Fear of childbirth does not always look like panic. Sometimes it shows up as silence, stoicism, anger, or a private sense that you have lost control of your own body and your own story. We sit down with nurse, midwife, and researcher Jonathan Dominguez Hernandez to talk about how digital storytelling in healthcare can help people make meaning from vulnerable moments, and why the process needs strong ethics when trauma is close to the surface. We break down his meta-synthesis findings and why narrative, ethics, and facilitation style can determine whether storytelling becomes support, advocacy, or too much.

Episode Key Messages

• Jonathan’s path from pediatric nursing to midwifery and public health research

• What it is like being a male midwife across countries and workplace cultures

• How digital storytelling training shaped Jonathan’s research direction

• Why he shifted from group workshops to one on one online storytelling

• Ethics, consent, ownership, and when stories can or cannot be shared

• How the meta-synthesis was built from qualitative studies and assessed for confidence

• Four key themes: re-authoring lived experience, processing emotions, ripple effects of empathy, gaining agency

• Trauma informed facilitation and the role of distress protocols

• What research misses when it ignores the narratives people borrow and retell

• How salutogenesis and sense of coherence guide narrative analysis in fear of childbirth

Other Links Mentioned

• Read this episode's blog post
• Read Jonathan's meta-synthesis from Frontiers in Digital Health
• Learn more about Jonathan's work

About Our Guest

​​Jonathan Dominguez Hernandez is a researcher, educator, and midwife specialising in public health, Evidence-Based practice, and qualitative health research. He currently works as a researcher and lecturer at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences, where his work focuses on sex- and gender-sensitive healthcare, perinatal mental health, and inclusive approaches to care. With a background that combines clinical practice, public health, law, and education, Jonathan has worked across the UK, Austria, Switzerland, and Spain in both frontline maternity care and academic leadership roles. His research explores how narratives and digital storytelling can support health and wellbeing, and he is particularly interested in translating research into practical, compassionate, and Evidence-Based guidelines for clinical practice. Alongside teaching and research, he contributes to international guideline development and interdisciplinary projects aimed at improving maternal and perinatal health outcomes. Jonathan is currently completing a PhD in Public Health at Lancaster University, focusing on dialogical narrative analysis and health-promoting storytelling in women’s reproductive health.

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One gesture can keep a patient in care. That’s the charge running through our conversation with Jack Bones, a transgender cancer survivor whose digital story takes us from a tense biopsy room to a stage where an audience of clinicians wiped away tears and leaned into hard, necessary dialogue. We walk through how a politicized identity collided with late-stage Hodgkin’s lymphoma, how bias nearly closed a door, and how a single act of compassion reopened it.

Episode Key Messages

• the craft of digital storytelling as patient advocacy

• bias in clinical encounters and its real-world risks

• the technician’s gesture that restored safety and trust

• workshop process from script to screening

• reactions at the BC Cancer Summit and productive dialogue

• reaching missing audiences in shame and stigma work

• plans to use film and allegory for future stories

• the ocean moment as a metaphor for freedom

• how stories support training, orientation and culture change

Other Links Mentioned

• Read this episode's blog post
• Watch Jack's digital story
• Jack created their digital story in a BC Cancer workshop facilitated by Krystle Schofield
• Check out Jack's work, Brassthorn Art

About Our Guest

Jackdaw Bones describes them self as an "eremite" and occasionally ventures out of their home in the woods to show the shiny things they've made, in true covid style.

They've been a practising artist ever since their youth, using the lenses of cameras and inks to explore ideas of self, relationships to the natural world, and the terror/joy of living.

Jack is a dropout from an art school that has since disappeared to make way for training industrial workers, though they consider their experiences with disastrous experiments over the years their most valuable teacher. They revel in the beautiful chaos of learning from other artists, from books, other artists, and fucking up. The process is where the joy lay for them, and indeed that joy is built into the foundation of every piece they make.

They are disabled, and a cancer survivor. They have worked hard over the years to get to the level where they can produce art without sacrificing their health, so while their pieces may not be perfect, the imperfection belies the passion, determination, joy, and gratitude they feel when practising.

