NCMS Advanced Healthcare Leadership Program Faculty Member Featured in Voyage Magazine!

(Voyage Raleigh) – Today we’d like to introduce you to Amna Shabbir, MD, NBC-HWC, CPC

Hi Amna, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
From my teenage years, I’ve been passionate about empowering others to heal and thrive—whether through positive psychology, behavioral neuroscience, or medicine. This drive led me to a career in medicine, with training in Internal Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. After residency, I moved to Raleigh and worked as a full-time primary care physician.

Like many in healthcare, I eventually faced the dual challenges of burnout and moral injury. During that difficult time, I reflected on what brought me joy in medicine: caring for older adults. This realization led me to complete a Geriatrics fellowship at Duke University. Now dual board-certified in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, I balance part-time clinical practice with my passion for helping high-achievers thrive.

Coaching psychology, a natural extension of my focus on life optimization, became a powerful tool in supporting others. I earned my Wellness Coaching Certification from Duke Integrative Medicine and became a National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach, later deepening my expertise as a Master Certified Life Coach. These skills empower me to guide clients in overcoming obstacles and embracing life with confidence, calm, and clarity. As a professional speaker, I deliver workshops, keynotes, and boot camps that help attendees create tangible results.

My journey has inspired two ventures: Amna Shabbir Wellness Coaching and the Early Career Physicians Institute®, where I support physicians and high-achievers in navigating challenges.

Fiercely advocating for mental health is a cornerstone of my work. I’m proud to serve as an Ambassador for the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation, which works to destigmatize mental health access for healthcare workers. Additionally, I actively contribute to the North Carolina Medical Society, the North Carolina Clinician and Physician Retention and Well-being Consortium, and the American College of Physicians North Carolina Chapter’s Well-being Committee.

I also cherish my other roles in life that complete me, including being the wife of a busy solar entrepreneur dedicated to serving the Triangle community and being the Super Mom to two young girls.

Through every step, my mission remains the same: to empower others to heal, grow, and shine.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As we look around, we often see people who appear to have it all together, but the reality is often far more complex. My own journey has been no exception. Behind the outward accomplishments lies a journey of physical and mental health challenges, and moments of profound vulnerability.

Like many healthcare workers, I faced burnout and moral injury early in my career. The demands of a full-time primary care practice, combined with physical health challenges, tested my resilience in unexpected ways. I also experienced postpartum depression twice, navigating the complex emotions of motherhood while striving to meet the high expectations of being a physician. I felt isolated and my self-doubt was deafening, even as I appeared to “have it all together.”

Career pivots added their own set of hurdles. Whether it was stepping back into medical training after years of practice or transitioning into entrepreneurship, these shifts required me to embrace uncertainty, relinquish perfectionism, and redefine success. Even entrepreneurship is rewarding but often isolating, especially when creating something from scratch while juggling multiple roles such as motherhood. I had to learn to take bold risks, ask for help, and trust my instincts—all while staying true to my purpose of helping others thrive. The road hasn’t been smooth, but it has been transformative. One of my favorite quotes by Erin Hansen comes to mind here:

“There is freedom waiting for you,
On the breezes of the sky,
And you ask “What if I fall?”
Oh but my darling,
What if you fly?”

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I am deeply passionate about my work serving high achievers, particularly those in healthcare, because I know how it feels to hide under a blanket of perfectionism while being simultaneously crushed from every direction.

The reality is that our time on this planet is finite, and the moment we truly recognize this and start living with intentionality, everything shifts. In all the experiences I offer—whether through coaching, workshops, or speaking engagements—my goal is to help turn abstract desires into tangible goals that leave you taking bold, meaningful action.

I work with both individuals and organizations, providing:
🎤 Speaking Engagements
📈 Well-being & Leadership Programs
🤝 Corporate Wellness Workshops
🤝 1:1 and Group Coaching

I collaborate with Learner+ to offer clinician-centric continuing medical education (CME) and continuing education (CE) credits for all my offerings.

The proud results my clients have experienced include:

– Confidence Creation (working through impostor syndrome and people-pleasing)
– Setting Tangible Boundaries

– Time & Energy Management
– Self-Advocacy
– Interpersonal Communication
– Stress Management Techniques
– Burnout Recovery and Prevention
– Cultivating a Life Outside of Work
– Achieving Physical Fitness Goals

What sets me apart is my unique approach, combining multiple evidence-based techniques rooted in the neuroscience of behavior change, coaching, and positive psychology, alongside my lived experience as a physician, mother, and entrepreneur.

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Grit- I attribute all my success to my ability to be gritty.