1- Back to work launch = ✅. Yesterday went better than Tuesday. Was it perfect? No. I feel my frustration tolerance is . . . low. I also struggle noticing palpitations at times during the work day and feeling anxious about them (cannot decide if I have had these for years and was ignoring them, or if they are new).
That said, when I’m the right level of busy it feels good. I am focused on the patients (and my notes, orders, details) rather than my own stuff and that is definitely a positive.
Today I have a mostly full day (about ~75% of normal patient volume) and I am almost entirely caught up on past results.
2- I finished with my heart monitor! That’s kind of exciting! Let’s hope all the data got saved. I will not miss that sitting on my chest. It wasn’t terrible or anything but I was sliiiiightly allergic to the tape so there was some itching. I am really eager to get those results (and genetics results, which are taking forever . . .). It will be a few weeks though. I feel like the information will put my mind at ease and/or be a good guide in terms of whether I need any kind of medication. One day at a time.
As noted previously, I have always ALWAYS sucked at waiting. Not like waiting in line, but the sort where you are “waiting to find out XYZ”. I am the kind of person who will hit “refresh” on a pending results 57 times because I just have trouble thinking about anything else. I recognize this as a personal flaw and am trying to work on it by staying present. I guess if nothing else this is good practice.
3- I HAVE INVISALIGN. Actually I have “3M Clarity Aligners”, but same basic idea. Readers will remember I set this as a 2025 goal, and I put my plans into action in January. Little did I know how much drama 2025 had in store, but it is what it is.
I almost told the orthodontist to hold off, but then kind of thought about it and figured . . . why not? There was no real reason not to do it. My motivation was mostly to fix my bottom teeth; my top teeth still look fine (to me, anyway!) but I stopped wearing my retainer in the early ’00s and clearly everything on my lower jaw just wanted to move back, and I didn’t love it.
I had them put on Monday. By Monday evening I was worried I had made a terrible mistake (inviting more pain at a time like this!?) but a mere 4 days later they really don’t bother me much. I also don’t have too much of a lisp (common issue where you can’t pronounce S well because of the plastic behind your front teeth) BUT I still think I will need to remove them for podcasting.
Trayminder app = my new Strava. Lol.
You do have to take them out to eat and brush after eating. On the downside, I apparently have the Long Game version because I have 43 sets of trays (2 weeks each, though orthodontist says may accelerate me to 10 days at some point). The app cheerfully notes I have 598 days left. Haha.
4- This book fits my vibe right now. Sarah sent it to me (she is the best) and I had it on my TBR list for a while now. It’s dark and sad and sometimes when I’m in a mood it helps to read things that match I guess. I have been having trouble focusing on much of anything but this has sucked me in nicely.
5- I think I might be ready to try some yoga. I need . . . something (it just has to be gentle, not strenuous, not cardio but really just not too much exertion of any type for right now at least until I get more clarity from Hopkins). I am craving this for mental reasons, not really physical (though . . . are these things really separate?).
I did book a Club Pilates trial (but not for a couple of weeks, could not get the dates to work for the intro session). If you have a favorite YouTube yoga session or series please let me know; I also have a Peloton sub still (might cancel but thought I could still use for yoga / mat pilates / light strength) so recs there welcome, too.
36 Comments
You could not have picked a better book than Margo for right now. It’s weird in a good way, sad, and funny.
Here is to the right level of busy <3
Yoga Ranger (Aprille Walker) on youtube is the best for restorative yoga, and might be a good place to start – but I do use Peloton yoga just for everyday bites of yoga – favorites there are Aditi, Anna, Dennis – look for ones labeled “floor poses” if you want to avoid the flow at the beginning that is intended to get your heart rate up (just a bit). Peloton does have restorative and yin yoga also but somehow it’s not as good IMO.
Thank you! Had not heard of Yoga Ranger! Making a list . . .
Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube is the best. You can search for all types of yoga sessions for different needs. There is a free version which has everything you need but you can also get the subscription version if you want even more.
Tbh, when I was pregnant with my first I couldn’t run, which had been my go-to grief management tool (I had 2 miscarriages in the previous year, and then my mom died). Yoga was an incredible solace to me. Peloton has a ton of options for yoga and pilates — I encourage you to check it out. Thinking of you.
Aditi would be my rec for a Peloton yoga instructor to try!
I started yoga with Kristin McGee 10+ years ago when she had a yoga DVD with Bethany Frankel as the celeb student, lol. It was a great flow and I love that KM’s on the Peloton platform. My second fave is Anna Greenberg. I have my reasons for not liking the others as much, but my lesser faves can be others #1s.
On the internet, I love Tim Senesi. Yoga with Tim/Conscious movement community. My husband thinks I only like him because he’s hot but seriously, he’s a really, really good instructor!
I’m so impressed that you’re almost caught up on your patient results already, and thanks for the book rec. I think that’s something I would enjoy as well. I’m pretty picky about my yoga and while I’m not doing a lot of it right now I’ve always been really impressed with the peloton yoga. I don’t have a specific instructor but any of the ones I’ve tried have been good.
Sounds like things are moving along! Yes, it will be nice to get the results from the heart monitor and the genetic testing. A few weeks does seem like a long time to wait… but not really, in the bigger picture. The time will pass!
Everyone loves that book- it’s on my TBR.
I always like Dennis’s yoga classes on Peloton. Sadly, I haven’t been doing yoga for a while now because it was REALLY bothering my wrists, and I need my wrists for work. I miss it though (I used to envy you because you were such a fast runner- soon I’ll be envying you for being able to do yoga… it’s always something.)
Glad you are getting used to the invisalign! People do say it hurts in the beginning, but then you get used to it. For the record, I thought you top teeth looked just fine when I saw you, and I couldn’t see your bottom teeth. I can see how it would bother you though.
