An Abundance of Family Support Makes the Difference for Dr. Singh February 4, 2022

Dr. Singh with her parents and brother, Greg, and sister, Natalie at her brother’s wedding.

In 1960, a young man in his early 20s emigrated from Jamaica to New York City to make a better life for himself. He picked up odd jobs wherever possible and put himself through college to become an IBM engineer. His fiancée, and future wife, arrived several years later also from Jamaica. She spent her career working for the Department of Social Services in New York State. 

Together the couple, Keith and Phyllis, raised three children and achieved putting each one through an ivy league education.

These were Dr. Nicole Singh’s role models who helped shape the person and physician she is today. 

When Dr. Singh was four years old, her mother gave her a toy doctor’s kit. “I never knew why she gave it to me and not my brother, who was one year older. From that day forward, I knew I was going to become a doctor,” she said. 

By the time Dr. Singh reached middle school, she had discovered the joy of music and was playing both the flute and piano. “My parents would take me to private lessons for both and when they were told that I was quite talented at the flute they bought me an incredible flute that my flute teacher had recommended.”

Throughout her childhood, Dr. Singh remembers being told that she was smart and talented and could do anything that she wanted to do in life. “As the recognition and positive words of affirmation of my talent were poured into me, I had thoughts of perhaps becoming a professional musician. I continued to perform until my first year of college when preparing to become a doctor became my focus,” she said.  

Those years had their challenges, but Dr. Singh’s family was always there, sending letters and care packages, showing up any chance they could to visit. “When I was a medical resident and didn’t have the time to go home for Christmas, the entire family would come to me and stay with me in my little apartment in Boston. There was always an abundance of consistent family support and that has made all the difference in my life then and today,” said Dr. Singh.

Throughout the years, Dr. Singh combined her parents’ positive outlook with her interest in human dynamics and forged a career in internal medicine. “I am fascinated by human dynamics, how we are all connected and what impact that has on our health, as well as how our thoughts, choices and behaviors are connected,” said Dr. Singh. “My parents had a tremendous influence on my positive outlook and perspective, and they still do,” she said. 

For more than two decades, Dr. Singh has helped people focus on their health and wellness to become healthier both physically and mentally. In her practice she focuses on exercise, sleep, nutrition, and mindful meditation in addition to medication when needed to maintain one’s health and wellbeing. To maintain her own health, she begins each day with meditation and prayer over guidance and healing for each one of her patients. 

Dr. Singh enjoys traveling, spending time and visiting with family and friends, listening to live music and performances, and opportunities to mentor and encourage young people. 

Since March 2020, many of these joys became either virtual or in a smaller geographic space. “Travel became walking around my neighborhood with my sister and close friend Terri every Sunday, that we called Another Beautiful Sunday as we would reflect on the previous week and talk about our goals for the upcoming week. It became a safe space for connecting and processing the challenges of the pandemic,” she said.

During these walks, Dr. Singh discovered the beauty of her community and how friendly and committed to causes like Black Lives Matter her neighborhood was. She enjoyed seeing all the creative lawn signs and exchanging friendly hellos at a safe distance with neighbors she hadn’t had a chance to meet yet. 

Family time became a more scheduled and regular activity than before the pandemic. “We have daily family exercise time via FaceTime Monday to Friday and family investment club over the phone on Sundays. We continue to talk about so many different life topics, our days, any challenges and then problem solve together. Somehow these past couple of years created the dedicated time for things that have become very valuable to me.” 

These regular family conversations have made Dr. Singh realize that conversations across generations are important and valuable in life. “I’m so thankful to be able to experience this,” she said. 

By October 2020, during the pandemic as the disparities in treatment and outcomes were increasingly apparent, Dr. Singh felt so thankful for the work that all her friends who are doctors have been doing to make sure that every person gets equitable care and treatment. 

She started a virtual group of doctors named Closing the Gap Community. “We have become a multigenerational community of doctors and students that supports and celebrates the excellence of black and other doctors and students who are underrepresented in medicine and working towards reducing the disparities in care and health outcomes that currently exist. We also aim to foster healthy professional and life connections and improve the well-being of doctors, students, and patients. I love opportunities to mentor, encourage and uplift the younger generation and enjoy and am thankful to be able to learn from them as well.” 

Dr. Singh joined the Medical Society of D.C. at the onset of the pandemic. “This group has been a wonderful resource for me over the past couple of years. It has been comforting to be part of an organization that cares about and is supportive of all doctors in the DC community,” she said. 

For Dr. Singh, the kindness and support received from a community of family, friends, and colleagues, as well as having wonderful patients, has had a significant impact on her life both inside and outside of the office.