Genius: Sciencing Our Human Potential

Episode 8:

It’s the week of Thanksgiving during the COVID-19 pandemic that has only worsened. Most of us are hunkered down at home where we're craving to be with family and friends for the holiday that is steeped in tradition.  While trying to navigate the holiday's limitations, this year I'm also focused on the health crisis and what it means for myself and others. 

That caused me to contact physician Dr. Mark Shapiro whom I've come to know via social media. Dr. Shapiro sits in the center of a large network of colleagues and is active in leadership in the medical community. He’s in Northern California not far from where the relentless wildfires occurred.  I want to know how he coped with COVID, the threat of wildfires, and the mountain of information we're all faced with daily. I wanted to hear the human side of what his life is like: 

- Is he afraid or optimistic? What does he see from his vantage point for the rest of us – as a doctor, a leader, husband, father, and neighbor?

- What do we need to know about the pandemic?

- What should we do to take care of ourselves and our families? I mean, tangible things.

- How can help frontline healthcare? 

Dr. Shapiro is a veteran podcaster who has hosted the Explore the Space podcast for over five years. You’ll enjoy him as someone easy to listen to and easy to like and trust.  I am grateful that he joined us during this important time.

Background

Mark Shapiro, MD is the creator and host of Explore The Space Podcast, a show focused on bringing those who provide healthcare and those who seek healthcare closer together through conversations with leaders from across the spectrum. The show can be found at www.explorethespaceshow.com .

Dr. Shapiro has been in clinical practice as a Hospitalist since 2006 and currently is a full-time Hospitalist at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with St. Joseph Health Medical Group in Santa Rosa, CA. He earned a BA in history at the University of California-Los Angeles, attended medical school at Baylor College of Medicine, and completed his Internal Medicine residency at the University of California-San Diego.

Dr. Shapiro is an active voice on Twitter and can be followed at @ETSshow

A short: Thanksgiving Week, In a sea of news, sometimes we need to hear about COVID and our health care systems directly from people who work in it. Dr. Mark Shapiro: a husband, father, community member, physician.  Articulate and courageous. Take a listen. 

October 27, 2020, Week Before Election Day

Sometimes I record short meditations for my clients to listen to after our sessions. They have them on their phones and tune in to become more calm and focused, to stop anxious busy brain, and obsessive thinking.  Today, session after session, my clients were all very anxious. One by one I heard similar things, each person feeling alone in their anxious thoughts. Between my sessions, texting with friends, it was the same -- anxiety. So, I created a mindfulness exercise/meditation I could share with everyone.  This exercise is just under five minutes in length.  Let's stay present. Be safe and well. 

Thanks for listening, 

Diane Grimard Wilson,  LCPC, BCN

Coach, psychotherapist, and applied neuroscientist

Thanks, Dan Schiffmacher for the production of this video. email: [email protected] Music by Draganov "World of Magic" from Premium Beat, used with permission. 

Watch for my new book to be released in spring 2021 called "Brain Dance." It's on a vexing journey of recovering undiagnosed traumatic brain injury to eventually becoming an applied neuroscientist, myself.  It should be fascinating to anyone interested in the brain, in applied neuroscience, or who has felt totally lost and needed to rebuild their life. 

www.GeniusPodcast.Us  Instagram and Twitter: @Braincoach333 ph. (312) 925-5176 email: [email protected]

Episode 7:

Gentle, unassuming, and direct, Dr. Linda Girgis was a delight to interview for the latest of our Genius podcasts.  Dr. Girgis, Editor-in-Chief for Physician's Weekly and a media influencer, provided her take on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected healthcare and her own patients, especially as her practice is in the greater New York City area. Topics include: What’s changed over time, what we’re learning, kids and school decisions, and how to use social media for coping, staying informed, and developing life-changing relationships.

While she knows how to speak truth to power, Dr. Linda is also a person who acts in terms of principles of kindness and inclusivity.  With over 104K followers on Twitter, @DrLindaMD, she is still looking out for those who need help and guidance, whether it’s medical students, the homeless, and even an aspiring author/podcast host.  She's concise with a great heart and the episode has lots of her good advice. And, you'll probably want Dr. Linda to be your family physician.  :)

October 27, 2020  Pre-Election Mindfulness Exercise

Sometimes I record meditations for my clients to listen to after our sessions. They have them on their phones and tune in to become more calm and focused, to stop anxious busy brain, and obsessive thinking.  Today, session after session, my clients were all very anxious. One by one I heard similar things, each person feeling alone in their anxious thoughts. Between my sessions, texting with friends, it was the same -- anxiety. So, I created a meditation I could share with everyone.  This is five minutes in length.  

Enjoy. Let's stay present.  We'll get through this. 

Thanks, Dan Schiffmacher [email protected] for your kind production of this meditation. 

