Hey Doc,
When you become a mom, everything changes— your body, your schedule, your sense of who you are. And when you’re a physician mom, that collides with a career that isn’t built for flexibility or rest.
In this conversation, Dr. Sonia Singh and I go straight into that tension — the messy middle between professional identity and motherhood. We talk about what it really looks like to become a mom in medicine, to return to work postpartum, and to rebuild your career in a way that actually fits your life.
Dr. Singh also opens up about the burnout that pushed her to make a change—and how she rebuilt her career by creating her own micropractice, designed for busy women and moms who want more control over their time and energy. It’s a conversation about honesty, courage, and redefining what success in medicine can look like.
Key takeaways:
- Breastfeeding can be deeply challenging—even when you “know” what to do.
- Returning to work postpartum can hold both relief and guilt at the same time.
- The tension between professional life and motherhood is real—and worth talking about.
- Practicing medicine on your own terms is possible when you decide your life gets to come first.
This episode is for you, Doc—the one listening and wondering if there’s another way. You can build a life that fits you—aligned with your values, your priorities, and the season you’re in right now.
Go listen now, and share it with another doc who needs proof she’s not crazy for wanting something different.
Dr. Sonia Singh is a board-certified internist, writer, practice consultant, and mom. Born and raised in Northern California, she attended medical school at UC San Diego and completed her residency at Stanford. During residency, she experienced profound burnout and nearly left clinical medicine altogether. A decade later, she’s deeply grateful she didn’t. Her career path over that time has also been her own wellness journey. Today, Dr. Singh runs a solo direct care micropractice and mentors physicians who are building similar paths. A creative at heart, she feels fortunate to practice medicine in a way that allows her creativity to thrive.
For more information about Dr. Sonia Singh, you can visit her website and Juniper Modern Primary Care, and connect with her on Instagr
What did you think of the episode, doc? Let me know!
Subscribe to ✨Stethoscopes and Strollers✨ on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode.
Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTube
Connect with me: Website | Instagram | Facebook
Join my Email list to get tips on navigating motherhood in the medical field.
If you are going through a transition -- becoming a parent, leaving a job, figuring out how manage it all, schedule a strategy coaching session and get clarity and strategic next steps for the life and career you want.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Ruthie's Table 4
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com