Finding Joy in Life: A Psychiatric Perspective

PSYCHED PERSPECTIVES

Frank A. Clark, MD, in this installment of "Psyched Perspectives," a series in which he converses with his colleagues about the practice of psychiatry, sits down with Tiffani Bell Washington, MD, MPH, to talk about finding joy.

Washington is a quadruple board certified psychiatrist who specializes in child & adolescent and adult psychiatry, and obesity and lifestyle medicine. She is the founder of The Healthy Weigh MD and the Bell Well Joy Initiative, 2 platforms dedicated to helping high achieving women experience joy, balance, and better health without burning out. She is also the host of the podcast "Joy in the Margin: Your Life the Healthy Weigh," which is designed for busy professionals, physician moms, and anyone looking to redefine wellness. Bell will graduate with her MBA from Yale University in May 2025 and is also a mother of 5.

Washington was inspired to start the podcast by her own desire to do something long-lasting with purpose, despite her busy schedule, to help inspire others to get started. It helped focus her energy on helping others, she shares.

She has found her work with children to be an incredible inspiration: "What I love most about child psychiatry is the resilience that's sort of built into children... Finding a way to find joy in the things that you're going through, and building that joy, despite what your life looks like, is something that's really motivating to me. I wanted to share it with others as well."

Psychiatrists and clinicians are often very focused and can easily become burned out, giving all of their energy to helping others. According to the American Medical Association, over 45% of physicians reporting at least 1 symptom of burnout.¹ Glimpses of joy, not unlike the ones they felt as children, can help them grow and heal.

"Find something you enjoy and let it grow," said Washington. "That is the premise behind 'Joy in the Margin.'"

One research report shares that 45% of individuals have not felt true happiness for more than 2 years, and 25% do not know or have forgotten what it means to feel truly happy.² Washington's driving message, to find joy in small things and then expand it, could help combat this rising wave of unhappiness.

Dr Clark is an outpatient psychiatrist at Prisma Health-Upstate and clinical associate professor at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville. He served on the American Psychiatric Association’s Task Force to Address Structural Racism Throughout Psychiatry, and he currently serves as the Diversity and Inclusion section editor and advisory board member for Psychiatric Times.

Dr Bell is a quadruple board–certified and Harvard-trained public health specialist. She is a member of faculty for Harvard Medical School and works for Massachusetts General Hospital.

References

1. What is physician burnout? American Medical Association. April 9, 2024. Accessed May 2, 2025. https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-management/physician-health/what-physician-burnout

2. Global report: 45% of people have not felt true happiness for more than two years. Oracle. News release. June 15, 2022. Accessed May 2, 2025. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-report-45-of-people-have-not-felt-true-happiness-for-more-than-two-years-301568258.html