Surgeons with Purpose

Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.Dr. Jake Goodman is a psychiatrist who works with healthcare professionals and has built a following of over 2 million people by saying the things most physicians are thinking but not saying out loud.His practice started in a telling way: his first patient was a surgeon, then a dentist, then a veterinarian, then an OB/GYN. That pattern wasn’t random; it revealed something much bigger. There is a massive, unmet need for mental health support in healthcare, and most of us are silently struggling more than we admit.Jake shares his own story of depression during intern year, when he thought he was “burned out,” but was actually depressed. Low energy. Numb. Going through the motions. And here’s the part that hits: he was a psychiatry resident and still couldn’t see it in himself. That’s how deep the stigma runs in our profession.We talk about what it actually takes to come out of that place and why “working harder” is not the answer. At some point, the armor has to come off. And for physicians, that’s often the hardest move.If you’ve ever felt like your life used to work—and now it doesn—you’ll recognize what he describes. The career, the family, the workouts, the expectations… at some point, something gives. His question is simple: Is what you’re doing sustainable for the next 20 years?We also get into the stuff no one taught us: – what to do with the stress your body is carrying after a case – why you can’t just compartmentalize forever – how to recognize your own “check engine lights” before things spiralAnd one of the most practical tools he shares is how to separate “hot thoughts” from reality. The ones that sound like: I’m a bad doctor. I’m an imposter. I’m going to be found out. Instead of fighting them, he teaches you how to create space from them so they stop running the show.We also talk about emotions: what they are, what they’re not, and why making permanent decisions in temporary emotional states is one of the biggest mistakes physicians make.This conversation is real, practical, and long overdue.If you’ve been telling yourself you’re just “burned out”… you may want to listen to this one.Learn more about Jake's practice here.Follow him on instagram here.

Learn more about Love and Science Fertility here.Learn more about the Norway retreat here. Get on my calendar for an interview for a spot here.Join Empowerd Surgeons here.Infertility is shaping the lives of female physicians, and we need to talk about it.Dr. Erica Bove, creator of Love and Science, shares the startling fact that 1 in 4 female physicians and 1 in 3 female surgeons experience infertility. Interestingly, the very mindset that makes us successful in surgery can work against us when it comes to building a family.We explore the hidden role of stress, trauma, and nervous system dysregulation, and the trap so many physicians fall into: trying to solve infertility by working harder, researching more, and disconnecting from their own bodies.Dr. Bove offers a radically different approach, one that begins with humanity.We talk about:Why going on a certainty frenzy doesn't solve the problemHow trauma states impact fertility physiologyThe courage it takes to receive care, not just give and giveReconnecting with your deepest “why” Boundaries, community, and learning to say: I deserve to be a patientThis is not just a conversation about fertility, it’s about reclaiming your humanity in a system that taught you to override it.Erica Bove, MD, is a double board certified OB-GYN and Reproductive Endocrinologist (REI) physician at the University of Vermont, She is also the CEO and founder of Love and Science: Thriving Through Infertility. She has a keen interest in marrying an evidence-based approach with intuitive knowing in the context of a trusting relationship. She empowers women physicians to build their families with confidence, self compassion and community. Her mission is to heal and support the healers and to create a legacy she is proud of. In her free time, she enjoys running, yoga, kayaking, skiing, reading, writing, and spending time with her inner circle.Follow her on Linkedin here, IG here, FB here, and check out her podcast, Love and Science Fertility here.

Interested in our retreat to Norway? Get on my calendar for an interview here.What does it really take to survive and succeed in a system that wasn’t built with you in mind?In this episode, I explore that question with orthopedic surgeon Dr. Sonya Sloan. We talk about the hidden curriculum of medicine: the unspoken rules, the power dynamics, and the strategies required to navigate surgical training, especially as a Black woman in a historically white, male-dominated field.From early inspiration in the operating room to enduring microaggressions, bullying, and even physical assault during training, Dr. Sloan shares what she learned, how she protected herself, and why resilience alone is not enough.This episode is not just about survival; it’s about strategy, leadership, and rewriting the rules for the next generation.We talk about:How her early experiences sparked a career in orthopedicsWhat it was like being one of the only Black trainees in a surgical programThe reality of bias, microaggressions, and exclusion in medicineThe difference between mentors and true advocatesA moment of physical assault in the OR, and how she handled itWhy documentation and strategy are essential for protecting your careerThe hidden “rules” of medicine no one teaches youHow surgical culture impacts womenThe critical importance of leadership and communication skillsWhy “soft skills” are not optional but essentialHow humor and tone-setting can transform the OR environmentThe emotional toll of training, and the importance of narrative processingWhy so many trainees feel isolated, targeted, or unsupportedWhat needs to change in surgical education right nowTakeaways:Resilience isn’t enough. You need strategy, awareness, and supportDocumentation is power in environments where bias existsMentors advise. Advocates act. You need both.Microaggressions shape careers, even when they seem subtleLeadership skills are not taught, but they are critical to survivalYou don’t have to silently tolerate inappropriate behaviorProcessing your story is part of healing and reclaiming your voiceLearn more about Dr. Sonya Sloan and get her book, The Rules of Medicine here.Follow Dr. Sloan on instagram here.Check out Hardball for Women here.Check out White Fragility here.Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.

