The devasting cost of silence in medical practice
Over lunch we talked about cycling. A week later, he was gone. Physicians have some of the highest suicide rates of any profession, yet silence is still called “professionalism.” This culture is killing us. It’s time we tell the truth — and break the silence.
Over lunch we spoke about cycling together - he wanted me to help him get started. He was like a big brother to me - a thoracic surgeon - and a leader.
A week later he was gone.
The culture is killing us — and we don't talk about it.
⚠️ Months ago, I shared a post on LinkedIn about losing the thing I thought I was born to do.
It went viral — over 100,000 people saw it. But that number isn’t what stayed with me.
What stayed were the comments and private messages—hundreds of them.
Doctors. Nurses. Residents. Patients. Veterans. CEOs. Artists.
People from every walk of life who wrote, “This is my story too.”And many of them ended with some version of: “I never told anyone this before.”
That silence is deadly. We talk a lot about physician burnout. But we don’t talk enough about what it becomes when left untreated — depression, substance use, suicide, and the slow unravelling of self beneath a mask of excellence.
💔 Here are the facts:
‼️ Suicide rates are 1.5–2.5x higher for physicians than the general population.
‼️ Male physicians are more likely to die by suicide than men in any other profession.
‼️ Female physicians are more than twice as likely to die by suicide than women in the general population.
‼️ Surgeons have some of the highest known rates of suicide among physicians.
‼️ 1 in 10 doctors reports having had suicidal thoughts — and those are just the ones who speak up.
And across the board, doctors are less likely to seek help — because of stigma, licensing fears, and a culture that equates vulnerability with weakness.
We have built a system of suffering in silence. And we call it professionalism. But this is not professionalism. This is a culture of self-erasure — where being “good” means disappearing into your role until nothing is left.
I miss my friend. He was always vocal about system change in healthcare – he would speak up in meetings when no one else did. But he didn’t speak up for himself.
Could we talk about this? We need to change this. And it starts by breaking the silence.
If you’re in medicine and suffering quietly — please know you are not alone. Your pain matters. Your story matters. And your life is worth more than your title.
Let’s start telling the truth. Let’s build a culture where asking for help isn’t weakness — it’s leadership.
💬 If you’ve experienced this — as a doctor, a patient, or a person — I’d be honored to hear your story. Let's hear from the person behind the mask.
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