Caring Essentials Collaborative

𝗗𝗢𝗪𝗡𝗟𝗢𝗔𝗗 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗧𝗢𝗢𝗟𝗞𝗜𝗧 𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘: https://fcctaskforce.org/parental-presence-toolkit/

Changing the Narrative: Language, Bias, and the Power of Words in Care

Words matter.
They shape experiences.
They influence relationships.
They carry assumptions, histories, power, and possibility.

And in healthcare — especially in perinatal and neonatal spaces — language can either deepen shame and disconnection or foster dignity, trust, and healing.

I’m honored to share an upcoming webinar hosted by the Family-Centered Care Taskforce: Stigmatizing Language: Changing the Narrative

🗓 May 14th

⏰ 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM PT

💻 Free Webinar

This important conversation brings together an incredible panel of clinicians, educators, advocates, and leaders exploring how stigmatizing language impacts patients, families, and healthcare culture — and what it means to intentionally create more compassionate, equitable, and trauma-informed communication practices.

The panel includes:

- Veronica Barcelona

- Jessi Barnes

- Rose Horton

- Adrienne McIntyre

- Cheniqua Morales

This conversation feels deeply aligned with the ongoing work of trauma-informed developmental care, relational health, and the recognition that language is never “just words.” The way we speak about people — parents, babies, colleagues, communities, ourselves — shapes the environments we create and the care we deliver.

Together, we can begin shifting from labels and assumptions toward curiosity, dignity, belonging, and shared humanity.

If this speaks to you, I hope you’ll join us.

Registration is free.

📲 Scan the QR code in the flyer below to register and learn more.

❤️

Finding the resonant wavelength Listening for what wants to emerge: weaving threads to build a politics and economics of belonging

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗨𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲

I want to say this clearly: 𝘐 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥.

Especially when that remembering is grounded in evidence, context, and a deep commitment to truth. Which is why I deeply respect the work of 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝘅 𝗥𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀𝗼𝗻.

Not because she is beyond critique. No one is. But because she does what historians are meant to do:

☑️ She connects the present to the past.
☑️ She names patterns.
☑️ She refuses to let us pretend this moment exists in isolation.

And that makes people uncomfortable. Especially in a culture that still struggles to receive women’s authority without suspicion.

Let’s name the pattern:

📋 A woman synthesizes history → she’s “biased”
📋 A woman speaks with clarity → she’s “too much”
📋 A woman refuses to soften truth → she’s “alarmist”

Meanwhile…

👨🏼💼 A man speculates → he’s “interesting”
👨🏼💼 A man predicts → he’s “brilliant”
👨🏼💼 A man speaks with confidence → he’s “worth listening to”

This is not incidental. This is conditioning.

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮-𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗻𝘀, 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀!

Because trauma—individual and collective—distorts how we perceive safety, truth, and authority.

And one of the most enduring patterns in dysregulated systems is this: 𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘥.

Even if that voice is less grounded. Even if that voice is less accountable.

Caring Science invites something different.

🩷 It asks us to stay present.
🩷 To stay relational.
🩷 To stay rooted in truth—even when that truth is uncomfortable.

It asks us to notice:

1.) Who are we quick to question?
2.) Who are we quick to believe?
3.) And why?

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗜𝘀 𝗕𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻

This is about whether we are willing to:

✊ Respect women’s intellectual authority
✊ Receive truth without requiring it to be softened
✊ Value evidence over performance
✊ Stay with discomfort long enough to actually learn

𝗦𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗹𝘆: 𝙒𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧.

We listen. We engage. We think critically—yes. But we do not default to suspicion simply because the voice is clear, grounded, and unwilling to look away.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸

Not just in healthcare. Not just in education. But in how we show up to truth itself.

Because trauma-informed systems are not built by silencing the alarm. They are built by learning to hear it and respond with courage.

And I, for one, will continue to listen to the voices that help us remember—even when remembering asks more of us than forgetting ever will.

𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. I𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀.

In healthcare, we are often taught to:
‼️ push through
‼️ stay composed
‼️ keep going

But equanimity is something different.

It is the ability to:
🩷 stay present
🩷 stay grounded
🩷 stay connected

even in the midst of intensity.

It allows us to:
🩷 respond instead of react
🩷 hold space without becoming overwhelmed
🩷 remain human in environments that can easily pull us out of ourselves

This is a core element of trauma-informed care—and a practice that supports both caregivers and those we serve.

If you are looking for a way to cultivate this in your work and life,
you can explore the Trauma-Informed Professional (TIP) program here:

👉 https://caringessentials.net/tip2-cohort-2026

This guy is such a brilliant writer, thinker, and doer. Injustice requires action!! We the people are the heat, the pressure and the changemakers!!

I Filed for Roberts’s Disbarment. Then This Happened. This nation is hungry for justice.

What if healing doesn’t require forgiveness?

What if it begins with something even more foundational…

Dignity.

Dignity is not something we earn.
It is something we carry—always.

And when it is violated, our bodies know.
Our hearts know.
Our stories hold the imprint.

But here’s the shift that changes everything:

➡️ We can name what was violated.
➡️ We can validate our own experience.
➡️ We can reclaim our dignity—whether we forgive or not.

Because healing isn’t about excusing harm.
It’s about no longer being defined by it.

From “this was done to me” → to “this is how I choose to live forward.”

That’s where freedom begins.

I hope you enjoy this incredible episode of The Dignity Lab podcast: Dignity, Trauma, and Leadership in a Hurting World with Staci Olister and Mary Coughlin

LISTEN IN: https://thedignitylab.com/dignity-trauma-and-leadership-in-a-hurting-world/

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗢𝗜 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆-𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲 | 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀

Healthcare systems are often under pressure to do more with less. Family-centered care is sometimes viewed as “extra.” But what we are seeing is the opposite.

When families are meaningfully included:
✅ Errors are reduced
✅ Readmissions can decrease
✅ Care plans are better understood and followed
✅ Transitions to home are more successful

All of this has real financial implications.

But more importantly—it reflects a shift from: 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 → 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦

From: 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴 → 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴

Family-centered care is not a cost. It is an investment in doing care well.

If this resonates with you, you can learn more or express interest here:
👉 https://fcctaskforce.org/