It is a well known fact that being a doctor is one of the most fruitful, yet most stressful, professions in the world. Physicians must exert constant effort to reduce their stress levels whenever possible, and this requires habits that help quell feelings of burnout. We recommend that doctors do these three things on a regular basis in order to fight off feelings of depression and help battle stress in the medical practice.
- Spend Time Outdoors – It has been proven that spending time outdoors for at least two full hours per week does good for your mental health. Put it into your weekly schedule, either by getting all two hours at once or accomplishing it in short, but frequent, ten minute intervals. Doing so can relieve some of the daily strain experienced in medical practice – keeping you in a balanced mental state.
- Practice Yoga – Yoga-based Stress Management has been proven to provide stress relief for people in the medical practice, especially for stress caused by traumatic experiences. Make it a part of your weekly schedule – apply for a yoga class and follow through with the time allotted for it. Not only will you be feeling physically healthier, it will help you in your fight against burnout.
- Keep A Journal – Another habit that helps medical professionals cope with stress is keeping a journal of their thoughts during practice. The act of writing about experiences can help anybody make sense of their thoughts while using it as a form of expression where feelings can be identified and shared. All it takes is to spend several moments each day typing down thoughts on a computer or even writing them in a notebook by hand.
Making these activities a part of your daily or weekly routine can help physicians reduce stress levels and serves as much needed respite from the daily grind of medical work. Although time is always in short supply for doctors, make it a point to include them anyway and consider it time invested in your own mental health. Failure to do so may result in extreme burnout that may pose a threat to your career in the healthcare industry.
TukkoMed is a healthy resource of tips for doctors intended to help keep medical professionals afloat during these tough times – and if you are a qualified medical evaluator (QME) looking to give yourself a little time in order to manage stress levels, then send us a message and discover an easy way to tackle HIPAA compliant reporting.