HOLIDAYS CAN BE HARD
What happens when two powerhouse leaders team up to address one of the most pressing issues of our time? Find out here in this dynamic conversation between Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Nadine Burke Harris.
Here are a few highlights …
[ OPRAH ] “The realization of what happened to you literally colors your entire worldview … Your childhood experiences don’t define you, but they do leave an imprint. You need to be aware of what that imprint is.”
[ OPRAH ] “This now becomes a conversation for the public that can actually be heard … we need to combine forces and shout it even louder.”
[ DR. BURKE HARRIS ] “ACEs are a public health crisis, and that means we need to take a public health approach.”
[ DR. BURKE HARRIS ] “Our brains and our bodies develop in response to our experiences.”
[ OPRAH ] “I think we’ve got to do a better job of helping people understand that there’s a biological stress response!”
[ DR. BURKE HARRIS ] “We have a heart — a cardiovascular system, lungs — a respiratory system … and we have a stress response system. And it can be well-regulated and healthy, or it can become dysregulated. And if it’s dysregulated, that increases our risk for physical, mental, and behavioral health disorders.”
[ OPRAH ] “Finally, we get to the root of the way people behave the way they do … When we ask that question, ‘What happened to you?’ it literally shifts the paradigm from ‘What’s wrong with you?’ to empathy and understanding.”
It’s that time of year again, and I am sure you have noticed how fast the Holiday season is taking over stores. For some, this can trigger the body and create stress or dread….
[Content warning: Suicide.]
In recent years, during the month of Pride, I’ve always been extremely excited about the celebration—the glittery and colorful extravagance all throughout the month of June.
However, this year, I’ve taken a pause to really understand my journey, the one I’ve taken individually and the one the queer community is on at the moment. I feel blessed to live in West Hollywood in Los Angeles, one of America’s queer-friendly meccas, though the sparkle in my heart has dimmed as I feel increasingly more concerned for my community across the country where our safety, protections and rights are all at risk. Unfortunately, none of us are safe.
I’ve lived with bipolar disorder for the last 13 years. Though the initial years were brutal, once I understood my triggers and what it takes to stay well, I’ve been privileged to have stayed healthy for much of the last decade. This included — to my relief — my first pregnancy and post-partum period and serving in high-intensity public health roles through the pandemic, as California’s Acting Surgeon General and previously the office’s first Chief Health Officer.
I love music. Recently, I was listening to a random playlist Spotify generated for me when a song titled “Before I Have A Daughter” by Bre Kennedy started playing. Bre Kennedy sings about building a garden that grows on the same ground where tears have fallen and hearts have also been broken. Her goal is to learn to tend to this garden so that it flourishes on both the good and bad days.
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