What does it mean to stay grounded in your identity and your humanity inside a system that often asks you to override both?In this episode, orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Brian Nwannunu, shares his journey from being the son of Nigerian immigrants to building a career in surgery rooted in purpose, faith, and service. Brian knew from a young age that he was called to medicine, but his path wasn’t linear. After not getting into medical school on his first attempt, he pursued a master’s in physiology, eventually gaining admission and thriving - reinforcing a powerful truth: test scores don’t define clinical excellence or future success.We talk about the realities of surgical training, where Brian faced criticism, microaggressions, and the pressure of being one of the only Black residents in his program. Despite external narratives that questioned his performance, he had objective evidence of his excellence and mentors who helped him stay grounded. His story highlights the disconnect that can exist between perception and reality in training environments, and the lasting impact of bias, labeling, and unequal protection among trainees.Brian shares how these experiences shaped the way he practices today. As an attending, he’s intentional about bringing humanity back into orthopedic surgery: slowing down, listening deeply, and recognizing that every surgery affects not just a patient, but an entire life system. We also explore the difference between operating from service versus ego, and how that distinction changes both outcomes and fulfillment.The conversation expands into the broader realities of modern medicine: insurance barriers, loss of autonomy, and the growing influence of private equity. Brian explains why he chose private practice, why physicians need an exit strategy, and how models like direct care may shape the future of certain specialties.Finally, we talk about identity beyond medicine. Brian shares how he’s diversified his life through teaching, speaking, and financial literacy, which all creates a sense of purpose and stability that extends beyond the OR.This is a conversation about resilience, integrity, and choosing how you want to practice, both as a surgeon and as a human being.Follow Dr. Brian Nwannunu on instagram here.Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.

In 2019, two patients complained to the Board of Registration in Medicine about me.At the time, it felt deeply unfair. I felt hate. I felt indignation. I felt like a victim. I even fantasized about horrible things happening to the people who complained about me. They were my villains.But, through my own coaching journey, I began to understand that pain is not individual; it is inherited, relational, generational, and cultural. These two complaints were sources of clean pain, but they were not the source of my suffering; my decision to indulge in drama was the real cause of my suffering.In this episode, I'll teach you the important lessons I learned from that year.I now feel immense gratitude for experiencing what it's like to be investigated by the Board, and I'm so happy I can bring these lessons to all of you.If you want to take this work deeper and master the lessons I now teach, you're going to want to join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.Not ready yet? Definitely get on my email list here so as not to miss any free or paid offerings.Sign up for the webinar, "Mistakes, Complications and Missed Expectations" on March 26th at 5 pm EST here.

Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.Life is more fun when your career path isn’t linear. Dr. Raymund King knows this well. From performing magic to practicing medicine, from the courtroom to the screen, Raymund’s life reflects a deep willingness to evolve and follow his inner knowing.We talk about witnessing tragedy, bucking the norm, the mindset of a doctor vs lawyer vs creative, reinvention of self, becoming a good steward of service, and the importance of trust, even when things are scary and uncertain.For physicians navigating burnout, or identity shifts, Raymund’s story is a reminder that your path does not have to be singular to be coherent. Reinvention is not failure. And sometimes the most powerful next step is the one that makes the least sense on paper.Find Dr. Raymund King on IMDB here and Linkedin here.

