Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…
This week, we are welcoming to the mini-podcast Dr. Ann Marie Warren, a licensed psychologist and Associate Investigator of Trauma Research. Dr. Warren talks to us about PTSD and associated self-care tips. We’ve chosen to talk about PTSD because the description of PTSD extends to people that experience the repeated or extreme traumatic event of others, including healthcare givers and their patients. Depending on how intimately involved someone is, reactions can include: disbelief, shock, sadness, anger, vulnerability, fearful, being on edge, difficulty with keeping a normal routine, sleeping well and changes in appetite. Dr. Warren gave us a series of self-care tips and strategies to help manage stress from trauma.
Which active strategies does she suggest? The following:
- Talking to others who can offer support and not doing it alone
- Maintaining self care by getting adequate sleep, healthy eating and doing regular exercise
- Practicing mind relaxing strategies to reduce stress and process the trauma in a positive way
The PTSD Self-Care Tips are perfect examples of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.
Most importantly, start creating a plan today and PRACTICE the habit of talking to others, self-care, and thinking about “things done right”!
Guest: Ann Marie Warren, Ph.D., ABPP
If you’re not familiar with Dr. Ann Marie Warren, Ph.D., ABPP, she is a licensed psychologist and Associate Investigator of Trauma Research at the Level I Trauma Center at Baylor University Medical Center. She is also a Clinical Assistant Professor at Texas A&M in the Department of Surgery. She has been the principal investigator of several funded research projects and multi-site collaborations pertaining to the psychological aspects of physical injury, including depression, post traumatic stress, and resilience. She is also interested in the psychological outcomes and rehabilitation of patients with traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries.