“I Don’t Have the Bandwidth”: How Physicians Can Slow Down and Create Space in Their Career with Dr. Moe | Ep36
What if the "just how it is" fatigue in your practice isn't permanent, but a signal to shift without abandoning what you love?
In this empowering episode of Better Physician Life, Dr. Michael Hersh welcomes Dr. Maureen Gibbons, a former emergency medicine nocturnist turned virtual lifestyle medicine pioneer and author of Freedom to Shift. Sharing her journey from 15 years of night shifts to a soul-nourishing multi-state practice, Dr. Moe reveals why bandwidth creates white space for reflection, how to audit energy drains, and strategies to downshift a revved-up nervous system, all while staying clinically engaged. Ideal for physicians sensing unsustainability but fearing change, this conversation offers hope, exercises, and permission to redesign without anyone else's permission.
About the Show:
Created for physicians who want more than clinical competence, Better Physician Life is a space for honest reflection, reinvention, and reclaiming purpose beyond the pager.
Hosted by Dr. Michael Hersh, each episode dives into the questions we didn’t learn to ask in training, offering tools and conversations to help you live and lead with intention.
Top 3 Takeaways:Â
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Create Bandwidth for White Space: Mid-career fatigue often stems from a lack of margin. Dr. Moe shares how a simple one-week "vital metric review" that tracks energy restorers vs. drainers, uncovers hidden overloads, like trying to cram 32 hours of activities into a 24-hour day, and helps physicians make small, practical adjustments that restore breathing room without blowing up their careers.
- Embrace Active Rest to Reset Your Nervous System: For busy brains, passive downtime can feel torturous. Opt for "active rest," such as light reading or guided activities, to unwind without boredom. Dr. Moe explains feeling her system shift post-EM (e.g., enjoying thrill rides again) and urges physicians to notice when "I can handle it" masks wired-for-hustle habits, then experiment with fluff novels or family "rest weeks."
- Shift Identity Without Losing Your Doctor Self: You don't have to leave medicine to evolve. Dr. Moe's story shows that translating EM skills to coaching and lifestyle medicine preserved her clinical core while adding wisdom.
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