Second careers for pain physicians...

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drusso

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I think that we all know that the handwriting is on the wall: Except for a minority of doctors in markets who can thrive in a direct/concierge/boutique care setting (aka pain management as "aesthetic medicine for the altered comfort crowd"), the rest of the gig moving forward looks very "command & control" oriented.

I've encountered a few docs who have broken away: A psychiatrist who opened a chain of holistic-health day spas, a family physician who owns a winery, an ENT who own an adventure-travel business, and a neurologist with a software company. They all still do a little medicine on the side, but their careers have definitely "crossed over." Most started flirting & dating their "muse" some time in their forties and were more or less done with medicine by their mid-fifties.

What would be your second career? What is your muse?

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If money is still required, it would be software for me.

If I am relatively set financially, can I run a bird rescue/sanctuary by day and study astronomy at night?

I recently learned that gravity "travels" at the speed of light. So, if our sun disappears, earth will continue to experience the vanished sun's gravitational pull for the 8 or so minutes until the last remaining gravitational waves run out. Planets that are further out in orbit will continue happily in orbit as gravitational waves continue to suspend them until exhausted. I had always though gravity was a "force" or at least "force-like", in that, when it was removed, it's instantly gone. But no, they say. That would violate special relativity, they say...
 
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I think that we all know that the handwriting is on the wall: Except for a minority of doctors in markets who can thrive in a direct/concierge/boutique care setting (aka pain management as "aesthetic medicine for the altered comfort crowd"), the rest of the gig moving forward looks very "command & control" oriented.

I've encountered a few docs who have broken away: A psychiatrist who opened a chain of holistic-health day spas, a family physician who owns a winery, an ENT who own an adventure-travel business, and a neurologist with a software company. They all still do a little medicine on the side, but their careers have definitely "crossed over." Most started flirting & dating their "muse" some time in their forties and were more or less done with medicine by their mid-fifties.

What would be your second career? What is your muse?

real estate.

want to buy a big condo complex in a solid neighborhood, but dont have the cajones to pull the trigger. also, the wife would chop off said cajones.
 
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travel around and throw botox parties (cosmetic, not the migraine headache kind)
 
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Charter boat captain and flipping boats for profit.
 
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If money is still required, it would be software for me.

If I am relatively set financially, can I run a bird rescue/sanctuary by day and study astronomy at night?

I recently learned that gravity "travels" at the speed of light. So, if our sun disappears, earth will continue to experience the vanished sun's gravitational pull for the 8 or so minutes until the last remaining gravitational waves run out. Planets that are further out in orbit will continue happily in orbit as gravitational waves continue to suspend them until exhausted. I had always though gravity was a "force" or at least "force-like", in that, when it was removed, it's instantly gone. But no, they say. That would violate special relativity, they say...

You are sounding like some of our patients.
 
If money is still required, it would be software for me.

If I am relatively set financially, can I run a bird rescue/sanctuary by day and study astronomy at night?

I recently learned that gravity "travels" at the speed of light. So, if our sun disappears, earth will continue to experience the vanished sun's gravitational pull for the 8 or so minutes until the last remaining gravitational waves run out. Planets that are further out in orbit will continue happily in orbit as gravitational waves continue to suspend them until exhausted. I had always though gravity was a "force" or at least "force-like", in that, when it was removed, it's instantly gone. But no, they say. That would violate special relativity, they say...
thats because nothing is faster than the speed of light. well, at least not now. things did move faster than the speed of light initially at the time of the Big Bang (see Inflation theory).

or in Star Trek...

we will also "see" the sun for 8 light minutes after the sun disappears, before everything goes irrevocably black and cold.
 
thats because nothing is faster than the speed of light. well, at least not now. things did move faster than the speed of light initially at the time of the Big Bang (see Inflation theory).

or in Star Trek...

we will also "see" the sun for 8 light minutes after the sun disappears, before everything goes irrevocably black and cold.
Interesting stuff! In my previous life, I got a bachelor's in physics and almost went into astrophysics. As fascinating as it is, the professional application of astronomy/astrophysics has its challenges to be sure.

But it doesn't mean one can't enjoy observations from the JWST any less than the next guy.
 
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I think that we all know that the handwriting is on the wall: Except for a minority of doctors in markets who can thrive in a direct/concierge/boutique care setting (aka pain management as "aesthetic medicine for the altered comfort crowd"), the rest of the gig moving forward looks very "command & control" oriented.

I've encountered a few docs who have broken away: A psychiatrist who opened a chain of holistic-health day spas, a family physician who owns a winery, an ENT who own an adventure-travel business, and a neurologist with a software company. They all still do a little medicine on the side, but their careers have definitely "crossed over." Most started flirting & dating their "muse" some time in their forties and were more or less done with medicine by their mid-fifties.

What would be your second career? What is your muse?
Pain already is a 'second career' for me and I find it way, WAY less burnout inducing than EM. Also, the reimbursement cuts of recent years seem to have bottomed out for now. I think the future looks better than in previous years, actually. Also, I view the fact that the pendulum swinging more against opiates, is a good thing, not a bad thing. I'm lowering my opiate prescribing more and more, and if the government wants to push it all the way to "no opiates for anyone," then great! I'll get to focus more on the fun stuff, and maybe I'll have the non-opiate practice I always wanted.

That being said, if something better came along, I'd take it, but currently, I see what I'm doing as sustainable for the near future, for me.
 
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