A short: How does media influencer Dr. Linda Girgis, Chief Editor of Physicians' Weekly see social media as a tool, esp during a pandemic? In our 10/29 episode, you'll also hear more about the impact of Dr. Linda's media on one grateful podcast host.cer

Look for the whole episode releasing on October 29, 2020 on www.geniuspodcast.us and all your favorite media platforms. 

Episodes 6:

Arghavan Salles is a surgeon and researcher at Stanford who has the rare distinction of being a part of the direct treatment teams in two COVID epicenters – New York City and then Arizona. You may have seen her on national news including The Today Show as she documented and shared some of her journey. Diane Wilson wanted to hear and share more of the personal story and what has happened since: What is Dr. Salles' life like now and what was it like being a part of these teams? What do we know about COVID now that we didn’t know before, how likely is it we’ll have a vaccine soon? As a dedicated yogi, how has yoga figured in her life during this? Dr. Salles had just returned from Arizona when they spoke. What does she do to stay healthy in these hazardous situations? And now? What does COVID mean for her own employment? We see doctors as indispensable but so many organizations are affected by changes since COVID.

Dr. Salles is a national leader in diversity, inclusion, and equity, having earned a PhD studying these topics at Stanford University. Dr. Salles is also a surgeon and has extensive lived experience as a woman of color working in a male-dominated environment. Dr. Salles completed medical school and residency in general surgery at Stanford prior to completing a fellowship in minimally invasive surgery at Washington University in St. Louis. After staying on faculty in St. Louis for a few years, Dr. Salles moved back to Stanford in 2019 to work with the medical school on issues related to diversity and inclusion. Her research focuses broadly on gender equity, implicit bias, diversity, inclusion, and physician well-being. She is a sought-after speaker and has given over 50 national and international invited talks related to gender equity and sexual harassment in medicine.

Dr. Salles is a prolific researcher and writer, having had her work published in prominent medical journals such as JAMA Network Open and JAMA Surgery. She also writes for broad audiences through outlets such as USA Today, TIME Magazine, and Scientific American. She is passionate about helping women and under-represented minorities achieve their full potential at work.

Episode 5:

An accomplished musical artist, 55 years old with finally the dream job of her musical career a member of the prestigious core chorus of the Lyric Opera Chicago. After months of preparation, in the last stages of embarking on one the most demanding operatic challenges, Wagner’s The Ring Cycle, the pandemic closed the Lyric’s season as well as the city of Chicago.

   It was running a marathon that suddenly stopped without having a chance to view the finish line: How does an artist, mother of a feisty tweener, and wife cope with the disappointment, full-time togetherness, homeschooling, and recrafting her career especially since singing, her life, is one of the most potent activities for spreading the virus?

   Related questions: What will art and music like in a Zoom world? How can music save us? How will this inspiring, often entertaining, and funny woman, go forward with her vision to create a new way of making and sharing music during a global pandemic? Michelle's biography and contact information on https://www.geniuspodcast.us/post/michelle-wrighte

Episode 4:

Dr. Syed T. Hoda is Director of Bone and Soft Tissue Pathology at New York University (NYU) and Director of Surgical Pathology at the NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital. Since the pandemic began, he has played a role in implementing a program called Family Connect to ease the burden of ICU care during the heart of New York City’s epicenter, leading a team of pathologists and medical students. This role was an entirely novel role for Pathologists and served as a building block for larger changes he would like to see in his own profession.   

Dr. Hoda's recurrent mantra for other physicians (or any professionals) is "Person 1st, Physician 2nd, Specialist 3rd" as a reminder that the common denominator for any professional is being a person 1st.   

On October 5, 2020, he will be featured on the People of Pathology Podcast. He was recently named to his 2nd straight Pathology Power List award for 2020 as well as featured on SiriusXM Doctor Radio as part of their episode on COVID Heroes.  

Episode 3:

Ann Latinovich, an internationally-recognized portrait artist, wife, and boymom to three teenagers, opened the studio of her dreams on Chicago’s Northshore in the fall of 2019. It was a special event with harps playing, delicious appetizers, a room filled with friends, clients, and beautiful art. Just a few months later, it became all too clear that any meetings in-person and even keeping her new studio were no longer possibilities.  Having lived with Lupus most of her life, Latinovich knew the potential for getting COVID was too risky. 

The pandemic plays no favorites with dreams. Questions during our podcast: How did she find meaning in the devastation of her career goals, craft, and how she makes a living? How does anyone create a new life after such a loss? 

Ann is an inspiring human, filled with grace and optimism as she has taken on this challenge.  She discusses finding a way to ride the emotional roller coaster, lessons she's learning, habits she's developing to rewire her brain, new rituals now serving her and her family, and why she hates the term "career pivot."