Steadiness in Unsteady Times: A Practical Tool for Physicians

We are currently living and practicing medicine in a moment that feels unusually unsteady.

The ground feels less solid—scientifically, politically, socially.

And for many physicians, this instability isn’t abstract.

It touches on safety, identity, belonging, and the heavy responsibility of showing up to care for others while feeling exposed.

It’s hard to do your job when the ground beneath you feels uncertain.

Of course, you’re feeling more guarded, more exhausted, or less resourced than usual.

Many of you use What would love do in personal life, relationships, the ER, in the clinic—when the right next step wasn’t obvious.

It also works in our current context.

In moments like these What would love do? is even more helpful.

It doesn’t ask you to rise above what’s happening or pretend it isn’t affecting you. It helps you stay oriented when fear—personal or collective—starts to narrow your field of vision.

Right now, love often looks very practical.

It might look like choosing language that protects rather than escalates. It might look like staying grounded in science while also acknowledging the fear or mistrust in the room—without taking it on as your job to fix. It might look like naming limits, especially when you’re being asked to carry more than is reasonable or safe.

For some, love shows up as firmer boundaries—around news consumption, around conversations that feel threatening or dehumanizing, around how much emotional labor you can offer in a single day.

For others, it looks like slowing down.

When science is questioned, when identities feel politicized, when we feel vulnerable, it’s easy to slip into defensiveness or urgency. This question offers another stance: steadiness.

It brings you back to what you can control—how you show up, how you speak, where you draw lines, and how you care for yourself while continuing to care for others.

In a broader environment that feels unstable or unsafe, this question creates space. Space to respond rather than react. Space to stay aligned with your values.

And sometimes, that steadiness is enough.