After retiring from practicing pediatrics in 2015, I began to answer questions on the Quora.com
website on a variety of topics, sometimes related to medicine, but more often related to experiences that I had while traveling. Meanwhile, I had joined a local Spanish conversation group where we were assigned to write short stories in Spanish to share with the group.
At that point I realized that I enjoyed telling stories. When the Pandemic began in 2020, a whole new audience was suddenly stuck indoors glued to their computers, and who were hungry for meaningful written content. My blog, “Sincerely, Dr. Dan,” (SincerelyDrDan.com), was born partly as a language-learning tool, but primarily as an outlet for my creative juices.
Over the years, one of the major reasons why I loved being a pediatrician for almost 40 years was that I met so many people spanning several generations who shared their stories with me. Speaking several languages brought me in contact with a wider array of patients and their families from all over the world.
Many times, I would receive invitations to visit some of my patients and their extended families in their home countries. While other people would appreciate these offers, my response was often, “OK…when?” Our trips to Asia, Africa, Europe and South America became even more memorable and personalized.
When people ask me if I miss practicing medicine, I tell them that as a pediatrician, I felt more like a social worker with a medical degree. I look back fondly on my career and recognize that it wasn’t so much the solving of medical problems that made me happy; it was more getting to know the extended families through their children that fascinated me. This has provided me with many warm memories (and an abundance of material for stories!).
But yes, I do miss holding the babies and watching them develop, and especially watching their parents’ amazement as they grow into little people.
In addition to new stories here, I will be sharing with Substack readers many of my favorite stories from my Sincerely, Dr. Dan blog. I hope that you will enjoy them by subscribing (for free) and I invite you to share them with your Substack friends.
