Ami Shah, MD, LCS Certified Coach

 

I am a pediatric surgeon at Rush University, sister, a wife to Steven, mom to Jai and Alina, and clerkship director. I am learning how to live in the full experience of my daily life, not just getting through the day. Everyday I’m learning to live with joy and passion.

Read Ami's Story

About 3 years ago I was deep in a malaise. Nothing was wrong, everything was “fine” but my world had no color. I was getting through each and every day and waking up to do all the same the next day with minimal joy or sadness in all my days. I looked at myself in the mirror and I didn’t even know what I wanted anymore. I had struggled and fought so hard to get to where I was but I didn’t even like where I was. I saw so much joy in the face of my children that I didn’t know how to experience anymore.

 

I felt so lost and had no idea how to get back to feeling any emotion. I read all the books and double downed on working harder, trying to achieve that next thing to find some happiness. As you can guess this didn’t lead to any sort of change in my life except continuing to live in the shadow of my life.

 

One of my friends had recently started working with a coach and I thought, why not? I started to realize that I was so afraid to feel anything negative I had made the decision to not feel anything. I began to explore the imposter syndrome and perfectionism that had made work feel so difficult to me. In this process I learned to start accepting all the parts of me, even the part that gets sad, lonely and anxious.

 

As I began getting coached I noticed how many students and residents thought the same way that I was. I realized how much better and fuller my experience of residency and fellowship could have been if I had known some of these concepts. I’ve made it my mission to bring this work to trainees at all levels so you have the tools to create the life you want.