When Your Doctor is Running Late

One pleasure that I engage in regularly is taking time simply to think and to collect my thoughts.

I don’t have a dedicated time for this pursuit; I can seize the moment at any time.  Often, I am on a walk or maybe simply driving somewhere.  I use these times to rove through recent happenings in my life and in the lives of those I care about.  Or, I might reflect – some might say ruminate – over a news item or opinion piece that I have read.  There is no agenda.  My mind simply roams and wanders stopping periodically at various unplanned destinations. 

Think of this experience as akin to entering a large bookstore (younger readers may need to google here) without a specific title in mind.  You simply start ambling through the aisles sampling various books until you find one or two that meet your fancy.  The journey, as I see it, is a central part of the adventure.  Contrast this with purchasing a specific book on Amazon.  I’ve purchased books both ways, but one of these options offers me a much richer experience. 

Most readers are aware that I am a medical practitioner. Decades ago, when patients arrived at their doctors’ offices, they would select from several out-of-date magazines that were either stacked in racks or strewn across a table.  This is where I first became aware of periodicals such as Popular Mechanics and Field & Stream, two magazines that were never required reading in my world. 

Have you Taken Time to Think Today?

Magazines are an endangered species in doctors’ offices today.  But, there’s a new kid in town.  When I enter my exam room to greet a patient, almost invariably the patient is transfixed to their phone.  I presume the tasks range from checking e-mails, texting, and scanning the web to playing games. This practice is not restricted to my office.  It is omnipresent.  Folks are not only on their phones while waiting for an activity but are texting away even during an activity!  Haven’t you seen folks out to dinner who simply can’t enjoy the dining experience for its own sake and have their phones beside them so they won’t miss a life-altering text message?  Is addiction too strong a term for this?

Here’s my plea to readers.  Then next time you are in your doctor’s waiting room, consider this time to be a special gift to you.  Savor the silence.  Lose the technology. Engage in a human pleasure that no app can replicate.  Just think.