I entered the hospital with faith that I was prepared to pursue this and I was completely covered in God’s grace to succeed. My doctor was not scheduled at the hospital, so there weren’t any staff on my delivery team who looked like me. We had a wonderful experience and the team was supportive and professional, but there was still something missing.
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When we are stressed, anxious, or angry, one part of our nervous system is in charge. When we are calm, content, or pleased, a different part of our nervous system is in charge. Our bodies are wired so that we cannot be anxious and calm at the same time. Therefore, the way to combat stress, anxiety, anger, and fear is to engage the calming system.
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At first, writing was just something I did for fun when I was a kid, but it’s becoming an important part of my contribution to addressing health disparities. That part was planned, but I didn’t expect writing to evolve into such a vital part of my own self-care.
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In 2013, I was a middle school teacher in Baltimore. My 7th grade scholars and I read A Long Walk to Water, which includes the journey of Nya, a girl the same age as my Baltimore City Scholars, and the distance she traveled to bring water to her village. Last month, I was reminded of that book while trying to schedule a dentist appointment.
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Sometimes I think public health professionals view racism and other ‘isms’ as theories. It’s viewed in retrospect and not something that is still oppressing people today. We act like it doesn’t exist in the same institutions we operate in and think just because we acknowledge it, that means we’ve done enough.
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As a mental health therapist in Grand Rapids, Michigan I’ve worked with dozens of women with young children. During my days of home-based therapy, I noticed that many of the women I served did not understand how their body or reproductive system actually works. What was even more concerning was that the majority of my clients were Black women like me.
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In the Trump era, telling racist systems that they are racist isn’t profound nor is it game changing. If history hasn’t taught us anything else, it certainly should have taught us that American systems are committed to the status quo until they are disrupted. The racism that is inherent in the American healthcare system is no different.
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Health In Her HUE had the opportunity to talk to Dr. Maybank about health equity, her new role at the AMA, healthcare innovation, and why squad-care is more beneficial to Black women than self-care.
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