Dr. Sheila Wijayasinghe, Medical Doctor, Author & Media Health Contributor.
Dr. Sheila is a Jane of all trades. She is a family doctor practicing at St. Michaels Hospital in Toronto, is the Medical Director of Primary Care outreach at a Women’s College Hospital, is a media health contributor to The Social TV Show (for 7 years!) and contributes to the Globe & Mail. Most recently she can add Author onto her resume with the launch of Once Upon A Pandemic. A book (that is sure to bring tears!) which was inspired by the strength and resilience of parents-to-be during the COVID-19 pandemic.
She self published the book which has since been featured on National TV shows, is located in boutique book stores in Toronto and pre-sold through their entire first batch of inventory. Dr. Sheila intentionally carved out her entire career through perseverance and hard work. She also happens to be my best friend who I admire greatly and is one of the best people I know. Read on to find out how she got started as a media health contributor, how Once Upon A Pandemic came to be, her career highlights and more.
(Pink Tank Group): Tell us about yourself.
(Dr. Sheila): I’m a family doc in Toronto and mom to our two busy babes and pup. I have a general practice with a diverse group of patients at St Michael’s Hospital. I’m also the Medical Director of Primary Care Outreach at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto and work to support patients in the community who struggle to access health care. I have been the health expert on CTV’s the Social for the past 7 seasons and have contributed to the Globe and Mail and the Huffington Post. I also recently wrote and published my first children’s book Once upon a Pandemic.
(Pink Tank Group): Once Upon A Pandemic has helped so many new moms navigate life during this uncertain time. How did the idea come to be?
(Dr. Sheila): It was inspired by our Instagram account, the @pandemicpregnancyguide which we created early in the pandemic to support families who were expecting as a source of trusted medical knowledge during a time when their usual supports were missing due to public health restrictions. Our followers sent us lots of questions related to their uncertainty about the unknowns of how COVID-19 affects families, babies and pregnancy and really just wanted to know that they were keeping their families and growing babies safe. I could sense this worry and I wanted to create a time capsule for them to keep as a memento of this time. To remember this not just as a time of fear but also as a time when they were most resilient. My goal was for Once Upon a Pandemic to be a validating beautiful account of love during a very difficult time and to honour their experiences to share with their little ones as they grow.
(Pink Tank Group): We love how you are incorporating a charity theme with the sales from the book. Can you tell us more about this?
(Dr. Sheila): There is a shadow pandemic during the COVID-19 pandemic of increased rates of partner violence across Canada and internationally. I wanted to help draw attention to this and support organizations that help families that may be leaving situations of violence. We decided to donate all the presale proceeds of the book to the Red Door Shelter in Toronto that does work in support families leaving situations of violence and newcomers to offer safe shelter. We raised over $5,500 and will continue to donate to them with ongoing sales of the book. When you start a new family, knowing that there are others there to help is incredibly important. I wanted to work with the Red Door Shelter because they do so much for our community and as a way for those who bought the book to show their support and maybe feel a little more connected during this time when we all feel alone and isolated.
(Pink Tank Group): What was the best outcome of the entire process of writing the book:
(Dr. Sheila): The most profound and beautiful outcome of writing Once Upon a Pandemic has been to read feedback from people receiving the book and reading it to their little ones. I receive several messages a day from people who share how they have felt validated and seen after reading Once Upon a Pandemic. So many share that they have felt overwhelmed with emotion and grateful to have a physical memento to hold onto to remember this time by. I am so grateful to hear these messages as this was the goal of the book ~ to honour and offer a symbol of their strength and love.
(Pink Tank Group): So, you self-published your book which is quite the feat! Can you tell us how you were able to navigate this process for yourself?
