Doctors Recover Too!

Doctors get sick & recover Physician heals others as he heals himself It’s hard to ask for help when you’re the doctor, but being a doctor doesn’t mean you’re immune to mental illness and addiction. The story of a Warkworth physician illustrates this fact. But the ‘Courage To Come Back Award’ Michael Kaufmann recently received from the Canadian Association of Mental Health also shows that his story offers hope. Dr. Kaufmann’s predisposition and stress of daily life provoked a rapid escalation into addiction. After receiving his medical degree and opening up his own practice in his small town, his consumption of prescription drugs turned into an extreme addiction to opiates and other mood-altering substances. He thought he had betrayed his patients and colleagues, and began to neglect his marriage, patients, and himself. He even contemplated suicide. With the loss of respect from his peers, a damaged reputation and the constant fear of losing his licence to practice medicine, Dr. Kaufmann was trapped by his despair. He felt unable to trust anyone, including his wife, who had become fearful and isolated from him. His addiction to drugs had become so consuming that his colleagues had to intervene, and in 1986 he was admitted to the former Donwood Institute, now CAMH’s Brentcliffe site. It was difficult for Dr. Kaufmann to accept his diagnosis. As a physician, he was trained to be self-sufficient, so he believed he could help himself. Nonetheless, he learned...
Source: Recovery Is Sexy.com - Category: Addiction Authors: Tags: 12 Step Fellowships Addictions Drugs Family Psychological Illness Relationships Sobriety Treatment mental illness Physician stress suicide Source Type: blogs