Join us inside Empowered Surgeons here. Subscribe to Stitches here.What happens when the skills that make you a great surgeon begin pulling you toward a different kind of impact?In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Ivan Capobianco, who trained as a hepatobiliary and transplant surgeon and whose career journey spans Italy, Germany, global health work in Angola, academic research, AI, entrepreneurship, and medical publishing.Ivan shares a deeply honest account of how he moved from the operating room into startup life and research, not because he couldn’t handle surgery, but because he began asking a bigger question:How else can I serve?We talk about:-Growing up in Italy in a creative family, and why medicine wasn’t always the obvious path-Training at the University of Padua, one of the oldest medical faculties in the world-Key differences between European and U.S. surgical training systems-How a year “off” before residency led him to Angola and permanently changed how he saw medicine-Why pediatric surgery culture felt different, and what that revealed about surgical identity-Burnout that didn’t announce itself until it did-A pivotal moment during parental leave that forced a reckoning between career, family, and self-Attrition in surgery, particularly for women-The unfortunate truth that productivity and profit override patient-centered values in modern surgical systems-The realization that helping healthcare workers may help more patients than operating aloneIvan also shares how his love of research, data, and prevention led him to:-Learn coding and machine learning-Found the healthcare documentation startup Briefly-Create STITCHES, a daily newsletter that curates and summarizes the most relevant surgical literature from hundreds of papers published each dayWe explore:-Why most “AI in surgery” papers miss the mark-The value of small case reports and practical technique papers-Why knowing open surgery still matters in a robotic era-The loss of discussion and collaboration in modern academic medicine-The myth of “I don’t have time”-How essentialism can reduce cognitive and bureaucratic burden for surgeonsThis is a conversation about agency, courage, and redefining service and usefulness in a system that often narrows our sense of who we’re allowed to be.About the GuestDr. Ivan Capobianco leads the Surgical AI anda Digital Phenotyping Group at the Department of General Surgery, University of Tübingen. His research focuses on machine learning and artifical intelligence, Big Data in medicine, with a a particular emphasis on natural language processing methods applied to clinical data. He is the founder of the healthcare startup Breeflee, and creator of the surgical research newsletter STITCHES, which reaches over 5,000 readers daily. His work focuses on improving working conditions for surgeons and other healthcare professionals through better data, automation, and access to meaningful research.

LIMITED OFFER: The Pain to Power 5-day Coaching Program starts Feb 2nd. Sign up here.In this episode I speak with Dr. Mandy Rice, a dual board–certified General Surgeon and Surgical Intensivist whose path to surgery was anything but traditional. She began her career as a pediatric ICU nurse at 22, carrying the belief that she “wasn’t smart enough to be a doctor” - until a physician challenged that narrative, and she chose to believe him.Mandy loved medical school: the chaos, the autonomy, and the sense of purpose. Only later did she realize that the chaos she gravitated toward mirrored the chaos of her childhood, and that comfort and disorder had long been paired in her nervous system. After graduating medical school at 36, she entered residency and discovered stark differences between nursing and medicine, mentorship and hierarchy. A strong female role model in medical school contrasted sharply with a toxic training environment in residency, where lack of support - particularly from women in leadership - left her asking, “Why would people who are paid to train me treat me this way?”We talk openly about the pain and disorientation of being fired from a training program, and the rude awakening that truth, logic, and “first, do no harm” do not always govern surgical culture. From there, Mandy navigated her first job out of training, reimagined the life she wanted, and ultimately designed a practice on her own terms, including direct-care surgery and later, community-based women’s health and hormone therapy.Along the way we examine burnout, depersonalization, and the subtle spectrum between over-empathizing and dehumanizing patients. The middle ground, we learn, is compassion and skillful empathy. We also explore the gifts of palliative medicine and how it reshaped her ability to have difficult conversations, confront uncertainty, and meet suffering without collapsing into it.Today, Mandy practices community surgery through a circuitous and self-authored route - proof that there are many ways to practice surgery, many ways to serve, and many ways to live a life in healthcare that is meaningful, humane, and your own.Learn more about Dr. Mandy Rice here.Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.

After returning from our inaugural women surgeon's retreat in Cabo, Steph Sheldon and I debrief about the lessons we learned. Please enjoy this special episode of Surgeons with Purpose. The "Pain to Power Workshop" will launch on Jan 18th. Get on my email list here to get all the updates about the program.And if you are ready to join us in Empowered Surgeons Group, click here.Steph Sheldon is a creative entrepreneur, business coach, website designer, and brand strategist who works primarily with women founders and coaches to help them clarify their voice, build intentional digital spaces, and grow sustainable, aligned businesses. She blends her background in architecture with business strategy and creativity to support her clients in creating meaningful, effective online presences and offerings.Steph frames business not just as technical work but as creative and personal expression, rooted in clarity, intention, and connection between the founder and their audience. Her content and coaching often explore how inner beliefs, creativity, and somatic experience inform business success.Follow her on instagram here.

