December 31, 2025

by Dr. Plastic Picker

It’s Christmas Eve Day and I’m working just the morning shift, and then I have our Educational Time. I think this is the first holiday season I haven’t felt resentful because we all have to cover, mostly because our two kids are almost grown and life is more peaceful now. I’m grateful for every day in clinic, and to get to be kids’ pediatrician hopefully for a lot of them their entire childhood. It’s a powerful statement, that I don’t think I fully realized when I joined our HMO. Now that I’m toward the latter half of my career, I realize how rare that experience is. My patients are lucky, but honestly I’m the luckiest. I get to be part of their lives in very specific ways and to help guide them to a healthier future.

I mentor a lot of young adults, as they are trying to find out what their profession is. And I think as one is choosing your life’s work, it’s important to remember that what you choose to do and who you choose to do it with – will fundamentally change you. Getting into medical school is certainly hard, but the practice of medicine itself can be transformative. It can make you a better person and a better listener. It demands so much and certainly can burn you out (cue the increased rates of physician suicide and burn out), but at it’s core devoting your life to healing and protecting children makes pediatricians better human beings.

I’m not sure why I’m thinking these thoughts this morning? It feels really good to be back on the blog! Oh, mostly I wanted to let the internet know and some of my extended family know that I’m sorry if there are people in your life, or at your school or at your work that ever bullied you or made you feel yucky. As someone who has gone through bullying in multiple places, it doesn’t feel good and it stays with you. But please tell your pediatricians, your parents and other people you trust. It’s important to share the burden and bullies isolate their victims. But staying connected and speaking up, will defuse and 100% help the situation. There is no reason any child should be bullied in this age.

And Dr. Plastic Picker made some Styrofoam people to fight off the bullies!!!