Richard S. Weeder

Yet the denial of feelings is one way of blocking the chronic depression that can descend like a dense fog on those who deal day after day with sickness and death. It is better than not caring at all, better than burning out. Only a few are tough enough to maintain both equanimity and caring for a lifetime; these renowned nurses and legendary physicians are saints of the medical profession. Copper knew a few of them, and he wished he could be more like them. It took a lot of growing up.

Several years ago, I realized that I didn__ want to spend all my life in medicine. It had me in a sort of spiritual box, like a plant whose roots are getting crowded. I felt I wasn__ growing. So I promised myself that I would quit while I still had the energy to get involved in something new. There__ nothing wrong with medicine. There__ more paperwork, more lawsuits, less understanding between doctors and patients. But it__ still a great business. But not for me - not any longer.