Dr. Kat Hudon shares her journey from enthusiastic learner to an employed physician slowly beaten down by a system designed to keep doctors exhausted, constrained, and disconnected from their creativity.In this convo, we explore how medicine places an impossible mantle of perfection on physicians, why resilience is a finite resource, and how the system punishes anything that falls outside the narrow definition of “excellence.” Dr. Hudon reflects on moral injury, middle management challenges, the growing administrative bloat in healthcare, and how she realized she always had a choice.This episode is about reclaiming agency through values, connection, collaboration, and the courage to design a life and practice that actually aligns with who you are.Key Themes:From Idealism to DisillusionmentKat describes the arc many physicians experience: entering medicine as a high-achieving, enthusiastic learner and slowly realizing, “I thought this was going to be better.”Residency forges some of her most meaningful, lifelong relationships—even as the system itself begins to erode joy and creativity.As leadership changes in employed medicine, conditions often worsen rather than improve.The Myth of Infinite ResilienceMedicine demands perfection while punishing anything less.Resilience is not endless—it’s a bucket that must be actively filled and resourced.The dream of post-training life rarely matches reality; the clinical work is often the easiest part of the job.Moral Injury and Systemic FailureFive years ago, Kat witnessed a dramatic rise in loneliness and anxiety among children without adequate training, resources, or systems to support them.The moral injury of feeling like she was causing harm simply by working within a broken system shook her willingness to participate in it.Healthcare has become an industry of industries, bloated by layers of administration and confusion designed to perpetuate itself.Insurance, Power, and AutonomyInsurance companies dictate care decisions, limiting physician autonomy and patient-centered care.If given a magic wand, Kat would eliminate the outsized power insurance holds over medical decision-makingThe growing number—and salaries—of administrators contrasts sharply with the lived experience of clinicians.Choosing a Different PathDisillusionment with healthcare helped catalyze Kat’s move toward building a direct care clinic focused on longevity and age management.Starting a business required clarity around core values and identity.Physicians have highly transferable skills and more freedom than they are often led to believe.Relationship Over PaternalismOne of medicine’s most powerful skills: building trust within minutes.Relating well to patients—rather than using fear or authority—creates better outcomes.Kat shares how relationship-centered conversations led to a 95% success rate with vitamin K acceptance, compared to 10% when scare tactics were used.Designing a Sustainable PracticeKat describes her current practice model, including hour-long initial consultations followed by a membership structure.Diversifying income streams and designing life intentionally creates capacity for empathy, connection, and meaningful discourse, even in challenging conversations.The Second Mountain & What Comes NextDrawing on David Brooks’ concept of The Second Mountain, Kat reflects on moving from achievement-driven success to purpose, service, and community.If You Feel Stuck: Where to StartKat offers practical first steps for physicians who feel trapped:Pause and reflect: Identify what’s working and what isn’t. This isn’t quitting; it’s pruning.Assess probability: What are the chances you’ll be happy if you stay? What are the chances you’d be happy doing something else?Remember: You always have a choice.Dr. Kat Hudon isn’t just another voice in the crowd; she’s a dedicated advocate for a new era of medicine–one that values integrity over profit, compassion over convention, and authenticity over everything.Her voice rises above the noise, guiding both practitioners and patients toward a more holistic, honest approach to healthcare. Because real medicine isn’t just about treatment; it’s about trust, and Dr. Hudon is here to redefine what it means to truly care. Dr. Hudon is on a mission to educate, inspire, and advocate for a system where patients and practitioners are empowered to pursue health and healing with more humanity.Follow her on instagram here.Join Empowered Surgeons Group here.

