You’ve likely heard of sleep apnea, but have you heard of email apnea? 

It’s when you unconsciously hold your breath because you’re so stressed out while getting through emails. That lack of oxygen inevitably drives up stress. Dr. Jasmine Sawhne, MD, MBA, a psychiatrist based in California, recently spoke about this in an article for GQ. 

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Since she graduated from AUA, Dr. Sawhne has become a subject matter expert in mental health. She also recently spoke on a panel about modern mental health at the 10th Annual SoCal Wellness Summit
in Los Angeles.

But she wasn’t always sure she wanted to be a psychiatrist. When she entered AUA in 2008, she intended to become a pediatrician, but after completing a psychiatry core rotation, she realized that her calling might
be elsewhere. 

“As I did psychiatry, I think I spent more time doing what I envisioned myself to be doing as a medical doctor, which is being with the patient and hearing them, validating them, and understanding their story – really brought me a lot of joy and fulfillment,” said Dr. Sawhne.

Thanks to her foundation at AUA, Dr. Sawhne is now a board-certified psychiatrist with expertise in treating a variety of mental health conditions, including depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, postpartum disorders, bipolar disorder, ADHD, PTSD, eating disorders, and psychosis. After completing her fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania, she served the community’s needs through a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, working with the most underserved populations. She is now based in California, where she began her private practice a few years ago.

Her advice to current AUA students is to go into each rotation with an open mind. “Sometimes we have our own preconceived biases. For instance, when I went into surgery, I felt like I was definitely not going to like it because I had a bias about what it would be like. Still, I ended up enjoying it and was surprised at how much procedural stuff I got to do,” she said.

Looking back at her time at AUA, Dr. Sawhne is filled with gratitude, “We literally started on a small island, and now the world is my oyster. I used my time there to set a solid foundation and have continued to build upon on that ever since.”

✅ Request information on AUA's MD program TODAY!

YOUR PATH TO SUCCESS BEGINS HERE

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