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You get asked questions all day long.

By patients. By staff. By your family. By the system.

But when was the last time you asked yourself a question that actually helped?

In this final week of our 10-week Recharge Challenge, we’re talking about one of the most overlooked (and powerful) stress-reduction tools you already have: better questions.

Not the stuck, spiraling ones:

• Why is this happening to me?
• What now?!
• How am I supposed to manage all of this?

Those aren’t really questions. They’re expressions of overwhelm.

This episode is about learning how to ask questions that create movement instead of paralysis, clarity instead of self-blame, and agency instead of burnout.

As physicians, curiosity is our superpower. We use it expertly with our patients—but we rarely turn it inward. This week is about changing that.

We reflect on:

• Why unanswerable questions keep us stuck
• How asking better questions helps you interrupt autopilot and conditioned overworking
• Why this is not about blaming yourself or ignoring systemic problems
• How small, daily check-ins can fundamentally change how you experience your life and work

This isn’t about fixing healthcare overnight.
It’s about giving yourself back some power today.

🔑 The Core Practice This Week
Start asking questions that:

• You can actually answer
• Help you understand your thoughts and feelings
• Reveal unmet needs and misalignment
• Open the door to self-compassion and change

You don’t need to ask all of them.
You just need to start asking some—consistently.

📝 Reflection Questions from the Episode
(Bookmark these. Screenshot them. Come back to them often.)

• What am I feeling right now?
• What thoughts are creating this feeling?
• What do I need right now?
• What are my top three values in this season of life?
• Am I living in alignment with those values?
• What is getting in the way?
• What is true right now?
• If I had more time, what would I do—and is that actually true?
• Who do I want to be here?
• Where am I not being honest with myself?
• Where am I not being honest with someone important in my life?
• What is meaningful to me?
• What brings me joy?
• What is one thing I will do for myself today?
• What was hard today?
• What was good today?
• What am I proud of today?
• What will I celebrate today?

If you want a simple daily practice, start with the last three.
That alone can change everything.

Let's Connect

Need more support? Schedule a coaching consultation at https://calendly.com/healthierforgood/coaching-discovery-call

Connect with us:

• Website: healthierforgood.com

Support the show

To learn more about my coaching practice and group offerings, head over to www.healthierforgood.com. I help Physicians and Allied Health Professional women to let go of toxic perfectionist and people-pleasing habits that leave them frustrated and exhausted. If you are ready to learn skills that help you set boundaries and prioritize yourself, without becoming a cynical a-hole, come work with me.

Want to contact me directly?
Email: megan@healthierforgood.com

Follow me on Instagram!
@MeganMeloMD

Send us a text

What do you need more of right now?

Your brain will say: time, sleep, money, peace on earth, a functioning Epic inbox. Fair.

But this week, we’re naming the thing that quietly drives everything else: connection.

Not “more people.” Not “more social plans.”
More moments where you actually feel connected—to your people, to your purpose, and to yourself.

Because you can be surrounded all day (patients, staff, family) and still feel… nothing. Or worse: irritated, numb, braced, and already mentally leaving the room while your body is still sitting there.

This episode is a gentle—but very real—invitation to come back.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why connection is often the missing ingredient for stressed, high-functioning women physicians
• The difference between being around people and feeling connected
• The secret ingredient you can’t skip: presence
• How to recognize what connection feels like in your body (not someone else’s Pinterest version)
• Three kinds of connection to practice this week:
  1. Connection to other humans
  2. Connection to a cause/passion
  3. Connection to yourself
• The hard truth: if connection feels totally inaccessible right now, that’s not a character flaw—it’s a signal you need support
  
  

Your Week 9 Challenge: Micro Moments of Connection

Pick one focus area this week—don’t do all three unless you genuinely want to.

