Girl Doc Survival Guide

Christine J Ko, MD
  • 4.8 (12)
  • Medicine
  • Updated Weekly

Young doctors are increasingly in ‘survival’ mode.    Far from flourishing, the relentless pressure of working in medicine means that ‘balance’ is harder than ever to achieve.   On the Girl Doc Survival Guide, Yale professor and dermatologist Dr Christine J Ko sits down with doctors, psychologists and mental health experts to dig into the real challenges and rewards of life in medicine.    From dealing with daily stressors and burnout to designing a career that doesn’t sacrifice your personal life, this podcast is all about giving you the tools to not just survive...    But to be present in the journey.

  1. 2d ago

    EP226: Overcoming the 'Tall Poppy' Syndrome: Dr. Kate Gfeller's Inspiring Story

    Dr. Kate Gfeller on Cochlear Implants, Music Perception, and Becoming Yourself On The Girl Doc Survival Guide, Christine interviews Dr. Kate Gfeller, PhD, Professor Emerita at the University of Iowa, about her career studying music perception, enjoyment, and rehabilitation for people with hearing loss, including NIH-funded work with cochlear implant users. Gfeller shares growing up on a rural Iowa farm amid a “tall poppy” culture of fitting in, and a pivotal moment when her father told her being like everyone else is not a life goal. She describes early mentors, scholarships, sexism in academia, and how she entered cochlear implant research by quickly preparing for an interdisciplinary opportunity and learning from surgeons and engineers. She discusses patient-centered research and offers strategies for living with hearing loss: accessible information, clinician coaching to apply it, building self-efficacy and self-advocacy with community support, and recognizing the impact of fatigue. She closes with reflections on identity, mentorship, kindness, and freedom of thought. 00:00 Meet Dr Kate Gfeller 01:52 Farm Girl Big Dreams 04:12 Tall Poppy Lessons 05:22 Path to a PhD 06:41 Breaking Into Research 08:57 Imposter Syndrome to Strength 09:58 Patient Centered Hearing Loss Insights 11:16 Three Keys to Self Advocacy 13:45 Growth Mindset and Asking for Help 14:47 Identity Kindness and Closing

    16 min

  2. Jul 1

    EP225: Transitions! Identity! Belonging!

    New Roles, Shifting Identity, and Belonging July 1 marks a common transition time for medical trainees, faculty, and others moving into new roles. Identity can shift when ending one chapter and starting another, a theme also present in Christine's middle-grade novel-in-verse, Love Language, releasing August 4th. Da Eun Yoon, the narrator of the audiobook, was featured on last week’s podcast and touched on how being bilingual and living in or visiting other countries can affect identity.  00:00 Welcome Back 00:02 New Roles July 1 00:09 Identity Shifts Ahead 00:16 Love Language Preview 00:26 Audiobook Narrator Spotlight 00:39 Support the Podcast 00:44 Holiday Sign Off

    1 min

  3. Jun 24

    EP224: Cross-Cultural Storytelling with Da Eun Yoon

    Da Eun Yoon on Names, Voice Work, and Living Between Cultures Christine interviews multilingual actor, voice artist, and audiobook narrator Da Eun Yoon, announcing her as the narrator of the middle grade novel in verse Love Language (out August 4). Da Eun shares the meaning of her Korean name and her  changing English names, describing challenges introducing “Da Eun” at Northwestern and eventually embracing it. She recounts moving to New York after graduating from Northwestern (2023), being encouraged to try voiceover, and discovering audiobook narration as a career. The conversation explores her upbringing in Korea speaking English at home, identity crises and accent work in both languages, the “shadowing” method for learning pronunciation, and feeling different across Korea and the U.S. She discusses passion as acting despite fear, her work as storyteller/translator bridging cultures, uncertainty about where to live, and how narrating Love Language resonated with her. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:07 The Story Behind Her Name 01:55 English Names and Identity 04:06 Announcing Love Language 04:37 Career Path to Audiobooks 06:34 Living Between Cultures 09:27 Relearning Korean and Shadowing 11:32 Northwestern and Family Talk 12:24 Finding Passion and Fear 14:10 Where to Live Next 15:18 Final Thoughts on Love Language 16:14 Thanks and Goodbye

