153. How to Become OK with Uncertainty

The Mindful Healers Podcast with Dr. Jessie Mahoney and Dr. Ni-Cheng Liang

It should be different but you can still make a difference.

Dr. Meg Lelonek started coaching about two years ago. At that time she describes herself as ”on the tile floor.”

Today she is practicing medicine at a job she loves and also practicing radical self-acceptance and enjoying the beauty of her life as it is.

The tool that got Meg up “off the tile floor” and brought her hope, groundedness, courage and initiative to make a change –was the thought she learned in coaching – “It should be different, but I can still make a difference.”

In this episode, Meg shares her Pause & Presence coaching journey.

She shares her path from full spectrum private family practice to being an employee at a community health clinic, to becoming a contracted hospitalist for her local hospital.

She shares how coaching gave her the courage and trust to quit a job, even as the primary breadwinner of her family, before she knew what was next for her career.

When she started her next job as a hospitalist she expected it would be a stepping stone to something else. It turns out she loves it!

The other coaching saying that both helped her rtremendously and came to fruition is "Things often turn out better than you expect."

Meg now uses her well-honed strengths as a primary care doctor daily in her work as a hospitalist. She enjoys the work and doesn’t miss being a primary care doctor the way she feared she would.

Her hospitalist role isn’t without its own challenges, but with her coaching tools Meg now navigates the bumps, even big bumps, with much more grace, ease, and buoyancy.

Meg also shares that she now knows when she needs to reach out to people "on her larger support team." She supports herself well with a team including a therapist, coach, mentors, advisors, friends and loved ones. She doent hesitate to ask for help when she needs it because being a physician is hard and getting help helps. It is wise and strategic.

Meg also shares her new life approach: "To no longer search for her next achievement." Instead, she is happy “being” and enjoying and she is content to wait to see what feels right.

She has learned to live with the uncertainty of not knowing what is next and is able to enjoy the now, the joy, and the beauty along the way.

Meg is an ultramarathon trail runner. As a result of her coaching work and her decision “to be” rather than to achieve and pursue goals, she has decided that, for this year, she is not completing any official races. She is still running -- but only when and where she wants to-- because it feels good.

One of the most impactful lessons Meg learned along her coaching journey is that she could show herself the same radical acceptance and kindness that she has always shown her patients.

She shares that she now knows deep within that she is enough.

If you would like to change your life, career path, and experience your own transformation, consider reaching out to Jessie for coaching. The results really are this good. www.jessiemahoneymd.com

If you would like to do your coaching in-person, join Jessie for a Nourish & Transform CME Retreat. We do intense coaching, lots of mindful yoga and mindfulness practice, and explore culinary medicine. https://www.jessiemahoneymd.com/retreat-nourish-and-transform

If you want to develop a mindfulness practice or a speaker for your group, reach out to Dr. Liang www.awakenbreath.org

*Nothing in this episode should be considered medical advice.