Finding Joy

Tiffany K. Kim, MD

As I started putting my Christmas decorations away, I realized how much joy they brought me. Despite all the work it takes to put up my tree and set out all the decorations, with the help of my mom, the final product is so beautiful and brings about such a feeling of peace and relaxation that I realize all the work is worth it.

As physicians, we have realized the work we have put in over many years of education and training are definitely worth it. Unfortunately, as we have discussed before, many things in medicine pull us apart from our joy. The long hours, EHR requirements with the never ending clicking of boxes, and the ever-increasing expectations from the administration. We are healers and that should bring us joy! At least that is what we recited at graduation: “May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling, and may I long experience the JOY of healing those who seek my help” - excerpted from the Hippocratic Oath. But to know how to preserve our joy through all the negativity we need to understand what joy truly is. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, joy is to experience great pleasure or delight : REJOICE. The word joy refers to the emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune, and is typically associated with feelings of intense, long lasting happiness.

If joy is the experiencing of great pleasure, then what is happiness? Many use the terms interchangeably but I feel there is a significant difference. It is also difficult to pin down a definition for happiness. According to Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of happy is “Feeling or showing pleasure or contentment.” So, in my mind I see happiness as a temporary emotion based on circumstance or situation versus joy which is more consistent, internal and spiritual.

C.S. Lewis once denoted the differences between happiness, pleasure and joy: "I sometimes wonder whether all pleasures are not substitutes for Joy," and "I call it Joy, which is here a technical term and must be sharply distinguished both from Happiness and Pleasure.” Joy (in my sense) has indeed one characteristic, and one only, in common with them; the fact that anyone who has experienced it will want it again... I doubt whether anyone who has tasted it would ever, if both were in his power, exchange it for all the pleasures in the world. But then Joy is never in our power and Pleasure often is."

Sarah Kristenson wrote an article in the Happier Human that I feel makes important distinctions between joy and happiness. Here are a few:

1. “Joy is about selflessness, and happiness involves pleasing oneself: Being selfless can mean ignoring your own feelings to benefit someone else. Although this can be a challenge, you can gain plenty of joy, meaning and purpose from it.”

2. “Joy involves trials and hardships, while happiness is easier to achieve”: working hard brings better opportunities for joy ( i.e. volunteering, a purposeful career).

3. “Joy is transformative and happiness can hold you back: Joyful experiences can be life-changing. In particular, you can get married and have a family or have spiritual or religious experiences (such as praying every day, attending church services regularly, etc.) and gain a new depth.”

4. “Joy connects people to each other, while happiness consists of continued on page 5 continued from page 4 momentary connections”: Caring for patients and having a strong doctor-patient relationship.

5. “Joy can be present where difficulties exist, but happiness can't live in this space: Namely, you could feel intensely alone and empty, but having spiritual beliefs at this time could make you profoundly joyful. However, the feeling of loneliness can be so intense that it makes it impossible to be happy.”

So many people reading might be asking why is this so important? Not only is the distinction important in our personal lives, but it is hugely important in our professional lives. If we are to have joy in our work, we need to understand what we are setting out to find but also once we find it, how do we protect it. If we focus on the joy in medicine, then my hope is it can help curb the feelings associated with burnout. Here are a few strategies I found that can help us get started:

1. Establishing and maintaining the physician-patient relationship. It has been documented over and over that we get fulfillment out of this relationship by nurturing and educating patients to be participants in their own health.

2. Practicing gratitude toward our colleagues: By acknowledging the hard work one is doing allows for an opportunity for our colleagues to feel joy.

3. Allowing for balance in our lives: Whether it is taking a leap into private practice as I recently did, or simply taking a walk around the block. Being strategic on how and when we work and play encourages less stress which in turn allows us to enjoy our calling.

My hope for the physicians in our community is that they always find the joy in medicine and maintain the resilience it takes to do our jobs well.

RETIREES MEET FOR LUNCH!

Retired physicians meet for lunch every Wednesday at 12 noon at IHOP, 2255 Tittabawassee Road in Saginaw. Those attending are responsible for their own lunch, and the informal gathering lasts about an hour. Join your retired colleagues whenever you like!

THE GROUP ALWAYS MEETS IN THE BACK ROOM. If you are told no one from the group is there, please go directly to the back room and check for yourself!

If you have questions, please contact Joan Cramer at (989) 284-8884 or Dr. Caroline Scott at (989) 295-2721.

All statements or comments in The Bulletin are those of the writer, and not necessarily the opinion of the Saginaw County Medical Society (SCMS).

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M. Cramer, Executive Director