(Dr. Sheila): I got by with a lot of help from my friends! Being a doctor, my usual problem-solving skills in medicine and patient care didn’t apply and I often felt out of my depth. I had to ask for help for every step along the way. This was a good lesson for me - I often have a hard time asking for help but when I did for this project, it came in abundance. There are so many steps involved with writing and publishing a book and friends were able to guide me through with practical advice, connecting me to the right people or directing me away from costly options that they had previously encountered. You never know who knows the right person or connection to move your project forward, and it never hurts to ask.
(Pink Tank Group): Not only are you an accomplished doctor but you have become a well known household name with regular features on The Social and a guest contributor to the Globe & Mail. Tell us how your journey got you here?
(Dr. Sheila): I’m passionate about health and supporting people to know about their own bodies so they can get help when they need it. The healthcare system is overwhelming and can be difficult to navigate so having this awareness of what resources are available and to know when to get help is incredibly empowering. Early in my career, I was curious about sharing medical information on a larger public platform so I reached out to media outlets directly. It was out of character as I tend to be fairly shy but I was interested and had nothing to lose in asking! I actually cold-called CBC when Steven and Chris was on and shared that I was keen and had an interest in sharing health information. They initially dismissed me because I hadn’t done any media work before but they kept my name on file in case one of their health experts wasn’t available. By chance, the opportunity came up that they needed someone and I was booked. It was nerve racking but a great start to sharing health related information to a larger audience. Soon after this, I was able to connect to the Globe and Mail as they were looking for to create an Ask a Health Expert column. I offered to help out and it became a regular weekly column for 2 years. I have now been the regular health expert on CTV’s The Social since their first season on air. It has been a wonderful experience and I’m so grateful to hear feedback that people have taken information we’ve shared and been able to feel confident in speaking to their own healthcare providers to access support when they have needed it. I never imagined when I started out in medicine that I would have these opportunities. I struggle, like so many women, with confidence and often still question if I’m good enough to do this work. I give myself pep talk and have a little toolkit of reminders when these thoughts arise and use them before every show! It can be challenging to make these connections when starting out but it has to start somewhere. People are going to say no if you don’t have experience and that’s ok. Keep trying, be persistent and don’t be afraid of people saying no. There may be lots of no’s before you get that one yes that will open all the next doors in your path. And believe in yourself (and in the moments you don’t, call upon your cheerleaders to help you build that confidence!
(Pink Tank Group): What has been the highlight of your career so far?
(Dr. Sheila): So many beautiful highlights! I think the things that fire me up and get me going are not the big moments but the small but meaningful that culminate into a greater story. I love seeing my patients that I have been taking care of now for over a decade to celebrate the times of joy and to be a source of comfort when things are difficult. I am so grateful that my office is a trusted space and they feel cared for. Being able to provide this one on one support and to be able to do it also on a public level has truly been a dream come true. One of the hardest things I’ve done but also one of the most rewarding was publicly sharing our struggles with infertility, miscarriage and my difficult postpartum period. I wasn’t initially sure about sharing but did so because I felt so alone at times through these difficult times that I knew that when I heard others’ stories, it brought so much comfort. I remember posting an article in the Globe about this and going on The Social to share and felt a significant vulnerability hangover afterwards. But soon after, I was flooded with such kind support and feedback from so many who had gone through similar experiences who voiced how much it helped them. I don’t know if they knew how much they helped me though and helped me heal.
(Pink Tank Group): Do you have any advice for the next generation?
(Dr. Sheila): In medicine or in any space that you find yourself in, its important to find your community that you can trust and lean on. Knowing that you have colleagues and mentors that can help you and find that space is so nourishing and bucket filling.
I can’t say enough about finding the right mentors - both for career support and life support. The people who have found a career that you admire and also those who have a life balance that aligns with what you are hoping for. Find those people, ask them to mentor you and share their advice for what worked for them and adapt it to your own situation. Life is busy but there is always space for what you love. I’m fortunate to be able to do this in my career. If you have a passion for something, space will always open up for it and if you have people who can support you along the way, you’re well on your way.