1. Connection to other humans

Try one “micro moment” per day:

• Put the phone down, face someone, make eye contact
• Give a real hug (not the drive-by shoulder bump)
• Share one honest sentence instead of your highlight reel
• Be fully there for 60 seconds (yes, even at the dinner table)

2. Connection to a cause or passion

If connection with people feels like… a lot right now, connect to something that matters:

• Contribute, participate, show up, or simply remember why you care
• Let your work link you to meaning (even if the system is a mess)

3. Connection to yourself

This one is underrated—and powerful:

• Notice your self-talk: is it kind, or is it a hostile attending who never goes off service?
• Try a few minutes of journaling, stillness, prayer, meditation, or a walk with no input
• Choose one moment where you stop abandoning yourself

A quick reflection (do this right now)
Think of a time you felt genuinely connected.
Ask:

• What did that feel like in my body?
• What thoughts were present?
• What made that moment possible?

Then choose your tiny practice for the week.

Because connection isn’t a grand gesture.
It’s a repeatable skill.

You’re not behind
If you’re joining mid-challenge, welcome. You can start here and still benefit immediately. And if you want the full sequence, go back to Epi

Support the show

To learn more about my coaching practice and group offerings, head over to www.healthierforgood.com. I help Physicians and Allied Health Professional women to let go of toxic perfectionist and people-pleasing habits that leave them frustrated and exhausted. If you are ready to learn skills that help you set boundaries and prioritize yourself, without becoming a cynical a-hole, come work with me.

Want to contact me directly?
Email: megan@healthierforgood.com

Follow me on Instagram!
@MeganMeloMD

Send us a text

Let’s be honest: when you’re exhausted, under-resourced, and working in a system that keeps asking for more… gratitude can feel like a stretch.

In this episode, we’re talking about gratitude—but not the fluffy, bypass-y kind that tells you to “just be thankful” while everything burns down. We’re talking about real gratitude: the kind that helps regulate your nervous system, protect your mental health, and increase resilience without denying how hard things are.

If you’ve ever had a patient thank you—and felt nothing but resentment, numbness, or exhaustion—this episode is for you.

In this episode, we explore

• Why gratitude is not the same as toxic positivity
• How burnout can make it impossible to receive gratitude—even when it’s offered
• The thought–feeling–action loop and how gratitude fits into it
• Why forced gratitude doesn’t work (and what does)
• How small, honest gratitude practices can reduce stress physiology
• The science linking gratitude to better mental health, cardiovascular outcomes, and even longevity
• Why gratitude works best when layered with sleep, rest, movement, nutrition, and boundaries

We also talk about what to do if you’re too burned out for gratitude—and why that’s not a personal failure.

The science we reference:

• https://clinmedjournals.org/articles/ijda/international-journal-of-depression-and-anxiety-ijda-4-024.php?jid=ijda
• https://www.uclahealth.org/news/article/health-benefits-gratitude
• https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2820770
• https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/gratitude-enhances-health-brings-happiness-and-may-even-lengthen-lives-202409113071

This episode is part of our 10-Week Stress Reduction Challenge for Women Physicians—and this week’s focus is learning how to experience gratitude in a way that actually supports your health.

🎧 Listen in, then ask yourself:
here could a little more honest gratitude make my day feel lighter—without asking me to pretend?

Let's Connect

Need more support? Schedule a coaching consultation at https://calendly.com/healthierforgood/coaching-discovery-call

Connect with us:

• Website: healthierforgood.com
• Email: megan@healthierforgood.com
• Instagram: @meganmelomd

If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and share with a colleague who might benefit!

Support the show

To learn more about my coaching practice and group offerings, head over to www.healthierforgood.com. I help Physicians and Allied Health Professional women to let go of toxic perfectionist and people-pleasing habits that leave them frustrated and exhausted. If you are ready to learn skills that help you set boundaries and prioritize yourself, without becoming a cynical a-hole, come work with me.

Want to contact me directly?
Email: megan@healthierforgood.com

Follow me on Instagram!
@MeganMeloMD