Because they didn't teach us in med school how to navigate the tug-a-war of career vs family and patient care vs self-care! We are learning the hard way. And after 10 years of learning the hard way I was ready for some new ideas.
And that's where coaching came in. I dedicated time and money and energy to coaching and in return I got meaningful connection, intimacy, and time for me and the people I love. My wife and I paid off both of our medical school debt. I made room for self-care every single day. Now, there's probably only 1 day a month when I take work home. I found a renewed joy for doctoring and renewed energy for advocacy and service. And then I got certified as a life coach myself and built my own coaching practice helping other caring, community-minded physicians get the lives they want too.
As the world's caregivers we experience a lot of additional stress in addition to the rest of regular life. Especially now in a pandemic. There is a growing body of evidence (including Randomized Controlled Trials) showing that life coaching prevents & treats burnout, improves resilience, and increases quality of life in physicians. So you don't have to take my word for it. The evidence is there! What are you waiting for?
Click below to learn about my 12 week coaching program: My First 24
Certified Life Coach, Wife, Mom & Board Certified Family Physician
My Mission
Coaching helped me get the life I want. Now, as a coach myself, I figure the way I can have the greatest impact on others is to enable and empower our fellow physicians to do the same. To get the quality of life we want WHILE serving our communities AND meeting our financial goals. That's having it all for sure! Quality time with family AND a rewarding career! Regular daily movement AND finishing notes on time! Meeting financial goals AND traveling the world!
Eventually, my goal is to use coaching to help lift up entire communities by helping the helpers. Coaching allows people to take back control over their lives and design the lives they want on purpose. Every aspect. Really. Coaching is the most effective tool for this.
Most life coaches are not physicians. And most physicians are not life coaches. There is a growing, surging tide of us physician coaches and I'm hopeful that we will empower physicians and stakeholders across the United States and all over the world and usher in the change that is needed to redesign our healthcare system and the culture of medicine.
I am the change I want to see. I am my own first patient. You can be yours too.
"At the time that I was referred for life coaching with Emily Shaw, I was experiencing deep anguish about the suffering and impending death of my husband. One of the blessings of performing home hospice is the sense of singular purpose and unconditional love that transcends the demands of day to day. I was at a turning point where I had to begin to face going on with my life.
Emily’s coaching began with looking at my life up to now, and visualizing my life from the near term to twenty years into the future. I formulated my desires into goals and my goals into plans. Committing these ideas to more concrete steps and timelines brought me back down to Earth, which I at first resisted, but now that things are underway, allow me to experience happiness again.
I recommend life coaching for a person who wants change or growth in their personal and professional life that seems to keep being deferred by competing obligations and priorities. What you receive is not advice but a methodology that yields a more productive habit of thought. Of course, you still have to do the work, but you can take satisfaction in the accomplishment of intermediate goals along the way."
~ Elizabeth Peralta, MD
"I feel very lucky to have found Dr. Emily Shaw. I found Emily during the Covid 19 pandemic and let's just say that after lockdown for several months she was a lifesaver in helping me deal with the new normal that we are all experiencing. This pandemic had taken a toll on me mentally and physically. I had begun drinking much more, sitting and watching t.v. for hours and hours and gained some weight. Emily was the perfect solution especially because we could meet online. Thanks to these coaching sessions with Emily I've been exercising more, hiking almost every day. I'm still drinking but much much less. And I've lost weight! Emily always provided me with detailed notes of our model, goals and homework which I have never received from a psychiatrist or psychologist before and I felt like that was an extra bonus.
I strongly recommend Dr. Emily Shaw to anyone who wants personal growth!"
~ Heidi Emery
"Emily, even though I pride myself on being a scientific person I do believe the Universe brought us together at this time. I thank you for the person I am becoming. A more comfortable, lighter, daring, capable me.
Through our sessions, you have helped define my insecurities and change my self-deprecating thoughts into ones of acceptance. You have also changed my limiting beliefs into empowering habits; reminding me that whatever the results my goal is to be a more connected, playful present person regardless of the story that came before. Thank you."
~ Cristina Mota, MD
"Dr. Shaw and I have been colleagues for over 10 years starting all the way back to the days of medical school and residency, and I feel very blessed to consider her a close friend. She is an incredible listener, and after you spend time with her you inevitably leave feeling like you understand yourself better. She is one of those rare individuals who actually practices exactly what she preaches. She is incredibly authentic and real, without a hint of pretense about her. She brings all of herself and her life experiences and wisdom to bear upon your unique situation and challenges. She has an amazing ability to see the whole person and how every aspect of one's life interconnects and affects one another. I am continually inspired by her, and am a better person for having her as a friend and colleague in my life. I have no doubt that Dr. Shaw will be able to help each and every individual fortunate enough to receive coaching from her, and will emerge in a qualitatively better state of health and self-understanding than before. There are very few physicians out there who I would recommend unequivocally without reservation – Dr. Shaw is one of them! If you are on the fence about whether to set up an appointment with her, stop thinking… just do it. You will not regret it!"
~ Anthony Lim, MD, JD
Medical Director, The McDougall Program
"Emily Shaw is a breath of fresh air. Her approach is gentle and kind with just enough edge to motivate me to start shifting to a healthier lifestyle. It is so refreshing to focus on patterns of behaviors instead of just focusing on one element of change. Emily worked with me on looking at root causes of my pattern of over eating and drinking. Even though my diet is mostly healthy, I struggled for years trying to lose weight. With a few sessions she helped me look at my thought process around my decisions about food and alcohol and it is working! Emily has helped me feel better about myself, which has given me more confidence. I am motivated to use the tools she has taught me to make healthy choices. I feel like I could apply this approach to many areas of life to make positive changes."