This week, Micheline and Sibyl take a deep dive into nursing stereotypes, focusing primarily on "the mean girl to nurse pipeline" meme and "the mom" stereotypes. How do these stereotypes put nurses in boxes? What challenges exist for nurses to identify outside of said stereotypes? And how do these stereotypes discount the skills, labor, and intellectual aspects of nursing? We talk about all that and more!

CW: Discussions of mental health that may be sensitive to listeners.

On today's episode, we are joined by Dr. Sunita Sah to learn about her groundbreaking research on influence, authority, trust, compliance, and defiance, and discuss her bestselling book: Defy: How to Speak Up When It Matters.

“Why is it so hard to speak up, even when we know something’s wrong?” For nurses and for everyone, Dr. Sah answers that question by sharing the research behind compliance vs. defiance, reframing acts of defiance, and giving strategies on how to take action.

It's a fantastic conversation, and we are so thankful to Dr. Sah for sharing her expertise with us! Highly encourage listeners to read Defy, and you can also visit SunitaSah.com for more of her fascinating work.

This week, Sam Calvin stopped by to discuss decision fatigue with us. Sam gives us the basics on how decision fatigue develops, its impact on caregivers, particularly nurses, and how it can lead to burnout. We talk about how decision fatigue is a natural and expected response to sustained cognitive load, so Sam offers practical advice for mitigating its effects in a high-stress profession like nursing. Big thanks to Sam for his expertise!