Abstract
Medical training and emergency practice do not just exhaust physicians, they gradually alter them. The loss of curiosity, softness, and self-recognition that accompanies years in high-acuity medicine is not weakness but an understandable adaptive response to chronic exposure to suffering. This article draws on positive psychology's PERMA model, Csikszentmihalyi's flow theory, and research on physician flow ("P-Flow") and flow thieves to reframe burnout recovery not merely as the removal of distress, but as the active rediscovery of what sustains and sparks. Supported by a systematic review showing promise for positive psychology-based burnout interventions, the authors offer five gentle, evidence-grounded practices for physicians ready to begin reconnecting with themselves, not through sweeping transformation, but through small, consistent turning toward what matters.
Key Findings:
- â—Ź Burnout in emergency medicine is more accurately framed as moral injury, a loss not just of energy but of meaning, engagement, and intimacy with one's work and self, characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment (West, Dyrbye & Shanafelt, J Intern Med, 2018; Maslach Burnout Inventory, 2018).
- â—Ź Positive psychology's PERMA model, Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Achievement, offers an evidence-grounded framework for burnout recovery; fostering what sustains is as important as mitigating what harms (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, Am Psychol, 2000; Bazargan-Hejazi et al., BMC Med Educ, 2021).
- â—Ź Flow, deep absorption in a task where time disappears and self-consciousness recedes, is inversely correlated with burnout; physicians who frequently experience flow report lower cynicism and fatigue; in emergency medicine, "flow thieves" (constant interruptions and task-switching) actively disrupt this protective state (Aust et al., Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022; Shreffler & Huecker, 2022).
- â—Ź Feeling heard, beyond mere psychological safety, is inversely associated with burnout and improves team adaptation under uncertainty; advocating for structures where frontline physician voices are acknowledged is both a personal wellness intervention and a systemic one (Kerrissey et al., Health Care Manage Rev, 2022).
- â—Ź Reconnecting with pre-medicine interests, creative pursuits, and micro-presence practices, even in five-to-ten minute weekly doses, shows promise for reducing burnout and restoring well-being; the path back is not through sweeping change but through small, consistent turning toward what matters.
Five Gentle Practices for Rediscovering Yourself
- 🎨 Return to what used to delight you
Paint, tinker, sing, write, hike, bake, jog, even five to ten minutes of re-engagement per week matters. The pre-medicine version of you still exists and still has things it loves.
- 🌿 Practice micro-presence
Pause in your car before entering the department. Feel your hands. Inhale the steam from your coffee. Notice the sky. Listen closely to one voice. These small anchors return you to your body and to the present, the only moment that is real.
- đź’› Ask and honor: "What do I need?"
Stretch, sing, text a friend, take a minute of silence. Listening to yourself is a radical act in a profession that trains you to override your own signals. Small tokens of self-kindness remind you that you deserve care.
- ⚡ Seek flow inside and outside medicine
In the ED: teach a resident one-on-one, do a deep-dive on a fascinating case, savor your favorite procedure. Outside: something creative, physical, competitive, or entirely new. Challenge matched to skill is the formula.
- 🗣️ Cultivate being heard and speak your truth
Feeling heard is inversely associated with burnout. Advocate for structures where frontline voices matter. And even when systems are slow, say what you need to say. Living authentically re-anchors you to your dignity and agency.
"Rekindling the light in you is not about sweeping changes but a small, consistent turning toward what matters. You have not irrevocably faded. Under layers of roles, stress, and armor, you remain: curious, capable, deserving of the care you give to others."
Publication details:
JOURNAL
Common Sense (AAEM)
VOLUME / ISSUE
Vol. 32, No. 6, pp. 12–13
PUBLISHED
November/December 2025
AUTHORS
Amanda Dinsmore, MD; Kendra Morrison, DO; Laura Cazier, MD
SERIES
The Whole Physician
PUBLISHER
American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM)