    16 min

  4. Jun 17

    EP223: Navigating Normalcy: Insights with Dr. Maria Stella Bonn

    Redefining “Normal” After Traumatic Brain Injury: Dr. Maria Stella Bonn on Disability, Advocacy, and Checklists On The Girl Doc Survival Guide, Dr. Maria Stella Bonn, Associate Professor of Information Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, discusses her 2011 bicycle accident–related traumatic brain injury and her writing on disability and “normal,” including the idea that everyone’s baseline varies. She reflects on unpredictable health changes, including a breast cancer diagnosis two years after her TBI, and how recovery reshaped her views on capability and judgment. Bonn says she wishes others would assume people are okay and let actions demonstrate abilities, offering a story of walking her kindergarten-aged child to school during recovery. She emphasizes the importance of an advocate, describing how her husband ensured therapies occurred, pushed her to persist, and helped expedite replacement of her skull flap after an emergency craniectomy. She also discusses improving information handoffs in healthcare and co-parenting through simple checklists. 00:00 Meet Dr Maria Bonn 00:35 The Bike Accident 01:27 Normal Versus Disabled 03:26 Life Can Change Fast 05:05 Cancer After TBI 07:02 What Disability Means 08:37 Recovery With Her Child 09:17 Why You Need An Advocate 11:29 Medical Handoffs And Checklists 13:28 Closing Thanks

    14 min

  5. Jun 10

    EP222: A Doctor's Rhythm: Dr. Hornick's Pathway to Fulfilled Living

    Dr. Jason L. Hornick on Balancing Academic Pathology, Parenting, and Personal Passions Christine interviews Dr. Jason L. Hornick, a senior soft tissue and bone pathologist and academic leader, about balancing a demanding academic career with family and self-care. Hornick shares a personal love of cats and discusses parenting twins while managing work, emphasizing the importance of an understanding partner, being fully present at home, and separating clinical work from family time. He describes waking early to write and edit, prioritizing about seven hours of sleep, and critiques medical training culture that normalizes self-neglect and fatigue. Hornick highlights cooking and returning to rock music after a long break as key outlets that reduce burnout and model a well-rounded life for children. Professionally, he describes shifting from primary research to editing journals and textbooks and advises learning to say no to invitations to protect time and wellbeing. 00:00 Meet Dr Hornick 01:09 Cats And Family 02:01 Parenting And Academia 04:11 Early Mornings Sleep 06:00 Self Care In Medicine 07:39 Cooking As Therapy 08:37 Returning To Rock Music 10:12 Hobbies Prevent Burnout 12:31 Work Life Culture Shift 13:35 Evolving Academic Focus 16:16 Research Without Goals 17:07 Learning To Say No 18:46 Closing Thoughts Mentorship

    19 min

  6. Jun 3

    EP221: Finding Your Path: A Conversation with Dr. Anna Stagner

    Finding Your Niche in Medicine with Ophthalmic and Dermatopathologist Dr. Anna Stagner Christine interviews Dr. Anna Stagner, a Harvard Associate Professor and Massachusetts Eye and Ear director who is board certified in ophthalmology, anatomic pathology, and dermatopathology and has authored nearly 100 publications. Stagner shares her background growing up in a small town in northern Arizona and her path from ophthalmology to ocular pathology, anatomic pathology, and dermatopathology. She advises exploring interests even if unconventional, prioritizing what you enjoy over what you’re merely good at, and not fearing major training changes. For productivity, she recommends saying yes to meaningful projects, changing environments to work effectively, and using daily Post-it task lists. She discusses aligning career choices with personality, seeking helpers, her trainee-focused sign-out workday, and cautions that choosing a subspecialty makes you the destination for difficult cases in that area. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:12 Podcast Chit Chat 01:32 Small Town Origins 02:38 Finding Your Passion 04:24 Productivity Habits 07:08 Changing Paths and Self Insight 09:18 Choosing the Unconventional Route 10:38 Specialty Planning Resources 12:18 A Day in Ocular Pathology 14:14 Picking Your Niche Wisely 15:45 Wrap Up and Thanks

