This month, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued new clinical guidelines for pediatricians to help youth athletes guard against burnout. As a pediatrician, I read with interest the advice for preventing injuries through over-training. As a narrative medicine facilitator, writer-in-residence at a family medicine residency program, and someone vitally interested in physician well-being, it struck me that many of the AAP’s recommendations and guidelines could be applied to all adults.

We know that excessive training in athletes can impair well-being and diminish enjoyment of the sport and quality of life, too. This is true in our everyday work. Working long hours and multiple days in a row can deplete our inner resources and contribute to exhaustion. In a recent article in the Journal of the American........

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