Doctor vs Health – The title seems a little controversial, right? But wait, don’t judge an article by its title. Read on and you will get to know what I am trying to say. I know you have a question in your mind, ‘How a person who saves lives is put versus health?’
But this article is going to focus on ‘the health of our Doctors’. Those same doctors who are constantly fighting against various things at the same time, including but not limited to personal and professional stresses along with very hectic schedules.
Doctors have been considered and at times compared to The god. (And at times had to take the worst possible treatment from the relatives when things didn’t work out well).
We are constantly providing great healthcare to the world around us.
Solving almost impossible cases, fighting and finding answers to the questions arising each day in the healthcare system.
After getting admission into Medical College, everybody around us congratulates and praises our efforts. Our family, society starts expecting the same performance from us at every next step. The burden of keeping ourselves up to those high expectations puts a lot of stress, knowingly and unknowingly.
At times we do not accept this and go on with our routine answer when someone asks, “Hey, how are you?” And we end up replying, “I am fine”. Our friends and group usually help us cope with these stresses on a daily basis.
As time passes by, we get busier with our routine and studies. More studies, clinical postings, exams, classes, relationships, heartbreak and everything else. The stress goes on and on.
Then comes the phase where we start saying, “PG toh karna hi padega!!” Then comes Entrance exams and its preparation. Joining coaching classes, again more study hours per day, practice tests, then final exam, the anxiety gets the best of us at times. Still, we end up saying, “I am fine”.
Until this point I have talked about Mental Health. Now, lets talk about Physical health. We are sitting and studying for most of the time. Most of us work long hours during internship and we are going to work uncountable hours during residency in our favourite post-graduation course.
We are constantly under mental stress and this physical exertion adds to it. Lack of sleep, deranged timings of lunch, dinner (And we all know the quality of food we get in the mess or canteen!), work-related stress, personal stress.
Finally we doctors; who are working constantly to improve the health of our society end up getting health problems. It includes mental, physical and spiritual aspects. So, what can we do?
Well, we can make small but significant changes in our routine things! This is not going to show immediate results but it is going to help up long term.
Here are some tips-
1) Try to maintain a routine(I know it’s difficult).
2) Add yoga, meditation or some kind of exercise. At least 10 minutes. For those who can join gym! Some sports activity is helpful too.
3) Talking about food and health, yes our canteen/mess meals are already deprived of essential nutrients. So, eat one or two fruits on your way.
4) Avoid any kind of addictions, especially substance abuse. It is not helping you in any way. The stress is not going to reduce.
And last but not the least
5) The next time, someone (trustworthy) asks you, “how are you?” And if you think you need to talk about something, please don’t just say “I am fine!” Talk about it to your family, friends.
I hope readers find it my article Doctor vs Health helpful. If you have any suggestions, please comment below. We would love to hear from you!
#peace. #doctorvshealth
Written By – An MBBS Doctor.