    16 min

  7. May 27

    EP220: Navigating Uncertainty: A Conversation with Dr. Paul Han

    Dr. Paul Han on Uncertainty in Medicine and Building Tolerance Through Adaptation In this episode of The Girl Doc Survival Guide, Christine interviews Dr. Paul Han, an NIH Senior Scientist specializing in risk communication, medical decision-making, and uncertainty in healthcare, whose career shifted from general internal medicine and palliative care to research via an NCI cancer prevention fellowship. Han shares that persistent “gray zone” questions in primary and end-of-life care, plus personal circumstances like spousal support and financial stability, enabled his mid-career leap into the unknown. He explains uncertainty as two-sided: something healthcare tries to reduce but also a necessary source of curiosity for clinicians and hope for patients, especially in serious illness. Han connects uncertainty to cognitive biases as flawed attempts to regain certainty, and reframes “uncertainty tolerance” from merely enduring anxiety to situation-specific adaptation, emphasizing virtues such as humility, flexibility, and courage; he also notes his own recent prostate cancer diagnosis. 00:00 Meet Dr Paul Han 01:31 Midcareer Leap to Research 03:58 Drawn to Gray Zones 04:40 What Enables a Big Switch 06:48 Uncertainty as Friend and Foe 11:15 Why Uncertainty Feels Scary 13:48 Biases Born From Uncertainty 15:37 Rethinking Uncertainty Tolerance 18:32 Virtues for Adaptive Care 21:15 Letting Go of Outcomes 23:22 Closing Thoughts

    24 min

  8. May 20

    EP219: From Mount Kinabalu to Pathology: Dr. Woo's Story of Curiosity and Kindness

    Dr. Sook-Bin Woo on Adventure, Mentorship, and High Standards in Oral Pathology Christine interviews Dr. Sook-Bin Woo, DMD, an expert in oral and maxillofacial pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, about her career, training, and life lessons. Woo shares a formative post–dental school adventure climbing Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia and a dangerous trip across Borneo, and describes later solo travel to Turkey. She explains pursuing oral pathology far from home and being shaped by rigorous “old school” mentorship emphasizing exacting standards and articulating what you do know, while also valuing humility when diagnoses remain uncertain. Woo advises early-career academics to collaborate with peers slightly ahead, discusses the importance of emotional and cultural intelligence in training and patient care, and reflects on challenges as a woman and immigrant, including limited maternity leave, wage disparities, and raising two children with long commutes and childcare support. She closes by urging curiosity and kindness. 00:00 Meet Dr Woo 00:52 Mount Kinabalu Adventure 03:32 Wasp Stings and Jeep Ride 05:11 Solo Travel in Turkey 05:53 Choosing Oral Pathology 06:51 Old School Training Standards 08:38 Rigor with Kindness 10:34 When You Truly Dont Know 12:28 Career Advice and Allies 13:39 Emotional Intelligence Matters 15:35 Women Immigrant Challenges 17:30 Raising Kids and Commuting 20:13 It Will Work Out 21:20 Curiosity and Kindness

    19 min
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4.8
out of 5
12 Ratings

About

Young doctors are increasingly in ‘survival’ mode.    Far from flourishing, the relentless pressure of working in medicine means that ‘balance’ is harder than ever to achieve.   On the Girl Doc Survival Guide, Yale professor and dermatologist Dr Christine J Ko sits down with doctors, psychologists and mental health experts to dig into the real challenges and rewards of life in medicine.    From dealing with daily stressors and burnout to designing a career that doesn’t sacrifice your personal life, this podcast is all about giving you the tools to not just survive...    But to be present in the journey.

Information

  • Creator
    Christine J Ko, MD
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    234
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Girl Doc Survival Guide
  • Show Website
    Girl Doc Survival Guide

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