As-salāmu ‘alaykum,

Healthcare has a way of taking the best of us—then leaving the rest of life to negotiate for whatever is left.

And the scary part isn’t that this happens once in a while.
It’s that it can become normal… and we don’t realize what it’s costing us until the people closest to us feel it first.

After the Design Your 2026 with Barakah webinar, three reflections surfaced that felt too important to not share with the rest of our community.
If you’ve been running on “leftovers” for a while, read the next few lines slowly.

1) The time pressure that eats away at life itself

Many of us live with a constant pressure around time—especially when the meaningful work we do  in healthcare expands beyond healthy boundaries and begins bleeding into the rest of life.

In many healthcare spaces that we are all familiar with, self sacrifice is normalized. Even expected.

But should it be?
And is it truly an all-or-none deal?

One colleague described the impact of the “time pressure” of healthcare like this: everything is urgent, with the pace untenable, and over time it can “leave us feeling less than whole”—out of balance—without even noticing the shift… until the people closest to us start to feel what work has taken from them.

2) We muster the energy for healthcare work… but the rest of life gets the leftovers

Alhamdulillah—we find a way to show up for our patients, colleagues, meetings, conferences etc.

But if we’re honest, the rest of life often gets whatever remains:

• our families

• our faith

• ourselves

And the most painful part?

We even counsel patients with clarity, nudging them as another colleague shared, “take my advice”—while whispering to ourselves: “Even though I’m not doing it.”

3) We turn work into an escape — and call it “coping”

Sometimes we perpetuate the cycle by using work as an escape—especially when life feels messy, emotionally heavy, or unresolved.

So we stay busy.
We stay useful.
We stay productive.

And we call it coping.

But what we often need is something deeper:
a reset… and a renewed urgency to interrupt the pattern before we normalize living “less than whole.”

The reframe that changes everything

When we realign intentionally something shifts:

• Alignment attracts barakah

• Alignment creates sakeenah

• Alignment nurtures ihsān in our work—because Allah becomes our primary audience (not our inbox, metrics, or people-pleasing)

Divine wisdom (a needed nudge)

Allah says:

“Has the time not yet come for believers’ hearts to be humbled at the remembrance of Allah and what has been revealed of the truth, and not be like those who were given the Scripture before—˹those˺ who were spoiled for so long that their hearts became hardened. And many of them are ˹still˺ rebellious.”
— Surah Al-Hadid (57:16), translation: Dr. Mustafa Khattab (The Clear Quran)

I read this ayah as a merciful awakening.
A nudge back to consciousness before hardness of the treadmill becomes the norm.

And in our healthcare world—where burnout, emotional fatigue, and quiet disconnection can slowly become “just how life is”. 

We need that sense of urgency.

Not perfection.
Baby steps.
But real steps.

That’s why slowing down matters—the kind a number of us engaged in this past weekend.

If you missed it: webinar replay (available until Dec 28)

The Design Your 2026 with Barakah replay is available on-demand through Sunday, December 28, 2025 (8 Rajab 1447 AH), in shā’ Allah.
Watch the replay

A small practice for this week (10 minutes)

Try this simple “deep reset”:

2 minutes: Sit. Breathe. Name what you’ve been avoiding.
5 minutes: Write one sentence: “The cost of this pattern is ______.”
3 minutes: Choose one tiny boundary for the next 7 days (small enough to actually keep).

Examples:

• No email after Maghrib

• One protected meal with family

• A short walk immediately after shift

And reply to this email with your one tiny boundary. We read (and greatly appreciate) every response. Plus you’ll get the worksheet resource that we shared with webinar attendees as a bonus in sha’ Allah.

An invitation: Barakah Life Design Workshop (in-person)

Over the last couple of years, a number of you have asked for something deeper than a webinar—something you can feel, not just understand.

So here’s the invitation:

Barakah Life Design — a one-day, in-person workshop

Designed as an investment in you… your whole essence:

Faith | Energy | Relationships | Work

Part reflective. Part practical. Built for real clinicians with real lives.

And yes—I’m intentionally designing it so it can often fit under many clinicians’ CME/wellness reimbursement budgets depending on your institution. We’ll provide a simple agenda + learning objectives you can submit (final approval is up to your employer).

What you’ll walk away with

• A clearer workview & lifeview (what’s driving misalignment)

• Reconnection to your core values and priorities

• Tools to interrupt burnout/autopilot loops

• A realistic weekly rhythm that fits your actual life

• A shift from reflection → courageous, grounded action

Details

Date: Saturday, Rajab 21, 1447 AH (January 10, 2026)
Location: Dallas / Las Colinas (venue shared upon registration)
Spots: Limited to 40 for an intimate experience
Current: 3 of the 20 early bird spots already reserved

Investment

Early Bird: $297 
Open through Sunday, Dec 28, 2025 (8 Rajab 1447 AH), in shā’ Allah

General Admission: $397
(After Dec 28 or once the first 20 slots are filled)

Register →

May Allah, the Most High, allow us to plant transformative seeds in Rajab and and allow us to reach Ramadan and reap their fruits. Āmīn.

Sincerely,
Sulyman

P.S. If this message resonated with you, I invite you to join our SakeenahMD Community, where we're intentionally cultivating the habits of highly successful, spiritually intelligent Muslim healthcare professionals. Together, we're learning to thrive in our careers and lives—grounded in faith. Join us here or book a free coaching conversation to explore how to anchor your healthcare journey in barakah and resilience.