In this conversation, I’m joined by author and human performance expert Brad Stulberg to explore identity diversity, mastery, and what it really means to build a sustainable, meaningful career. We discuss the concept of the identity house, what it means to feel one's way to skill attunement, core values, process vs product, and how presence and flow are at the heart of mastery.This episode is especially relevant for surgeons and high-achievers who have poured everything into one role and are wondering how to prevent burnout without giving up ambition.We Talk About:The Identity HouseThe idea that we all live in an identity house with multiple rooms (e.g., surgeon, parent, artist, athlete, writer)Why having multiple rooms matters: if one room floods or burns down, the entire house doesn’t collapseNot all identity rooms are the same size, and we don’t need to spend equal time in eachYou can spend most of your day in one “room”—the key is not letting the others get moldyThe concept of minimum effective dosing for neglected parts of identityWhy it’s never too late to renovate your identity home, even if you’ve lived only in the “surgeon room” for yearsCore Values as Burnout PreventionWhy defining core values is the first step in preventing burnout and moral injuryResearch-backed values associated with long-term well-being: Autonomy, mastery, belongingTwo distinct types of burnout:Career vs. Week ThinkingThe danger of optimizing for a “successful week” instead of a successful careerHow ego convinces us we’re more indispensable than we areThe liberating truth: the world keeps turning without usMastery, Presence, and the Craft of Surgery“Feeling our way to excellence” and how it intersects with see one, do one, teach oneThe universal mastery trajectory: Simple → Complex → SimpleWhy what looks “simple” is actually hundreds of unconscious micro-stepsThe four stages of competence:: unconscious incompetence, conscious incompetence, conscious competence, unconscious competence (the apex of excellence)Why many high-achievers get stuck in conscious competence (or try to skip steps)Presence, intimacy with craft, and why the best moments (like a first kiss) are thoughtlessProcess Over ProductSeeing your work as a craft, not just a jobIdentifying the right goals without obsessing over themThe danger of outcome fixationWhy process is what sustains excellence over timeIntensity, Rest, and RenewalThe nuance of “going all in” without “going all the time”Stimulus + rest = recoveryHow intensity and joy are not opposites, but partnersJoin Empowered Surgeons Group here.Find Brad Stulberg and his incredible books here.

Join Empowered Surgeons here.Book a free consult with me here.And if you're here for the free content, amazing! My next masterclass + open coaching is on December 14th at 10 am EST. Sign up for "5 Ways Surgeons Fail" here.In this episode, I break down what coaching is. Not the corporate wellness version, but the real, practical, life-changing version that surgeons and high-stakes professionals actually need.Coaching, as I define it, is choosing thoughts that generate feelings that empower you to create results you truly desire. It's the antidote to the soul-crushing grind of modern healthcare, moral injury, the day-to-day depletion, and the feeling that you’re running out of capacity while the system demands more.It’s also the only part of this profession that you can truly control.We start by identifying what you yearn for (your will), then reconnecting with your power, the internal clarity, agency, and authority that have been buried under years of training, cultural conditioning, and systemic pressure. Then we learn how to wield that power with intention and compassion. In this way, one moment at a time - little by little - your impact and your world expands. Instead of stagnating and staying small, you show up big. You create big things. I know it works because I've done it.If you’ve ever wondered what coaching actually is (and isn’t), why it works, or whether it’s worth your time, this episode is your starting point.

*********SENSITIVE TOPIC WARNING*******************This episode discusses substance abuse and suicide. Please listen carefully.In this powerful and deeply honest conversation, Dr. Courtney McKeown shares the story she was once told would be “career suicide”—a story of mental health crisis, addiction, recovery, and the hard-won journey back to her authentic self.She reflects on the research-year psychotic break that led to hospitalization, the healing support of an extraordinary program director, and her rise into a prestigious hepatobiliary fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic. But even at the top, her body kept signaling what she now sees clearly: her life was misaligned, fueled by external validation and hidden coping mechanisms.When routine monitoring uncovered her secret drinking, she was thrust into the harsh reality of how the medical system treats physicians in distress—often punitively, fearfully, and without nuance. She describes how the state of Ohio’s approach pushed her to rock bottom, how a trusted psychiatrist saved her life, and how the state of Massachusetts’ more compassionate physician health program ultimately helped her rebuild it.Courtney has been sober since March 2021. She chose to share her story publicly, despite warnings it would end her career. Instead, the opposite happened. A closed credentialing door redirected her to a new opportunity—now serving as Chief of Surgery in a community where she is supported, aligned, and deeply fulfilled.Her journey highlights both truths: yes, institutions can weaponize oversight against physicians who don’t “fit,” and our ultimate success cannot be dictated by anything outside of us. Alignment, authenticity, and courage are powerful forces.Today, she is living her best life: thriving in private practice, leading a department, and connecting with her patients more meaningfully than ever.Key TopicsThe research-year crisis: stimulants, psychosis, and hospitalizationThe power of a supportive program director and the road back to residencyThe dream fellowship that wasn’t aligned, and how her body told the truthAddiction, secrecy, and the moment she was “caught”How states differ dramatically in supporting (or punishing) physicians in distressThe paradox of safety expectations: punished for depression, allowed to operate without sleepThe credentialing roadblock that redirected her to the role she was meant forTwo truths: systemic weaponization and internal sovereigntySobriety since March 2021 and what real recovery looks likeLiving in alignment: joy, leadership, community practice, connection with patientsFind Courtney on instagram here.Watch her story on CBS morning news here.Join Empowered Surgeons here.