When a patient dwells on a thought to the point of feeling extremely anxious and overwhelmed, I sometimes teach them to approach those thoughts with the following metaphor: Grab onto [the thought] briefly in your hand, then let it go like a feather. Perhaps I need to practice more of what I preach. I have several complex patients who require contant monitoring and found it difficult NOT to think about a few of them during recent trips out of town. Did I prescribe too high of a dose? Will my patient be suicidal and land in the ER? Will my supervisor think I was an idiot for giving that medication? No doctor is perfect, but I do need to learn how to leave work behind (for the sake of maintaining my own sanity).
Leave It Behind
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3 comments
I like this blog , keep moving forward
i tell my patients…hold your anxieties in like a fart, then LET IT RIP!
LOL…i haven’t gotten to that section of CBT yet L-dizz