Thunderbirds flew over Encinitas to honor medical workers. #staysafeeveryone #supportfrontlineworkers #flattenthecurve #thunderbirdsflyover https://www.instagram.com/p/CAOHyG4lpaZ/?igshid=ojg6aswzj6m6

What are you going to do? Write me a ticket? Well I’m the Reeve of La Broquerie and I can do whatever I want. Steal your hat. Not wear a mask. Why not? Especially when there are easily available, cure all magic pills my chiropractor gives me. 

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." ~ Mahatma Gandhi.⁣ ⁣ Food and music are magic, both delight the soul and your senses.⁣ They create emotions and make you feel good. ⁣ ⁣ We wanted to say thank you to all frontline workers and make them feel good! ⁣ ⁣ Thanks @bruno_monardo for teaming up with me in celebrating all essentials workers at @erinmills_lodge in Mississauga at the presence of Mayor @bonniecrombie ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #covid19 #supportfrontlineworkers #foodandmusic #gratitude #brunomonardo #lucianoschipano #givetoothers #community #mississauga #erinmills #retirementhome #cookingwithlove #toronto #coronavirus #frontlineheroes #essentialworkers #youmatter #staysafe (at Erin Mills Lodge) https://www.instagram.com/p/CC9zDcgnfvk/?igshid=1ji8u34cwhh54

"I caught Covid at the end of March, most likely at work. I was one of the lucky ones. For me, the illness was no worse than a bad flu. When I returned to work after quarantine, my ICU transitioned into a Covid unit.⁣ ⁣ I don't think I realized how deconditioned I was until I started working in that PPE. The shifts were 12-13 hrs with very few breaks. We were short of breath inside the masks, sweating in the gowns and visors, fighting exhaustion and low blood sugar. It was much more stressful than our normal ICU work. I found it hard to let go of that stress when I got home.⁣ ⁣ For the first time in my life, I was having panic attacks. I became so depressed I could barely talk to my kids. I started drinking more on my nights off to cope. By the end of the second month I could no longer function, and knew it was time to get help. I realized that I wouldn't be able to take care of anyone else until I took care of myself. ⁣ ⁣ I ended up taking a mental health leave. I stopped drinking completely and began therapy. It took some time, but I eventually started to get better. I had support from family and friends, as well as a good doctor and therapist. ⁣ ⁣ Covid cases have declined in our state, and our unit is no longer a Covid ICU. I'm hoping this experience will make me a better nurse going forward, and I'll feel ready to fight again if we see a second wave." Niki Anthony, RN ⁣ ⁣ Thank you Niki for being open to sharing your story. I wish you health and peace moving forward. ⁣ ⁣ #thankyoufrontliners #thankyouessentialworkers #covid19 #pandemicstories #supportfrontlineworkers #supportessentialworkers #thankyouessentialworkers #visualstorytelling #portraitsinspire #portraitmasters #riarts #essentailworkersri #portraitsoffrontliners #stephanieewensphotography #portraitphotographer #doucumentaryportraitproject #seeourfrontliners #seeourfrontlinersri ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣ (at Cranston, Rhode Island) https://www.instagram.com/p/CCVyf7enB31/?igshid=1mfhkiitpsg7l

Meet Allison Hayward, MD, our next @brown_emergency provider being highlighted as part of #SeeOurFrontliners portrait project. She shares her experience of the pandemic below. ⁣ ⁣ "I work nights in the emergency department, and that means my subspecialty is psychiatric crisis. I face the fears that stave off sleep, or that prompt waking in the dark, beaded with sweat and heart pounding. The fact that I have very little natural tendency towards anxiety has always been an asset to me, gaining even more value as I've navigated into a career consisting of long and busy nights in the emergency department. ⁣ ⁣ Spending nights being buffeted by waves of anxiety and sadness from my patients has always left me emotionally tired, but I have usually been able to let them wash over me and walk away, letting calm, happiness, and stillness return to my mind as I gain distance from the hospital. In 2020, I find traces of the fear and sadness I experience with my patients are following me home. Instead of the usual dreams I've had since childhood, closing my eyes takes me back to the COVID ward, back behind my layers of masks and I wake feeling as if I've worked instead of slept. I am thankful for my supportive family and friends who keep me feeling loved and grounded, whether we are near or far. They help give me the energy to keep putting on my mask night after night, trying to soothe the anxieties and terrors of a pandemic."⁣ ⁣ Thank you Allison for participating in the project. ⁣ ⁣ For anyone interested in being photographed and part of the project, please follow the link in my bio. ⁣ ⁣ #brown_emergency @brown_emergency⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #thankyouessentialworkers #thankyoufrontliners #supportfrontlineworkers #supportessentialworkers #thankyouessentialworkers #visualstorytelling #portraitsinspire #portraitmasters #coviddays #riarts #401love #visitrhodeisland #essentailworkersri #portraitsoffrontliners #stephanieewensphotography #portraitphotographer #doucumentaryportraitproject #seeourfrontliners #seeourfrontlinersri ⁣⁣ https://www.instagram.com/p/CCEjrUtnhul/?igshid=13fi96ump8d4e