Oh Margo is such a great book! I love the writing and I love thinking about content creation as art.
My kid has Invisalign and it hurts each time she levels up to a new tray, but usually just for a day.
Your description of waiting is exactly how I am, too. It’s so hard to distract myself when I have this big Thing hanging over my head. I hope that you are able to find ways to keep your mind occupied until the results come back — and that they arrive more quickly than anticipated!
I hope you can find a great yoga studio. I did lots of yoga back in my pre-kids/pre-marriage days as I lived 3 blocks from a core power yoga studio. I also did a lot of barre which would be another great option to try as your heart rate stays low during it.
Is there anyone you can message about the palpitations just to get some assurance that it’s normal/not concerning? I hate to bother my physician but I will send a note if something is really bothering me versus waiting until my next appt. I am terrible at waiting, too. And genetic tests take SO LONG to come back. I had to get genetic testing done when I had my blood clot during pregnancy and I think it took a month+ to find out I had the prothrombic gene mutation. Knowing that didn’t impact my course of treatment, but it was nice to have an explanation for why I got the ginormous blood clot.
I loved that book – great choice by Sarah!!!
On Peloton, I really like Kristin for Pilates and Ross for yoga – both have sadly left Peloton but their back catalog is huge.
I will admit I’m burned out on Yoga with Adriene now, but she is a great place to start. I’ve been using Charlie Follows lately. I can’t decide whether I love her voice and pacing or if it grates on my nerves, but it is my recent go-to.
I like bohol beautiful and the glow method for yoga. I always feel better after yoga, regardless the kind, but find it hard to do it.
I would be running to ER every time o feel something is odd because I get paranoid and anxious about physical symptoms, always thinking the worst, and the ER trip helps to calm my nervous. Finger crossed you get the results that are convincing for a clear treatment path.
On peloton I love kirra michel for yoga and Rebecca Kennedy has some good Pilates content. McGee is also good
In sum, Dr. Sarah Hart-Unger, your back to work launch went very much as planned, you reached your heart-monitor-completion milestone, you finished the 2025 goal that is Invisalign, you found a book that sucked you in nicely, and you’ll trying some Yoga for your 10-hour-a-week habit.
The YouTube yoga series that I viewed the most is Deeply Moving with Elena Cheung. I’ll place its URL below. What happened with Peloton, though, is that I’ve never heard of it until you mentioned it today, Dr. Sarah Hart-Unger.
I LOVED Margo’s Got Money Troubles – I am so glad you are reading it and liking it. I wrote a whole newsletter on pairing it with this one wrestling documentary on Netflix! https://beckontech.substack.com/p/two-unexpectedly-perfect-picks
Also enjoyed Margo, prob heard about it on (WI) Sarah’s blog – so many topics I do not regularly read books about but enjoyed the characters. And I’ll now go read Molly’s blog on it!
I loved the characters too 🙂
I use the free app Nike Training Club for all my workouts except walking. I love the yin yoga long stretching workouts always helps loosen up my body get mindfully focused a takes away my neck and shoulder pain. Check out Restorative Yin Yoga on the Nike Training Club app https://ntc-go.nike.com/c/9bbc37a9 I love any Verona gozo workouts and like there are progressive programs.
Betina gozo*
I’m 6 months into Invisalign and really day 2 is the worst- after that it’s not bad at all. Just kind of a pain to constantly brush and floss haha. I love the yoga videos on Peleton app. Aditi is my favorite instructor, she has some great music that go with her classes too. I’m not sure if it would be considered gentle though but I bet she has some slow flow classes if you look through.
Yoga with Kassandra
Yoga with Uliana
Sharing my two workout app staples – Downdog Yoga and B the Method. Both have sustained (and continue to energize) me since March 2020.
https://www.downdogapp.com/
https://bthemethod.com/pages/workouts
Highly recommend Pvolve which is like a cross between Pilates and Barre with lots of yoga elements! Their streaming membership is super affordable and they offer classes on Zoom as part of it – they are super motivating! They have a class type called “Sculpt and Mobility” that might fit what you are looking for.
I like Aditi Shah on peloton for yoga, though she does a lot of single nostril breathing, which for me is a NO. I also like Kira Michele. Careful though – yoga is hard. I sometimes get my HR into the 130s, which you may want to avoid. Restorative and yin may be good places to start.
Forgot to say, the down dog app is cheap and extremely customizable if you don’t need a live person saying inspirational things to you throughout class. Intermediate level *kicks my butt* so maybe start short (10 min?) and with beginner or advanced beginner while you’re first easing into things.
It was great meeting you today please stay in touch!!!
I’m actually a 500 hour yoga instructor if you want some help or guidance there let me know
You’re so so so amazing 💌✨ Ry
awww thank you Rylin!!! do you you teach anywhere locally? That’s super cool!!
Yogini Melbourne on YouTube! For me Paula has the BEST soothing voice (bonus Australian anccent) and so many gentle options – best of luck finding something that fits!
I love Hannah Corbin’s barre classes on peloton. Her 10 min class from 6/9/21 is a cult classic.
Ooh love the specificity here!!
Hi!! I find that filtering the barre classes on peloton into a segment length helps sort them into body parts, so you can sort of tell if you’ll get your heart rate up. I also have liked the low impact cardio-it’s very easy to modify and feels sort of jazzercise-y. I have done this while watching continuing Ed courses. Brit’s Barre is great (7 day free trial) but you have to ignore her cues on reps or you will definitely elevate your heart rate.
I like Jess yoga and yoginimelbourne’s yoga YouTube channels because of their manner and unintrusive (or no) music. I like tana yoga for when I want to really challenge myself. Good luck!
I loved that book so much! That author is a treasure.
I like the yoga workouts on Apple Fitness.