Be Empowered: The Podcast

This week on Be Empowered, we sit down with Dr. Ryan Williamson—board-certified neurologist, U.S. Navy veteran, and founder of Transcend Health—to talk about the science of human longevity and how to create a life of deeper meaning and impact.

In Part 1, Dr. Williamson shares his journey from military service to medicine to building a practice that empowers people to optimize health and extend lifespan. We explore:
⚓ Lessons from ser...

This week on Be Empowered, we have Part 2 of our interview with Dr. Michelle Boudreau—Board-certified Neurologist, Clinical Neurophysiologist, and founder of NeuroExpert Services, LLC—about how she built a career that blends clinical work with high-impact non-clinical roles.From leading a neurology department to becoming a telestroke innovator, performing disability file reviews, and serving as a medical expert witness, Dr. Boudrea...

This week on Be Empowered, we chat with Dr. Michelle Boudreau—Board-certified Neurologist, Clinical Neurophysiologist, and founder of NeuroExpert Services, LLC—about how she built a career that blends clinical work with high-impact non-clinical roles.

Dr. Boudreau shows how physicians can leverage their expertise beyond direct patient care.

You’ll hear:
📂 The ins and outs of disability file reviews
⚖️ What it’s like to serve a...

Healthcare doesn’t have to mean hospital shifts forever. In this episode of Be Empowered, we explore the growing world of non-clinical career paths for healthcare professionals—roles that let you use your skills, expertise, and passion outside traditional patient care.

🌟 Learn how to:

💼 Transition into new industries

🧠 Leverage your medical knowledge in innovative ways

🌍 Build a career that aligns with your lifestyle and values

🎧 S...

This week on Be Empowered, it's Part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Susan Flyer —board-certified anesthesiologist, locums physician, and outspoken healthcare advocate—to explore her remarkable journey from Licensed Practical Nurse to Registered Nurse to MD.

With a career that spans the bedside, the operating room, and now the national conversation on healthcare policy, Dr. Flyer shares:

🏥 How her early nursing experience shaped ...

This week on Be Empowered, we sit down with Dr. Susan Flyer—board-certified anesthesiologist, locums physician, and outspoken healthcare advocate—to explore her remarkable journey from Licensed Practical Nurse to Registered Nurse to MD. With a career that spans the bedside, the operating room, and now the national conversation on healthcare policy, Dr. Flyer shares:

🏥 How her early nursing experience shaped her perspective as a phy...

What happens when you realize the traditional healthcare path isn’t serving your purpose—or your well-being?

In this episode, we sit down with Mariam Ali, PA-C, founder and director of Zen Aesthetics Med Spa, who courageously left clinical medicine to build something of her own. With elite training from Allergan and MERZ, Mariam fuses medical expertise with an artistic vision to offer subtle, empowering aesthetic care—all while recl...

What happens when you realize the traditional healthcare path isn’t serving your purpose—or your well-being?

In this episode, we sit down with Mariam Ali, PA-C, founder and director of Zen Aesthetics Med Spa, who courageously left clinical medicine to build something of her own. With elite training from Allergan and MERZ, Mariam fuses medical expertise with an artistic vision to offer subtle, empowering aesthetic care—all while recl...

We’ve talked about the tensions—now it’s time to hear from the other side.

In this episode, we sit down with Nurse Practitioner Simran Grewal to explore:
🧠 What training and preparation looks like for APPs
💬 Her take on the MD/APP divide—and how we got here
🤝 Why respectful collaboration matters more than ever
🧭 The challenges, misconceptions, and hopes for the future

💬 What does it really mean to center patients whi...

In Part 2, we go deeper into the impact on patients, physicians, and the future of healthcare.

🔍 The blurring of titles and transparency issues
🩺 Patient safety, supervision, and accountability
🤝 What true collaboration could look like
🗣️ Why this conversation is emotional—and necessary

💬 Is there a way to protect both professional standards and access to care?

These two episodes are honest, nuanced, and rooted in our shared goal: s...

The growing presence of Advanced Practice Providers (NPs, PAs, CRNAs) has changed how care is delivered—but it didn’t happen overnight.

In Part 1, we explore:
📈 The rise of APPs in the U.S. healthcare system
💼 Corporate interests and cost-saving strategies driving change
🧠 Differences in education, training, and scope of practice
🔥 Why physicians are speaking out—and often being silenced

💬 How did we go from team-based care to a sys...

In part two, Dr. Javidi dives into how she built Rebel & Thrive, her Direct Primary Care (DPC) practice rooted in values, time, and trust.

💡 What Direct Primary Care really looks like
🔑 How autonomy and alignment changed everything
🌱 Healing both patients and physicians—on her own terms

💬 Can leaving the system be the path to truly healing it?

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @empowermedlife
🌍 Visit: empowermedlife.com
📧 Share your st...

What happens when practicing medicine no longer feels like healing?

In part one of our conversation with Dr. Leila Javidi (@drleilaissad), she shares:
⚠️ Why she left a broken system behind
🧠 The emotional toll of practicing in high-volume, low-agency environments
🔥 The moment she realized she had to choose herself to keep going

💬 What does it take to walk away—and create something better?

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @empowermedlife
🌍 ...

Primary care is vanishing—and it’s not hard to see why.

🔥 Unmanageable burnout and bureaucracy
💸 Declining reimbursements from insurance companies
⛔ Less time, more patients, and less autonomy
🔁 Constant referrals instead of practicing at the top of their license

💬 Why are the doctors we need most being pushed out of the system?

This episode dives into the growing crisis in primary care—from broken payment models to erode...

🎙️ This week on Be Empowered, we continue our conversation with Dr. Camille White—physician, speaker, and founder of Inspire2Evolve—to talk about what it really means to break free from toxic healthcare culture and redefine success on your own terms.

🌿 Holistic healing after burnout
💼 Building a purpose-driven career outside the box
🔥 Why authenticity is the ultimate power move

💬 Dr. White’s story is a reminder that walking away f...

What happens when a physician says no to burnout and yes to reinvention?

🎙️ This week on Be Empowered, we sit down with Dr. Camille White—physician, speaker, and founder of Inspire2Evolve—to talk about what it really means to break free from toxic healthcare culture and redefine success on your own terms.

🌿 Holistic healing after burnout
💼 Building a purpose-driven career outside the box
🔥 Why authenticity is the ultimate p...

We’ve spent the last few episodes breaking down the toxicity in medicine—now let’s talk about solutions.

💡 How can we fix this system?
🔧 What can individual doctors do?
🚀 Where do we go from here?

We’re discussing real strategies for fighting back—individually and collectively—to reclaim our profession and well-being.

💬 Change is possible—but only if we demand it.

📲 Follow us on Instagram: @empowermedlife
🌍 Visit our website: empowe...

You made it. You’re an attending. But the toxicity? It didn’t stay behind in training—it just changed forms.

📉 Lack of autonomy and support
💸 Productivity over patient care
🧱 Isolation, burnout, and invisible barriers

💬 What happens when your dream job feels like a trap?

We’re unpacking the harsh realities of life as an attending physician—and why many are choosing to leave medicine altogether.

💡 Becoming an attending shouldn't mean...

Residency and fellowship are supposed to be about growth and learning—but too often, they’re environments of exploitation.

⏱ 80+ hour weeks with little support
🚩 Harassment, bullying, and silence
💀 Emotional exhaustion and moral injury

💬 Why are we still normalizing trauma as a “rite of passage” in training?

In this episode, we dive deep into the toxic realities of medical training—and how many never make it out the other side.

💡 Tra...