The stresses on medical residents are well known — long hours and impending debt, to name just one or two. But another issue that you don't hear about as often weighs on the minds of many residents and younger physicians: how to be a parent and a successful physician.
"A big concern among female medical students and residents is how to make it all fit," says Dr. Christine A. Carman Stiles, a board-certified plastic surgeon in the Dallas area. "They worry that their practice might fall apart if they start a family. When you're going through training, pregnancy is usually seen as negative, as a problem you have to solve."
A positive turning point
But for Dr. Stiles, having her daughter Madison Ann in 2008 provided a very different turning point, one that not only enriched her patient relationships, but refreshed her practice.
Dr. Stiles' solo practice, The Center for Breast and Body Contouring in Frisco, has always performed breast augmentation and abdominoplasty surgeries. But after having a baby and experiencing physical changes herself, Dr. Stiles developed an entirely different connection with her patients.
"Patients in their 30s who've had children are very different from those in their 20s. I have a whole new understanding of what they're going through," she says. "Being a mother means I can better relate to women's struggles with body image — things they just can't teach in medical school."
The transition to motherhood helped Dr. Stiles grow her practice to focus more on customized "Mommy Makeovers." She also found that she was able to make better product recommendations and offer more proactive care. For example, her standard post-surgery advice of "don't lift more than five pounds for six weeks" had new meaning once she had her own baby at home to care for. She now has a greater appreciation of her patients' needs and can help them to plan ahead better. Her patients are reminded and reassured of her real-life experience and caring touch every time Madison is in the office.
More focus — and more flexibility
The change helped Dr. Stiles focus her practice on mothers and children. This was a perfect fit with her training as both a pediatrician and plastic surgeon. This also grew the pediatric plastic surgery portion of her practice, called Plastiks for Kids. In addition to buying ad space in fashion or style periodicals, Dr. Stiles expanded her practice's advertising to include publications like Dallas Baby and The Bump — even placing herself and Madison in the ads. She's also reaching out to local OB/GYNs to ensure that women having tubal ligation or hysterectomies are aware of the options her office provides to help them look and feel better.
But, she explains that it does require a certain degree of flexibility and adaptability.
"Physicians have been planning their careers for many years — college, medical school, practice, marriage. You need to be organized and driven to get through it," Dr. Stiles says. "But babies don't follow a structured plan, so female physicians need to be extra malleable and resourceful. But it’s possible to make it work, especially once you're established. Just keep your goals in mind."
Madison visits the office for lunch on Thursdays, brightening the day for staff and patients and getting to spend a little extra time with mom. At those moments, it’s clear that Dr. Stiles has made a female physician's tough choices work in her favor.