Women Surgeons interested in the Self-Concept Weekend in Cabo, click here to schedule a 15 min interview with me.

In this episode, my guest, Dr. Priya Kothapalli, and I discuss the beauty and power of intuition, the challenges of corporate medicine, imposter syndrome, don't know mind, and what it's like to have the courage to design a life true to oneself.

Priya Kothapalli, MD, is a coronary and structural heart disease interventional cardiologist based in the Dallas Fort Worth area, model, yogi, and host of the Open Heart podcast.

Follow Priya on instagram here. Follow her podcast, which debuts this fall, here.

Join Empowered Surgeons Group here.

Check out Hippocratic Collective here.

After a tragic car crash in 1983 changed the course of his family forever, Dr. Brian Hoeflinger pursued neurosurgery with a new sense of purpose. Decades later, when his teenage son died suddenly in a car accident, he found himself once again reshaped by grief. In this episode, Dr. Hoeflinger shares how these experiences inform the way he practices medicine: communicating with clarity, leading with empathy, and honoring the reality that it’s families who must live with the consequences of life-and-death decisions. He and his son, Kevin, open up about what it means to carry unimaginable loss, and how they've chosen to turn tragedy into a source of hope, compassion, and human connection.

You’ll hear:

• How loss reshaped their family and his career as a physician
• Why talking about death matters more than avoiding it
• The art of skillful empathy and being present without absorbing every tragedy
• Why doctors should guide, not decide, for families

Dr. Hoeflinger's words of wisdom for physicians:

"The world’s not on your shoulders…Don't expect so much of yourself."

"Spend more time away from the hospital."

Follow the Hoeflinger podcast on Apple podcasts here and on YouTube here.

Get on the Dr. Hoeflinger newsletter here.

Follow Dr. Hoeflinger on instagram here.

Join Empowered Surgeons Group here.

Check out Hippocratic Collective here.

Are you a woman surgeon interested in the Cabo retreat Jan 9-11? Click here to learn more about it. Click here if you're serious and get on my calendar for a 15 min interview.

Dr. Karuna Dewan was accepted to medical school at just 16 and knew early on she wanted to be a laryngologist. Today she is an Associate Professor of Otolaryngology, the Jonathan Glass, MD & Cherie-Ann Nathan, MD Endowed Professor in Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, and Director of the Ark-La-Tex Voice, Airway and Swallow Center at LSU Health Shreveport.

But her path was anything but straightforward. In this conversation, she opens up about the bullying, rumors, and systemic failures she endured during residency, and the long shadow of trauma, PTSD, and professional stigma that followed.

Dr. Dewan speaks candidly about:

• How residency culture can mirror high school bullying.
• The “weaponization of professionalism” and the absence of true advocacy for residents.
• Why labeling trainees as “problem residents” causes lasting harm.
• The power of mentorship, and what anti-mentors teach us.
• Concrete ways faculty can offer curiosity, specificity, and constructive feedback instead of dehumanizing criticism.

She also shares how she rebuilt her confidence, thrived in a new residency, and now fiercely supports her own residents with kindness and compassion. Her story is one of resilience, advocacy, and a vision for a future where training doesn’t come at the cost of humanity.

“I didn’t get here by magic. I earned this.” – Dr. Karuna Dewan

Follow Karuna on instagram here.

Learn more about Empowered Surgeons Group here.

Learn more about the Hippocratic-Collective here.