Meet Cailyne Ghazarian, PA-C, our next @brown_emergency provider being highlighted as part of #SeeOurFrontliners⁣ portrait project. ⁣ "I’ve worked in emergency medicine as a physician assistant for 8 years. I have learned so much during my years of practice, but nothing could have prepared me for what we are currently facing. One of the things I enjoy the most about my job is being able to bond with my patients and provide them some reassurance while they are with me in the emergency department. ⁣ ⁣ Now that we are amidst a pandemic, things have changed. I enter patient rooms donned in layers of personal protective equipment (PPE) and can feel the physical and emotional separation between us- they can no longer see my face… or my smile. It made me sad that these patients couldn’t see who was taking care of them. It must have felt like they were surrounded by a sea of PPE-clad strangers, unable to discern one provider from the next. ⁣ ⁣ I now wear a printed photo of myself on my lapel, so that patients can see me- really see me. I want them to know that as we face an uncertain road ahead, we are all in this together. Keep smiling."⁣ ⁣ ⁣ Cailyne A. Ghazarian, PA-C, MPAS⁣ Brown Emergency Medicine⁣ Assistant Coordinator, PA/NP Post-Graduate Residency in Emergency Medicine⁣ ⁣ Thank you Cailyne for being a part of the project and for finding ways to make your patients feel more comfortable. ⁣ ⁣ If you are a frontline or essential worker, or know anyone that is and you think should have their story highlighted, please visit the link in my bio or go directly to my site https://www.stephanieewens.com/frontliners⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ You can also find information there on how to start your own #SeeOurFrontliners project in your own community. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ If you're enjoying seeing these stories, and would like to help fund the project, you can make a tax deductible donation through the link in my bio through AS220 and under Global Fellows in Courage.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #brown_emergency @brown_emergency⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #thankyouessentialworkers #supportfrontlineworkers (at Providence, Rhode Island) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBfzjaUnBnJ/?igshid=mr55d6nvtlxj

Meet Jackie Mancini, LMHC, Clinical Manager of Emergency Services at The Providence Center⁣ ⁣ "When the pandemic first began it was scary. It was scary for us as healthcare workers, scary for our consumers, and scary for our families. However, despite the chaos and uncertainty there was camaraderie, a sense of unified purpose and the hope that this shared trauma might unite people in a way we haven’t seen before. That hope has become harder and harder to hold on to as this has unfolded. ⁣ ⁣ Those of us working in behavioral healthcare have watched people become more isolated, more anxious and more disconnected from treatment. People with preexisting mental health, substance abuse issues, or propensities toward domestic violence have become the secondary crisis. ⁣ ⁣ As the financial stability and overall health of our community continues to decline we brace for more desperation, higher suicide rates; ultimately more loss.⁣ ⁣ We are still here, still committed to navigating the best path to health, still trying to hold on to hope."⁣ ⁣ Thank you Jackie for commitment to helping others, and for being a part of the #SeeOurFrontliners portrait project. ⁣ ⁣ If you are a frontline or essential worker, or know anyone that is and would like participate in the project, please visit the link in my bio or go directly to my site https://www.stephanieewens.com/frontliners⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #thankyouessentialworkers #thankyoufrontliners #unsungheroes #supportfrontlineworkers #supportessentialworkers #thankyouessentialworkers #visualstorytelling #portraitsinspire #portraitmasters #coviddays #riarts #401love #visitrhodeisland #essentailworkersri #portraitsoffrontliners #stephanieewensphotography #portraitphotographer #doucumentaryportraitproject #seeourfrontliners #seeourfrontlinersri ⁣ ⁣ (at Providence, Rhode Island) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBdfijKHepT/?igshid=1g8u6v1ecfjr6

Meet Hoi See Tsao, MD, our first @Brown_Emergency employee being highlighted as part of my collaboration with Brown Emergency Medical Group and part of the #SeeOurFrontliners portrait project.⁣ ⁣ "As a pediatric emergency medicine physician, it has been my honor to take care of children and their families during this challenging time and to do my part in the fight against COVID-19.⁣ ⁣ At work, I have heard families share stories about their financial struggles, job insecurities, home-schooling difficulties and concerns about keeping their children safe. I have worried about the impact of these stressors on children and the serious illnesses that children are at risk for when they miss their vaccines or delay seeing a doctor when they get sick. On a personal front, I am worried about bringing this virus home to my family and loved ones, the risk of infection to myself and my colleagues, and what the “new normal” will look like in the workplace and the community.⁣ ⁣ However, I have also seen moments of joy, hope, resilience and humanity: the toddler who was scared and cried as soon as he saw me in my mask, face shield and gown, then smiled when I told him it was my new costume; or the child who came in for a broken arm who was excited to get out of the house to go on a “trip” to the hospital. I have been inspired by my colleagues and work family including the cafeteria workers, security, housekeeping, administrative staff, child life specialists, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and physicians! It truly takes a mountain of courage to leave their worries and troubles at home and come to work ready to give 150% to take care of patients and their families. ⁣ ⁣ To the community – just like we are here for you 24/7, thank you for being here for us. Thank you for your continued support, for hearing and responding to our need for PPE, for wearing your masks, and for social distancing! We are in this together!" - Hoi See Tsao, MD, Pediatric Emergency Medicine⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #brown_emergency @brown_emergency⁣ #thankyoufrontliners #unsungheroes #supportfrontlineworkers #riarts #seeourfrontliners #seeourfrontlinersri #documentaryphotography #visualstorytelling (at Providence, Rhode Island) https://www.instagram.com/p/CAsbSSTnXUc/?igshid=4oarv4dn32ln