Please note: this transcript is not 100% accurate.
Dr. Meenal Agarwal 0:00
Hi. This is Dr. Meenal, and welcome to Uncover Your Eyes, where we uncover reality. As a mom and eye doctor, I want to know it all. Sometimes as doctors, I feel as though we’re not good enough. We have to know everything. God forbid, we have to look something up and our patient doubts us. We have to be the smartest, but not too smart. Or we’re seen as egotistical. We can do anything and everything for our patients. But that one time we call in sick, it’s over. Because of course, we have to be superheroes that can just never catch anything from our patients. We have to be nice, or the Facebook group in town will talk about us until the end of time. But we can’t be too nice, because if you’re too nice, you’re seen as too soft. So it has to be within reason. But of course, you have to be the best. Oh and never say you don’t know to a patient. Never ask them what medications they’re taking. Never ask them about their last exam. Never ask them about their health history. Never ask them about their genetics. Never question them. Never cut them off. Oh, and never, ever tell them that they need extra testing. Because if they need extra testing for you to figure out their problems, we’re in trouble. And never ask them about their date of birth. Or you might get a clipboard thrown at you. It’s too hard. We have a life. We have family. We have health concerns. We feel stress, we feel pressure, we get sick, but at the end of the day, I love being an optometrist. I love my job. I love my patients. I love everything about it. I have wanted to be an optometrist since I was 11 years old. At 11, I was diagnosed with glaucoma, and I lived in fear, thinking that I would lose vision permanently, eventually. I wanted to be that person that would be there for other people and other families and help detect eye diseases at very early stages. I now own three clinics in the Greater Toronto Area. And I love being an entrepreneur. I love the challenges that it brings daily. I’m also a mom, a mom of three, two boys and a girl. They stick to me like glue. They don’t let me go to the bathroom alone. And they don’t let me eat in peace. But I love them. Of course. I love watching them go to school in the mornings. And I love being here when they get home to make them dinner and night we have these little group puddles just like you would at work and we talk about anything and everything. And what happened at recess. And we all love talking. As you can see, my husband is my rock. He is literally that textbook husband. He supports me in everything I do. And he’s always there for the kids. My daughter has a gratitude journal and she writes in it from time to time, most of the pages are filled with I’m grateful that my dad took me swimming. I’m grateful that my dad took me to the park today. Recently, I saw a page that said I’m grateful that dad picks me up from school, because of course I don’t do anything, right? Balancing being that perfect mom, the perfect entrepreneur, the perfect eye doctor, and the perfect human being. Is that even possible? What is perfect? Who defines perfect? Is that what’s gonna make me happy. But who sets what makes people happy? What happened to the basic concept of just being happy? Is that even out there anymore? I have needed so much help and still do in this work-life balance, health, mental health, wellness journey. And I want to introduce you guys to the people and the healthcare professionals that have been there for me and guided me and are still guiding me. They have changed my life, the way I live, the way I practice, and my health, and my wellness. Thank you. listeners and viewers. for tuning in. If you want to catch more episodes of Uncover Your Eyes, make sure to follow or subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and on YouTube. To learn more about me, follow me on Instagram @Dr.MeenalAgarwal. Until next time, keep those eyes uncovered!