8Dear Doc, Please don't quit. . . (Nurses and APPs, too) It's time for some self-care. You deserve it and you need it. More than half of physicians have at least one symptom of burnout and would leave the practice of medicine if they could. Why is that? Because they are emotionally exhausted--the most obvious sign of burnout. Curing burnout does not require you to leave your practice. Medicine is a tough career but if leaving was the only way to prevent or recover from burnout the physicians who are not burned out would be burned out, too. We've studied the strategies that help individuals thrive in spite of adversity for more than two decades and taught those who weren't thriving how to do what thrivers do. When you learn advanced and transformative strategies that reduce stress you will feel renewed energy. Are you one of more than 50% of physicians who are experiencing at least one symptom of burnout? During the past month: - Have you felt burned out from your work? - Have you worried that your work is hardening you emotionally or felt cynical toward your work or patients? - Have you often felt down, depressed, hopeless, or wondered about the point of it all? - Have you fallen asleep unexpectedly or when you didn't want to such as when you were driving? - Have you felt overwhelmed, as if there is too much to do and that completing all the tasks is impossible? - Have you felt anxious, depressed, irritable, or easily angered? - Has your physical health declined or have you been ill more frequently? - Do you feel your work is important and that it matters? - Do you find yourself simply wanting to escape your reality such as by reading a lot of fiction, binge watching shows, surfing the web, using alcohol, drugs, or other addictive behaviors? We look at burnout through two lenses: 1) What can individuals do now to reduce the stress they experience and restore their confidence, vitality, and their zest for life? 2) What can healthcare organizations do, individually and collectively, to prevent burnout and create environments that are healthier for employees and patients? We are more knowledgeable about solutions that work because we've used them, taught them, and delivered them to thousands who trusted us to help them when they were at their most vulnerable. Whether you are a new physician who wants to maintain your enthusiasm for medicine or recover from burnout developed in medical school or nearing retirement, you'll wish you had the strategies you'll learn in these pages sooner and be relieved you have them now. Anyone who experiences stress can apply these strategies. If you won't learn them for yourself, do it for your family and your patients. Healthcare organizations that want to improve conditions can gain a greater understanding of policies and practices that increase stress and de-motivate employees. Our training programs teach large groups how to develop healthy habits of thought that reduce stress. It's the most cost effective method of addressing burnout prevention and recovery. Treat yourself well, not just today, every day. You deserve it.