Back to daily life. After a holiday spent nursing my sick child, I’m back in the clinic.

Dragging my heavy body to work, I try to push through the reluctance by speaking gratitude into existence: “I am grateful that my family is healthy and that I have a place to work hard.” With this small boost of energy, I hop in the shower.

But the motivation was short-lived. In the parking lot, I found the car next to mine parked so close that I couldn’t even open the driver’s side door. My first trial of the day. A surge of irritation at the lack of consideration bubbled up, but I managed to climb in through the passenger side and started the engine.

Upon arriving at the clinic, I was greeted by a waiting list of about 20 patients—a queue that didn’t seem to shrink no matter how many I saw. After dealing with a patient demanding a medical certificate for a non-existent diagnosis, my body felt as heavy as a water-logged towel.

In moments like these, before the steam starts rising, it’s best to fill the stomach first. A tip I often give to patients struggling with addiction to avoid momentary temptation is “HALT.” It stands for:

• Hungry
• Angry
• Lonely
• Tired

Be wary of these four states. Writing it down now, it feels like a tall order… anyway, step one is lunch, followed by a 5-minute walk or 5-minute meditation. Hang in there today, everyone!

[Recommended Tip: Finding Stillness in the Chaos]

When life feels like a “water-logged towel,” I personally turn to Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). His teachings remind us that mindfulness isn’t about clearing the mind, but about “paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.”

After a hectic morning shift, even a 5-minute MBSR practice can reset your nervous system.

• The Check-In: Stop and notice the sensations in your body without trying to change them.
• The Breath: Return to the anchor of your breath when the frustration of the day pulls you away.

As Kabat-Zinn says, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” Even amidst demanding patients and “no-driver-side-access” parking jobs, we can choose how we ride the waves