Your Family Physician

The private lives of doctors are surprisingly diverse. When not in their white coats, physicians may be found jamming with fellow musicians, flying airplanes, racing vintage cars, climbing trees, scuba diving to sunken ships, and singing on the Internet. In Medscape's Physician Connect (MPC), a physician-only discussion group, doctors reveal what they do in their free time to balance their professional lives.

"Specialist physician by day, jazz musician by night," boasts a pain management doctor. "I have a passion for saxophones, clarinets, and making music with others who have the same passion for the jazz form. I practice daily, rehearse regularly, and play gigs often." And he's not alone. Jazz hits the sweet note for a family medicine physician, who plays double bass, contrabass, and bull fiddle. "I can't tell you what a blessing and a stress reliever it has been. I work as a sideman (that is, independent contractor) and also get my own gigs where I can put together my own bands. I tell my patients and friends that it's my therapy as a way to get laughs. But it truly is my therapy, and I love it!"

Another MPC contributor plays the piano, finding refuge in the baroque works of Johann Sebastian Bach. "Bach's compositions are so precise in their musicality that there's really no room for your own interpretation of the pieces. You have to concentrate completely on what you're playing. What you eventually hear is the most extraordinarily beautiful music."

As popular as music is, physicians can be found in all the arts. An Ear, Nose and Throat physician spends weekends sculpting stone. A surgeon performs as a professional dancer. A general practitioner, under the name of Linda Reid, writes medical thrillers with a fellow physician. And an internist holds a degree in Japanese tea ceremony and has performed kabuki theater in Japan.

As might be expected, many physicians engage in a variety of physical activities, including hiking, running, kayaking, weight lifting, endurance sports, and swimming. A family medicine physician plays doubles tennis 4 to 5 times a week, often starting her morning clinics still wearing her tennis skirt. "At least the patients know that I practice what I preach," she says. A 61-year-old physician comments, "I continue to surf, encouraged by a friend who's 75 and tackles good-sized waves here in California." A pulmonologist living in New Hampshire runs, bikes, swims, cross country skis, and paddleboards. "Running clears my mind and body," says an orthopaedic surgeon, who finds training for marathons a spiritual experience. "My favorite hobby is scuba diving," comments another MPC contributor. "I took my son to Micronesia to dive the wrecks of the Japanese navy of World War II."

A 66-year-old obstetrician/gynecologist lives for baseball. Although an all-city high school baseball player in Brooklyn, he chose to go into medicine rather than play professional ball, but he had a second chance at being a "Brooklyn bum" in 1983 when he answered an advertisement in his local Florida newspaper inviting him to be a Dodger for a week. "Showing [my] baseball skills in front of my heroes was one thing, but the surprise was smelling the grass and dirt and feeling the sun beat down on my hat. The idle chatter in the dugout was another elixir." And being voted Most Valuable Player by the likes of Duke Snider, Sandy Koufax, and Pee Wee Reese was not so bad either. The experience opened up a new chapter in his baseball career. "I became instrumental in starting adult baseball leagues in Orlando, Florida, and I led teams to two Roy Hobbs World Series championships until my knees finally gave out three years ago." Now, he plays golf and watches highlights of the World Series games he missed in elementary school. Another MPC contributor agrees, "golf and baseball for this 67-year-old." He says he plays in a 55+ league and his team won the Senior World Series in Arizona in 2007 and in Florida in 2008.

Although artistic and athletic are apt descriptors for many physicians, others are best described as nonconformist. One family medicine physician favors recreational tree climbing. On weekends he seeks out Oregon white oaks, ponderosa pines, and Douglas firs that tower upwards of 75 feet tall and scales them with ropes and harness. When tired, he rigs a tree boat, something like a hammock, and takes in a bird's-eye view of the Oregon countryside. Another family medicine physician sings on the Internet. "I use a Website called SingSnap, which has thousands of backing tracks and allows duets with other members."

For a few physicians, flying, whether on roads or in the skies, is what revs their engines. "Aviating in little airplanes does it for me," says a gastroenterologist who is relearning instrument flying to fly in the clouds. A general surgeon regularly drives in Honda Challenge road races and performance rallies. A psychiatrist, who races a 1960 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite, says, "You pretty much forget about work when you're approaching a decreasing radius turn at 100+ miles an hour." A psychiatrist adds, "Tinkering with my Vespa GT 200 scooter and winding it up to 60 mph on isolated country roads is the best fun ever."

Many physicians spend time in barns, kennels, and the back 40. A cardiologist rides and keeps horses on her property. "Their care, feeding, and cleaning is not only my biggest stress reliever, it's bloody good exercise." Another MPC contributor breeds, trains, and shows German shepherd dogs and has donated puppies to Second Sight, Pilot Dogs for the Blind, and local police departments. A general surgeon proclaims, "Gardening! I love to get my hands dirty." One MPC contributor says an April blizzard marked the start of planting season. "Thanks to the moisture this weekend, I got to rototill my garden. The shoulders were sore but the spirit was lifted." The horse-riding cardiologist comments, "The gardening done here is sort of an afterthought. I have to find something to do with the horse manure."

View this and other discussions in Physician Connect (physicians only; click here to learn more).