279. Victimhood in Healthcare: Naming the Problem with Empathy and Truth

A mindful, honest, and hopeful exploration of victimhood in medicine—what it is, how it shows up, and why so many of us feel trapped, powerless, and unseen within a deeply flawed system.

We invite you to listen with curiosity and self-compassion, knowing that if you’ve found yourself here—tired, discouraged, or resigned—you are not alone, and nothing is wrong with you.

Rather than shaming or simplifying, we offer this conversation as a compassionate mirror and a naming of what’s real with clarity, awareness, and care. 

We unpack moral injury, systemic betrayal, learned helplessness, and the quiet culture of resignation that seeps into even the most well-intentioned among us.

Naming where we are is the essential first step to healing.

This is part one of a two-part series. In this episode, we shine a mindful light on the roots of victimhood. In part two, we will offer mindful paths forward from powerlessness to purpose.

 

Pearls of Wisdom:

• Victimhood is not weakness, it’s a human, protective response to chronic dysfunction. And it’s not where you want to live.

• Naming victimhood with empathy, not judgment, allows us to reclaim agency, even within a broken system.

• Noticing where we give away our power is the first mindful step toward healing and change.

• Systemic “solutions” like suggestion boxes may unintentionally reinforce helplessness unless paired with authentic engagement and choice.
  
  

 

Reflection Questions:

• When have you felt the most powerless in medicine?

• What helps you feel safe and what erodes that sense of safety?

• What would it mean to believe that you still have influence, even in a broken system?

 

 

Don’t miss the Mindful Moment at the end of this episode. It's an opportunity to ground, reflect, and reconnect to your inner wisdom with clarity and compassion.

If this conversation resonates, I invite you to explore coaching with me to help you name and shift patterns of disempowerment in your life and career: www.jessiemahoneymd.com/coaching

You can also join me at a Pause & Presence Retreat—a nurturing, transformational space to reconnect to what matters most: www.jessiemahoneymd.com/retreats

If you would like to bring a more mindful, compassionate approach to your institution, team, or training program, I’d be honored to speak or lead a workshop: www.jessiemahoneymd.com/speaking

You can also invite Dr. Liang to speak or lead a breathwork workshop for your group: www.awakenbreath.org

Together, one mindful conversation at a time, we can shift the culture of medicine.

Nothing shared in the Healing Medicine Podcast is medical advice.