A day in my life as a PA

mediocre mindfulness + and if I regret pursuing this career path

Monday was my first full day back at work, in person, since the middle of July. I went to Denver on 7/19, and when returned, I shifted my schedule to do partial televisits while taking a few days off (an absolute gift that work allows me to do this!!).

So from 7/19 - 8/5 I was technically out of the office, though still doing telehealth here and there.

Sometimes I feel I have to take extended time off in order to keep the burnout boogie man at bay. And other times, it’s a slight shift in schedule or change of scenery that ends up being more effective, even if I’m still working.

The problem is - when I have this shift, staying at my parents gorgeous home on Cape Cod, taking long walks on the beach, dips in the ocean after work, and having a little less administrative work because I’m not seeing as many patients - I almost feel too good?

Or maybe it just feels that way because the transition back, either from an extended vacation or a little time off, can be jarring.

I thought I’d take the opportunity to do a written form of a day in the life, a day that was so entirely imperfect and somewhat of a jolt to the nervous system.

Being in this physical and emotional state often incites more thoughtful reflection of a question I receive with some regularity.

“Do you ever regret becoming a PA?”

Or,

“If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything?”

These questions are easy to answer after a few good days. And somewhat harder when The System feels progressively more like getting stuck in hot molasses - a thick, insidious landslide that moves so slowly I almost can’t discern how heavy it is until it fully catches up with me.

Here goes!

Mentioned in this post:

• What are You So Angry About? trying (and failing) to manage rage in healthcare

• Taking Action on Distraction: a roadmap for overstimulating times

• My Journey with Intuitive Eating: healing my relationship with food and movement

• How I Talk about Nutrition in My Medical Practice: and how it’s evolved over the years

• Weight-Inclusive Care and Health at Every Size Philosophy

• Agency and Autonomy in Patient Care

• Unhinged Chaos of a Hard Week

• WTF? Where’s the Focus?! losing the ability think deeply in an age of multitasking

• To Freeze or Not to Freeze: egg preservation in the age of reproductive indecision

• What I Wish People Knew About Healthcare: the inside scoop from a primary care provider

• The Lessons I’ve Learned: reflecting on 3 years as a primary care PA