From Burnout to Pure Joy: How Dr. Kirin Palmer Found Sustenance Through Presence and Coaching

What do you do when the work you love begins to hollow you out?When you’re showing up for little patients with big needs—and your own family at home—while quietly wondering how long you can keep going?If you’ve ever felt that tension between your vocation and your wellbeing, this conversation is for you.In this episode of Solving for Joy, I sit down with Dr. Kirin Palmer, pediatrician and founder of Pure Joy Pediatrics, to explore what it means to stay human in medicine. Kirin shares openly about navigating burnout, motherhood, and identity, and how receiving coaching gave her something physicians rarely talk about: permission to be supported.In the middle of a season that asked more of her than she had to give, Kirin realized her only way through wasn’t more grit—it was more presence. She began choosing small, grounding practices that tethered her back to herself and back to the joy she built her practice around.What emerged wasn’t balance in the traditional sense. It was sustenance—a way of moving through medicine that centers humanity, connection, and the simple joy of caring for children with her whole, grounded self.Together, we talk about how receiving care reshapes the care you give, why presence matters more than perfection, and how joy can become a compass when everything around you is pulling at your edges.In this episode, you’ll hear:• What burnout looked and felt like for Dr. Kirin Palmer • How coaching supported her through a demanding and vulnerable season • Why presence—not performance—is the foundation of her pediatric practice • How she keeps joy at the center of caring for kids and caring for herself • What “sustenance” means in medicine, and why so many physicians are running on empty • The power of receiving support when you’re usually the one providing it • What helps her stay grounded when her mind starts future-trippingIf you’ve been longing for space to breathe, to soften, or to simply come home to yourself in your work, I hope this conversation opens a gentle door back to curiosity, compassion, and a more sustainable kind of joy.More from Dr. Kirin Palmer:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kirinpalmermd/Practice IG: https://www.instagram.com/purejoypediatrics/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirin-palmer-md-13476524/Website: https://www.purejoypediatrics.com/Stay connected with me:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrissieottmdPodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/solvingforjoypodcastWebsite: https://www.chrissieottmd.com🎧 Full transcript and more: https://www.solvingforjoy.comPhysician Coaches:https://www.physiciancoachingcollective.comhttps://www.thephysiciancoachingsummit.comMusic by Denys Kyshchuk (AudioCoffee): https://www.audiocoffee.net