HERE’S WHAT I BELIEVE
When surgeons suffer less, we serve better.
And when we serve better, we stop sacrificing ourselves in the name of excellence.
When we consistently act in service of our own wholeness, medicine becomes a place of depth, meaning, and connection—and a kind of success that actually sustains a life.
Your human self matters here.
In my TED Talk, I explore why this matters—through the way fear quietly hijacks medical judgment. Using the framework of white swans, black swans, and red swans, I unpack how defensive, fear-based thinking narrows our vision, distances us from our patients, and pulls us out of alignment with what we already know to be true.
And I offer a different way forward—one that protects good judgment without abandoning our humanity.
I’m Dr. Mel Thacker — a surgeon who built a highly successful career and still found that fear, pressure, and self-protection were quietly diminishing the career I’d devoted my life to building.
In my work studying and supporting the emotional health of surgeons, I name this pattern and offer a different way forward—one that helps surgeons see more clearly, decide more consciously, and practice medicine without abandoning themselves in the process.
About the empowered surgeons program + space
In Empowered Surgeons, we set down perfectionism, comparison and competition. We pick up self-trust, authenticity, transparency, and connection.
Here, we remember that life is bigger than the OR, that being human is what actually supports you in doing this work well. No part of this requires a checklist on how to become the perfect surgeon or human. What you’ll find is an earnest teacher and partner wholeheartedly invested in your human side as much as in your surgeon self. Someone who understands the highs, lows, extremes, and particular challenges you face in surgery today.
Empowered Surgeons is a place to practice presence, boundaries, humanity, and leadership in the hardest rooms: the OR, clinic, with your colleagues, and at home. I can’t fix the broken system for you, but I will help you find a way to live and lead inside it without losing yourself. In fact, you’ll find even more meaning in your work, the moments away from work, and everywhere in between.
This isn’t just about your career. It’s about the culture of surgery, what kind of colleagues we are, and how we treat each other and ourselves. It’s about preparing you not just to survive surgery, but to have a life beyond it — because one day, whether by choice or retirement, you will.
I can’t know why you’re here until you tell me.
Maybe you’re exhausted. Maybe you recently had a surgical complication, and it shook you. Maybe you’re wondering why you signed up for surgery in the first place. Maybe you thought your life would feel different.
Whatever it is, I hope you’ll tell me.
xo, Mel
PROGRAMS + OFFERSLet’s explore what might be right for you, right now.
empowered surgeons, the online program + group
Empowered Surgeons is support designed specifically for surgeons who want sustainable success in the OR, clinic and beyond. It’s both a steady practice space and a reliable lifeline when things feel urgent.
It’s not a curriculum you check off, it’s something you can come back to over and over, whether for ongoing growth or in a crisis moment.
private coaching with me
1:1 is best if you want a dedicated space on your calendar with a high-level partner. It’s also for those moments when the thought of bringing your most vulnerable truths into a group feels paralyzing.
In this space, you get to practice the skills of being seen vulnerably, without pressure, without performance. This isn’t about dumping or trauma-bonding. It’s about learning how to show up as a competent, steady partner in relationship. Skills that will carry you into group spaces and beyond.
explore + expand: our twice a year retreats just for surgeons
We were never meant to do this alone.
Our retreats are our ritual against isolation. Time carved out to step away from the grind and back into connection, creativity, play, and honest conversation.
Here, you get to be more than “the surgeon.” You get to be human, witnessed by other humans who know what the work costs and what it gives.
It’s where you remember yourself, and remember that you belong.