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What if a two-minute story could change how a care team sees you? We dive into the power of short, first-person narratives to bring dignity, clarity, and warmth back into healthcare, especially in dementia care where behaviour, memory, and language can obscure the person beneath the chart. Lisa Joworski returns to share how Capturing Essence For Care has evolved from interviews into a connector hub for life story methods, linking digital storytellers, guided autobiographers, videographers, and families who want practical ways to preserve identity.

Episode Key Messages

• why capturing essence improves care and communication
• what digital storytelling is and why ownership stays with the storyteller
• creating clear elevator pitches and scripts that set expectations
• many paths to story including music, photos, writing and family podcasts
• building a connector hub for life story resources across methods
• Beth’s digital story, Story Slam and the impact of public sharing, Capturing Essence for Care Ep 21
• advocacy links to Waiting Room Revolution and practical workbooks, Capturing Essence for Care Ep 16
• VR training for person-centred communication and reading environments, Capturing Essence for Care Ep 17
• using AI for drafts while keeping the human voice
• prompts that unlock memory such as tattoos and scars
• upcoming projects and finding one’s voice with assertiveness

Other Links Mentioned

• Read this episode's blog post
• Watch Lisa's digital story
• Listen to Lisa's original Co-Created episode
• Get your ticket to the April 30th 2026 Story Slam

About Our Guest

Lisa Joworski works in Therapeutic Recreation and is a Life Story Resource who brings together storytellers, artists, musicians, advocates, people living with dementia, healthcare practitioners, and life story experts. Each conversation of her Capturing Essence for Care podcast offers insights and practical approaches for the beautiful ways we can honour our own stories and the stories of those we love—not just for memory's sake, but for the fullness of living and for the care we may one day need.

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Shame can feel like quicksand in medicine—silent, isolating, and relentless—yet it can also be a bridge that pulls us back to each other. We sit down with Dr. Will Bynum, family physician, researcher, and co-founder of The Shame Lab, and returning guest Dr. Daisy Dulay to unpack how shame shows up in training, practice, and leadership, and how storytelling turns private pain into collective insight and safer care. We explore how storytelling can help clinicians process, learn, and speak up as well as why small, honest stories can change safety and culture.

Episode Key Messages

• defining shame in clinical practice and identity

• adverse events as common yet hidden experiences

• digital storytelling as a scaffold for self-compassion

• post-story conversation as a driver of learning

• shame’s link to patient safety and help-seeking

• The Shame Lab’s training and shame compass

• barriers to engagement and gender dynamics

• sustaining the work and finding funding paths

• practical steps to start small and build culture

Other Links Mentioned

• Read this episode's blog post
• CMA's Canadian Conference on Physician Health
• Watch the Look Back conversation with Mike Lang about the CMA conference
• Watch Daisy's digital story
• Listen to Daisy's original podcast
• Go see Hannah Mumby's artwork
• Check out The Shame Space website

About Our Guest

Will Bynum, MD, PhD is an Associate Professor of Family Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine and a Veteran of the United States Air Force. He received his M.D. at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine in 2010, completed his residency with the US Air Force and received his Ph.D. in Health Professions Education at Maastricht University in the Netherlands in 2023, where defended his thesis entitled “Out of the shadows: a qualitative exploration of shame in medical learners”, which was awarded best Doctoral Dissertation by the Association for Medical Education in Europe. He has published and spoken widely on the topic of shame and is Co-Founder and Co-Director of The Shame Lab, which conducts research, develops training, and delivers consultancy to advance constructive engagement with shame in professional practice.

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What happens when a veterinary technician, end‑of‑life doula, and legacy specialist decides to put story at the centre of care and education? We sit down with Angie Turner to explore how digital storytelling can build resilience, clarify identity, and spark brave conversations in veterinary medicine.

Angie shares her path into facilitation through Common Language training, including the craft and care behind her first personal story and the decision to add a clear trigger warning for sensitive content. We talk about the power of mentorship inside the collective—archived continuing education sessions, peer feedback, and mentorship meetings that turn big questions into practical steps.

