Nov 30, 2022
Resilience expert Deborah Gilboa, MD, aka “Dr. G,” works
with families, organizations, and businesses to turn stress into an
advantage. Known for her
contagious humor, Dr. G works with people across generations to
rewire their attitudes and beliefs to create resilience through
personal accountability and a completely different
approach to adversity. She
is the author of the recently released book
From Stressed to Resilient: The
Guide to Handle More and Feel It Less. Dr. G is a board-certified
attending family physician at a community health center whose
practice includes making house calls.
As a child, Dr. G
suffered from seizures. When asked, “What do you want to be when
you grow up?” her answer was a pediatric neurosurgeon since she had
a female doctor in that specialty who she liked. Dr. G changed her
mind, when in 9th grade biology lab, she had to dissect a fetal
pig. Around that time she discovered the fun of theater, finding
social acceptance and learning that people can have careers in
theater. She decided to study theater in college.
After earning her BFA in stage management, Dr. G worked in
theater for six years, including two years at Second City,
the famous improv company in
Chicago. She also volunteered as an emergency medical technician
and got certified as a paramedic. At 26, Dr. G
decided to apply to medical school, but she needed two years of pre-requisite
coursework to qualify. She mapped out a plan to ensure she could
make it happen. Dr. G had also worked at Deaf West Theater in Los
Angeles, founded by the deaf actress Marlee Matlin. She had learned
some American Sign Language (ASL) and a lot about deaf culture. Dr.
G heard that ASL interpreters were needed in health care, so she
enrolled in ASL classes and began to work as an ASL
interpreter while she
prepared for medical school.
Today, Dr. G practices
family medicine on a part-time basis and speaks regularly to
audiences in every sector on a variety of topics pertaining to
resilience, mental health, and effective communication. She
says, “Resilience is not given… it
is choice and action.”
In this week’s
Work From The Inside Out podcast,
learn more about Dr. G’s
journey:
- Dr. G’s message is straightforward and essential: Do stress better. Be resilient.
- She appears regularly on TODAY, Good Morning America, and The Doctors. Her work is featured frequently in the Washington Post, The New York Times, Forbes Magazine, and many other digital and print outlets.
Learn more and connect with Deborah here: