Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

From burnout to balance: a neurosurgeon’s bold career redesign

Jessie Mahoney, MD
Physician
July 3, 2025
Share
Tweet
Share

When a neurosurgeon tells you she thinks she might want to leave surgery for interior design, you listen closely.

Not because it’s outrageous, but because it’s honest. Many physicians carry similar longings. They wonder whether it’s OK to want a different life.

In medicine, conformity is expected and often a means of survival. Especially for women in male-dominated fields. The unspoken expectation is to blend in, push through, and never question the mold.

This neurosurgeon didn’t end up leaving. Through reflection, support, coaching, and a willingness to question long-held assumptions, she redesigned her relationship with her career and created a career that fit her authentic self.

She now practices in a nontraditional model: Commuting for one week of clinical work, then returning home for a full week of rest, connection, and personal life. What at first seemed like an imperfect compromise has become the foundation of a deeply fulfilling life.

She is more present with her family. She has cultivated meaningful friendships. She reconnected with hobbies she once believed didn’t belong in the life of a neurosurgeon. On top of it all, she enjoys her clinical work again.

Career shifts aren’t simply logistical. They require us to change our internal settings as well.

Almost everyone who leaves a role in medicine experiences the all-too-familiar narrative that if you step off the traditional path, you must not have been able to “hack it.” The feeling of shame is universal in medicine.

Shame, blame, and guilt keep many physicians working in situations that are not aligned, not healthy, and often even toxic. The shame we feel is not a signal of failure. It’s simply cultural conditioning.

Just because medicine, and especially surgery, wasn’t built for women, it doesn’t mean we have to walk away. We can redesign our role in it.

When we do this, we all benefit. Our patients receive more presence. Our families receive more connection. Our teams receive more grounded leadership. More importantly women physicians get to love their work in medicine and surgery again.

If you feel stuck, misaligned, or quietly ashamed that the traditional model isn’t working for you, you’re not broken. The system wasn’t built with you in mind. It wasn’t built for the kind of medicine we practice in 2025.

This doesn’t mean there isn’t a path that can work for you. It simply means that finding an authentic path will take creativity, courage, and support.

ADVERTISEMENT

Jessie Mahoney is a board-certified pediatrician, certified coach, mindfulness and yoga teacher, and the founder of Pause & Presence Coaching & Retreats. After nearly two decades as a physician leader at the Permanente Medical Group/Kaiser, she stepped outside the traditional medical model to reimagine what sustainable well-being in health care could look like. She can also be reached on Facebook and Instagram.

Dr. Mahoney’s work challenges the culture of overwork and self-sacrifice in medicine. She helps physicians and leaders cultivate clarity, intention, and balance—leveraging mindfulness, coaching, yoga, and lifestyle medicine to create deep and lasting change. Her CME retreats offer a transformative space for healing, self-discovery, and renewal.

As co-host of the podcast, Healing Medicine, she brings self-compassion and presence into the conversation around modern medical practice. A sought-after speaker and consultant, she partners with organizations to build more human-centered, sustainable, and inspired medical cultures.

Dr. Mahoney is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine.

Prev

Healing the doctor-patient relationship by attacking administrative inefficiencies

July 3, 2025 Kevin 0
…
Next

The promise and perils of AI in health care: Why we need better testing standards

July 3, 2025 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Surgery

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Healing the doctor-patient relationship by attacking administrative inefficiencies
Next Post >
The promise and perils of AI in health care: Why we need better testing standards

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Jessie Mahoney, MD

  • Why judgment is hurting doctors—and how mindfulness can heal

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Why the future of medicine depends on leading from the heart

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Medicalizing burnout misses the real problem

    Jessie Mahoney, MD

Related Posts

  • How to balance confidence and humility online

    Brian A. Primack, MD, PhD
  • From burnout to balance: a lesson in self-care for future doctors

    Seetha Aribindi
  • Physician burnout: the impact of social media on mental health and the urgent need for change

    Aaron Morgenstein, MD & Amy Bissada, DO & Jen Barna, MD
  • Social media: Striking a balance for physicians and parents

    Dawn Baker, MD
  • Combating physician burnout: the case for subsidized vacations

    Angel Garcia Otano, MD
  • Female physician burnout and its impact on patient care

    Raya Iqbal

More in Physician

  • Finding balance and meaning in medical practice: a holistic approach to professional fulfillment

    Dr. Saad S. Alshohaib
  • How regulatory overreach is destroying innovation in U.S. health care

    Kayvan Haddadan, MD
  • The unseen cost of detachment in radiology

    Dr. Yesu Raju
  • I thought success was a destination. Then I became a doctor.

    Ryan Nadelson, MD
  • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • Why judgment is hurting doctors—and how mindfulness can heal

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • America’s ER crisis: Why the system is collapsing from within

      Kristen Cline, BSN, RN | Conditions
    • Why timing, not surgery, determines patient survival

      Michael Karch, MD | Conditions
    • How medicine repurposing enables value-based pain management and insomnia therapy

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Meds
    • Finding balance and meaning in medical practice: a holistic approach to professional fulfillment

      Dr. Saad S. Alshohaib | Physician
    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How regulatory overreach is destroying innovation in U.S. health care

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • America’s ER crisis: Why the system is collapsing from within

      Kristen Cline, BSN, RN | Conditions
    • Why timing, not surgery, determines patient survival

      Michael Karch, MD | Conditions
    • How medicine repurposing enables value-based pain management and insomnia therapy

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Meds
    • Finding balance and meaning in medical practice: a holistic approach to professional fulfillment

      Dr. Saad S. Alshohaib | Physician
    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How regulatory overreach is destroying innovation in U.S. health care

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...