Episode Key Messages

• Angie’s path across vet tech, doula, and legacy practice

• training insights, first stories, and trigger warnings

• the Common Language Collective’s mentorship, continuing education, and peer learning

• two tracks: client legacies and veterinary resilience

• building a third‑year vet elective with practitioner panels

• student origin stories as reflective practice

• making a digital story about digital storytelling watch here

• practical ways to capture and share family histories

Other Links Mentioned

• Watch Angie's story, My Journey to Life Story Work
• Watch the video Angie inspired Kristy to make here
• Read this episode's blog post
• Check out Angie's website

About Our Guest

Angie Turner is a veterinary professional and digital storytelling facilitator who bridges clinical practice with narrative medicine. Through SOS Legacies, she helps veterinary professionals build resilience and strengthen their professional identity by capturing and sharing the stories that define the essence of their personal and professional journeys. By combining years of experience as a veterinary technical instructor with expertise in legacy preservation and digital storytelling, Angie creates pathways for practitioners to process their experiences, connect with purpose, and sustain their passion for animal care in an emotionally demanding field.

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A preemie parent and digital storytelling facilitator, who just happens to also host the Co-Created podcast, Kristy Wolfe, shares how a simple bedtime ritual became a lens for resilience, advocacy, and neurodevelopmental care, weaving Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) experience into digital stories that move clinicians and empower families. We show how short films, crafted with consent and care, can change practice, spark equity conversations, and help kids speak for themselves.

Episode Key Messages

• why stories carry what data cannot
• how a two to four minute digital story influences conferences and policy
• Kane’s voice on pacemakers, echocardiograms and hospital Lego
• reflection prompts for clinicians to change practice
• consent and whose story gets told
• the four-phase Common Language digital storytelling method
• process versus product goals in advocacy and education
• readiness, emotional safety and caregiver well-being
• practical ways to bring neurodevelopmental care into daily life

Other Links Mentioned

• Watch the full Preemie Chat episode
• Watch Hugs & Bugs
• Watch Kane's Story
• Read this episode's blog post
• Learn more about Canadian Premature Babies Foundation's Preemie Chats

About Our Guest (aka the Co-Created host!)

Kristy Wolfe is a digital storytelling facilitator and owner of Kristy Wolfe Stories. She believes there is beauty in every story and she champions real stories in marketing and communication. Kristy exposes the human side of any organization, with consideration for ethics in storytelling, as well as storyteller wellness every step of the way. As a Common Language DST certified facilitator and trainer, Kristy helps individuals and social purpose organizations share meaningful stories, turning their unique experiences into compelling narratives that inspire action. Kristy shares some of her own lived experiences within the context of each workshop she facilitates to validate that authenticity, openness, and vulnerability are essential to creating meaningful digital stories.

Fabiana Bacchini is the Executive Director of the Canadian Premature Babies Foundation. She is a journalist and the published author of From Surviving to Thriving, a Mother’s Journey Through Infertility, Loss and Miracles.

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If you’re a parent navigating loss, a health professional seeking empathy-building tools, or a changemaker curious about narrative practices, you’ll find practical insights on peer support, ritual, and the craft of story in our conversation with Gillian Hatto. Gillian is mom to Hazel, Elliot, Lily, and Olive and she opens up about how sudden child loss upended her world and how she found her way to community and purpose. She shares the origin of Hazel’s Heroes, a free Alberta retreat for bereaved parents. We also open the door on digital storytelling: how a guided workshop, a story circle, and careful editing help distill a life-altering experience into a two-to-four minute film. Gillian describes the nerves of drafting, the surprise of supportive feedback, and the power of pairing voice with images to say what words alone can’t. These personal films now live on websites and in small gatherings, helping families explain the why behind their work and giving clinicians and communities a tool to listen better.

Episode Key Messages

• defining SIDS and the shift to undetermined terminology

• founding Hazel’s Heroes and designing an annual retreat

• how peer support reduces isolation and builds language for grief

• the digital storytelling process from draft to story circle to edit

• using short films as advocacy, education and legacy

• carrying grief and joy at the same time

• the ladybug symbol as a living thread to memory

• links to SIDS Calgary Society and Hazel’s Heroes for support

Other Links Mentioned

• Watch Gillian’s digital story
• Read this episode's blog post

About Our Guest

Gillian Hatto is mother to Hazel, Elliott, Lily, and Olive. She holds two of her children in her arms, and two of her children in her heart. Gillian is the founder of Hazel’s Heroes, a non-profit society that hosts annual retreats for mothers who are grieving the loss of a young child. She is also the Vice-Chair of SIDS Calgary Society. