Every patient interaction is a holy encounter.....

I completed my final unit in my Integrative Medicine fellowship curriculum this past weekend. It felt bittersweet...the two years flew by in the wink of an eye and yet the journey showed me how to really slow down and savor each moment. We were asked to share our reflections about the changes we felt both personally and professionally during this fellowship training.I have become so keenly aware of how every interaction I have with a patient and their family is a holy encounter.  I immerse myself in the ceremony of arriving at my office, stepping over the threshold, centering myself, praying that I am blessed into loving usefulness each day and brewing my cup of morning tea with gratitude. I feel an interconnectedness with my patients and their families that opens up a whole new level of healing for me and for them. I recognize and respect the journey that they have taken to come and see me and I feel honored to be part of their lives. I am more interested in allowing their story telling to unfold instead of just taking a history. I try to focus on nourishing the spirit of the child and the family as well as their physical well being.I look at my practice with new eyes...I see how the balance of the old and the new, the familiar and the unfamiliar, the fresh and the stale, the comfortable and the uncomfortable..all contribute to the integrative nature of the care I am providing and trying to grow to. I have learned to step back and be patient. I  try to be firm and polite when I introduce concepts that are new and challenge ones that are outdated. I have outgrown the urge to shout from the rooftop about all the wonderful tools I have gained but  instead to offer evidence based research to support my integrative treatment plans when asked. I am enjoying a fresh thirst for knowledge, and  to share what I learn. I have a sense of motivated surrender towards the productivity based model and a renewed hope as I inch my way towards a quality based model.I feel deeply grateful and incredibly blessed. I feel a renewed commitment to my own healing and the well being of my family...a new awareness that I serve no purpose if I am not on a journey myself to wellness. I wake up each morning feeling excited about the adventure of the day ahead and I go to sleep feeling ready to connect to my deeper self. I am enjoying a mindfulness in parenting my daughters and a maturity and intimacy in my relationship with my significant other. I feel present and awake in my life knowing that letting go and slowing down has deepened my faith in myself.