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JOE NAKAGAWA, MD, THRIVES IN THE FACE OF DANGER, WHETHER IT’S SAVING A LIFE IN THE ER OR NAVIGATING THROUGH THE FRACTURING ICE TOWERS ON MT. RAINIER
WRITTEN BY KATIE GRIFFITH | PHOTOGRAPHED BY MICHAEL NEVEUX
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any people use athletics and exercise as a way to de-stress and restore themselves outside work. Joe Nakagawa, MD, is no exception, and he certainly uses rock climbing, swimming, cycling and skydiving to maintain his work-life balance. However, Dr. Nakagawa has found that his favorite recreational activities are also beneficial in teaching him crucial lessons for the job. As an emergency physician, his work is fast-paced, high-stress and can go from 0 to 100 in a matter of seconds. Dr. Nakagawa and his team regularly save the
lives of people who are in traumatic situations. Rock climbing, he says, has ingrained in him important skills such as mental fortitude, self-discipline, suppression of fear and teamwork. Born in Japan, Dr. Nakagawa moved at the age of 5 with his family to Seattle, where he grew up and lived until he was 18. “Seattle is very outdoorsy, so I’ve camped and hiked my entire life,” he says. “In high school I started going on climbs with friends in the local mountains, and when I came to Southern California for college, I found world-class rock climbing close by. This, of course, piqued my interest, and I started climbing rock much more frequently.”
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