Longitudinal psychological health profiles among sexual minority middle-aged and older adults in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

As physicians navigate medical training, they require resilience as they encounter a number of general challenges including, but not limited to, length of training, examinations, high expectations, and competition for a limited number of positions. However, during medical training, trainees may also encounter unforeseen personal challenges. This may affect their physical, mental, family, and emotional health. Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) guidelines changed in 2003 with revisions in 2011 and 2017 to include safe working hour requirements, and there has been a renewed emphasis on wellness initiatives for trainees and employees; however, it can still be difficult to practice self-care and address these issues. Throughout this commentary, we share some of our individual experiences through training including challenges with family, physical, and mental health. We then outline how we addressed these difficulties to accomplish our goals and continue to pursue our careers. We offer helpful strategies and resources for medical providers that they can use to overcome these challenges, and for training programs to help best support their trainees. Finally, we provide resources that providers can use for their patients. Our goal is to convey that “it is okay to not be okay” and people are not alone in their experiences. Medical trainees can ultimately achieve success in pursuit of their dreams, regardless of personal hardships, when appropriate coping strategies and communication with training programs are used.