The Difficult Colleague Dilemma: When Your Teammate Becomes Your Trigger

In this episode, Dr. Jo Braid tackles one of the most requested — and least talked about — topics in healthcare burnout: the colleague who makes an already demanding job feel almost impossible. Drawing on her own experience as a doctor of over 20 years, alongside research on workplace incivility and the neuroscience of threat response, Jo explores why certain people trigger us so deeply and why that reaction makes complete sense. She introduces the SPACE framework — a practical, five-step tool for protecting your energy, setting quiet but firm boundaries, and reclaiming your sense of power in difficult workplace dynamics — without burning professional bridges. This episode is the first in a powerful new series shaped entirely by listener survey responses, with the next ten episodes diving into everything from financial stress and time poverty to organisational factors like workload, fairness, and recognition. If you've ever dreaded a shift because of one person, this episode is your reminder that you cannot change them — but you absolutely can change your response. Resources: Book Dr Jo as a speaker via: https://drjobraid.com Connect with Dr Jo on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/burnoutrecoverydr Connect with Dr Jo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drjobraid  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.