
Thirty weeks into my first pregnancy, I developed some concerning abdominal pain. The clinicians in…
‘Motherhood in medicine’: Returning from parental leave was hard. Covid made it worse
Earlier this month, I steeled myself for my return to work after giving birth to…
Meghan Markle described racism as a toxic stressor during her pregnancy. I can relate
Megan Markle made the difficult confession that she experienced suicidal thoughts while pregnant with her…
When the hoofbeats really are a zebra’s, a patient community helps me navigate a new rare-disease reality
“I have some unexpected news.” That’s what the doctor said to me when my 10-month-old…
There’s no one-size-fits-all for healthy physician bodies. Why don’t ads for trendy medical scrubs reflect that?
Last year I treated a young patient struggling with body image issues. This child’s parents…
As medical professionals, my husband and I know the Nigerian travel ban is cruel. Now the pain is personal
A few days ago my daughter was diagnosed with a rare disease. In our time…
My baby needed expensive intensive care, but my insurer was taking a long weekend. How can this be?
On Thanksgiving evening my baby spiked a high fever. By Friday morning her little head…