Christina's Reflections

Christina DePaolo, LT'23, 4Culture

I begin my reflection of Health and Wellbeing Day in gratitude to Jessica Werner’s land acknowledgement and context setting. It opened my mind and heart.

For the table discussion, I chose wellness in the work force. Unexpectedly, the question that made me dig deep into my own behavior, was the least provocative. “Do you respond to email messages during non-work hours?” This led us to explore the tension between work-life balance and a workplace that prioritizes productivity over wellness. This creates a culture where the individual carries the burden alone. Do you talk with your coworkers about how everyone can be accountable for teamwork and help each other out when needed? I was gob smacked to realize that I have worked with my team for eight years, and I never once asked about boundaries regarding something as simple as email. I have invested a lot of time getting to know my coworkers but side-stepped this basic and straight-forward conversation.

This echoed the Sheila Capestany’s question “What does it look like to support a whole human being?” She believes we can address complexity, and that is what we need now to address generations of harm.

Dr. Ben Danielson often spoke of the importance of naming it, naming something that is going on in the room, in the world, and in a situation.

Behind their accomplishments and wisdom, their ability to navigate the big and the small, stands love. They model how we can get from the individual to the collective, to be whole. Doing so requires the strength to look within and hug what shows up. No matter how ugly. To live in relationship with our selves, investigate and reflect.

I’ll end with Shelia’s words: “There are so many people who believe in you when it’s hard.”

Phyllis' Reflections

Phyllis Sutton, LT'23, King County

I was deeply impacted by Health and Wellbeing Day. I did not expect to recall my experience when I was diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumor and my doctor's lack of compassion, but my cohort-mate, Dr. Blaire Burman, LT'23, provided a safe space for real conversations during our table conversations. Sitting across from my doctor seven years ago, I felt fear and shame because I didn’t understand what was happening to my body. I walked out of his office without advocating for information and scheduled a colectomy without fully understanding my diagnosis. After caring and advocating for others throughout my career, I had no idea how to advocate for myself. So, what does this have to do with leadership? Leadership is about advocating for others as well as oneself. 

Dr. Ben Danielson and Sheila Capestany are social justice warriors who have spent their careers advocating for the emotional and physical wellbeing of women, children, and families in marginalized communities. They gave examples of how we may be called to reframe our thinking and become disrupters from inside institutions built and steeped in white supremacy, and they challenged us to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. I have since added myself to the list of priorities and will continue to advocate for others and myself. 

Alex's Reflections

Alex Sheehan, LT'23, Washington State Health Care Authority

What’s sticking with you today?

Two things are sticking with me today. One is the amazing passion, knowledge, and experience demonstrated by my cohort-mates as we discussed topics such as access to quality healthcare, holistic wellbeing, impacts of social determinants of health and differential health outcomes by race, and how to support mental and emotional wellbeing. The second point sticking with me was the message shared by Dr. Ben Danielson and Sheila Capestany to practice love and compassion as we work collaboratively to address the public health crisis of racism. This work is a marathon, not a sprint, and it requires us to come together as a community to make our world better.

How might you apply what you’ve learned in the future?

As we spent a lot of time discussing the effects of systems on individual and communal wellbeing, I want to continue to practice empathy, compassion, and an openness to understand others’ perceptions and personal experiences. And, to remember that true change only comes when it is informed by individuals with lived experience. This will allow me to be able to work with others to dismantle oppressive systems and build new models on a foundation of love, collaboration, and community.

Do you have reflections on how LT’s values showed up today in yourself, your cohort-mates, or the speakers? 

As someone who believes there are medicinal qualities of contemplative introspection, I come back to two important points made at the Possibility Day: 1) When do we repair, and when do we reimagine? 2) Revolution requires evolution. “Only when we practice evolution, can we add the ‘R,’” as eloquently put by Dr. Ben Danielson. Society evolves and systems change, but they can't do that without people making those changes. So, it is up to us to be the change we want to see.