⚠️ SENSITIVE CONTENT WARNING

This episode discusses suicide, which may be distressing for some listeners. If this subject is triggering for you, please consider skipping this episode. If you choose to listen, do so gently and take good care of yourself. If you’re feeling hopeless or suicidal, please reach out for support. You can call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or click here for additional resources.

Dr. Michelle Chestovich is a family medicine physician, physician coach, and the host of the Remind Yourself podcast—soon to be renamed Stress Rx. She is also the sister of Dr. Gretchen Butler, a brilliant, beloved human and radiologist who died by suicide on March 5, 2021.

Michelle’s story mirrors the quiet struggle many physicians face. She found herself living a life she didn’t quite sign up for, balancing the demands of medicine with a shifting sense of identity after becoming a mother. Coaching became her pathway back to clarity, alignment, and truth.

Her sister, Gretchen, faced the impossible convergence of pressures, expectations, and circumstances that contribute to the staggering statistic of 300–400 physician suicides each year.

This episode is a tender, honest conversation about grief, the hidden burdens physicians carry, the systemic failures that harm our colleagues, and the transformative power of recognizing our own humanness.

Get a lifetime of support in Empowered Surgeons Group here.

Learn more about Dr. Michelle Chestovich and how she can help you here.

*********SENSITIVE TOPIC WARNING*******************

This episode discusses substance abuse and suicide. Please listen carefully.

In this powerful and deeply honest conversation, Dr. Courtney McKeown shares the story she was once told would be “career suicide”—a story of mental health crisis, addiction, recovery, and the hard-won journey back to her authentic self.

She reflects on the research-year psychotic break that led to hospitalization, the healing support of an extraordinary program director, and her rise into a prestigious hepatobiliary fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic. But even at the top, her body kept signaling what she now sees clearly: her life was misaligned, fueled by external validation and hidden coping mechanisms.

When routine monitoring uncovered her secret drinking, she was thrust into the harsh reality of how the medical system treats physicians in distress—often punitively, fearfully, and without nuance. She describes how the state of Ohio’s approach pushed her to rock bottom, how a trusted psychiatrist saved her life, and how the state of Massachusetts’ more compassionate physician health program ultimately helped her rebuild it.

Courtney has been sober since March 2021. She chose to share her story publicly, despite warnings it would end her career. Instead, the opposite happened. A closed credentialing door redirected her to a new opportunity—now serving as Chief of Surgery in a community where she is supported, aligned, and deeply fulfilled.

Her journey highlights both truths: yes, institutions can weaponize oversight against physicians who don’t “fit,” and our ultimate success cannot be dictated by anything outside of us. Alignment, authenticity, and courage are powerful forces.

Today, she is living her best life: thriving in private practice, leading a department, and connecting with her patients more meaningfully than ever.

• The research-year crisis: stimulants, psychosis, and hospitalization
• The power of a supportive program director and the road back to residency
• The dream fellowship that wasn’t aligned, and how her body told the truth
• Addiction, secrecy, and the moment she was “caught”
• How states differ dramatically in supporting (or punishing) physicians in distress
• The paradox of safety expectations: punished for depression, allowed to operate without sleep
• The credentialing roadblock that redirected her to the role she was meant for
• Two truths: systemic weaponization and internal sovereignty
• Sobriety since March 2021 and what real recovery looks like
• Living in alignment: joy, leadership, community practice, connection with patients

Find Courtney on instagram here.

Watch her story on CBS morning news here.

Join Empowered Surgeons here.

Trauma surgeon and healthcare leader Dr. Scott Ellner joins me to talk about the moments that reshaped his life and career, from witnessing a beachside intubation at age 21 to navigating one of the lowest points of his surgical practice. We explore complications, shame, psychological safety in the OR, and why compassion and emotional intelligence are essential (not optional) in surgery.

Scott shares the retained foreign body case that transformed his approach to leadership, the danger of tense OR energy, and the difference between title-based authority and referent power. We also discuss the failure of punitive peer review, the legacy of Ernest Codman, and what it really takes for surgeons to regain confidence after early-career mistakes.

We each open up about panic attacks—mine recently in the OR, his in medical school—and talk about vulnerability, preparation, and staying ahead of fear. Scott also previews his upcoming book, Wipe Out Rise Up, a blend of surgical stories and lessons from surfing on resilience, perseverance, and facing storms head-on.

Find Scott and his book here.

Listen to his TEDx talk "Lessons from Surgery and Grey's Anatomy" here.

Join Empowered Surgeons Group here.