Stigma, Burnout, and the Hidden Mental Health Crisis: When Doctors Get Depressed

If doctors and psychologists are trained to care for others, why are so many struggling with depression and burnout themselves?

In this important episode, hosts Terry and Dr. Anita Sanchez reflect on the stigma surrounding mental illness in medicine, and share the story of Dr. Michael Weinstein, a trauma surgeon who wrote about his experience with depression in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Despite outward success, Dr. Weinstein endured profound depression and feelings of failure. He highlights how medical training environments fuel burnout and mental health crises—long hours, lack of sleep, constant pressure, and a culture that stigmatizes asking for help.

Dr. Anita also shares her own story of burnout during graduate school, where 80–100 hour work weeks and a “hazing” culture pushed students to their breaking point—ironically while being trained to promote wellness in others.

This candid episode pulls back the curtain on how the medical system’s culture of silence and stigma harms both providers and patients—and why a revolution in medical education and training is urgently needed.

Primary Topics Covered:

• Why stigma prevents doctors from seeking mental health treatment
• Dr. Michael Weinstein’s story of depression and burnout as a surgeon
• The gap between medical education and real mental health needs
• How medical training environments worsen depression and anxiety
• The lack of compassion doctors extend to themselves compared to patients
• Dr. Anita’s personal burnout story during psychology graduate school
• Why exhaustion and hazing models persist in medicine and psychology
• The urgent need for systemic change in how we train healthcare providers
• The importance of self-compassion and mindfulness for caregivers

Timestamps

00:11 Welcome and introduction
 01:09 Stigma in medicine and doctors’ reluctance to seek help
 02:28 Introducing Dr. Michael Weinstein, trauma surgeon living with depression
 03:21 Outward success vs. internal suffering
 04:29 The failures of medical education in preparing doctors for mental health realities
 05:23 How depression rates rise sharply during medical training
 05:56 The need for self-compassion and mindfulness in medicine
 07:21 Why doctors struggle to ask for or accept help
 10:11 The culture of avoidance in medicine and lack of peer support
 12:09 Focusing this episode on Weinstein’s medical perspective
 12:34 Dr. Anita recalls her own graduate school burnout
 13:37 The disconnect between training and promoting wellness
 15:26 The unhealthy, unsustainable model of medical training
 17:33 Why hazing-style training damages mental health long-term
 18:02 The urgent need for systemic change in medical and psychology training
 19:06 Closing reflections and preview of Dr. Weinstein’s personal story in the next episode

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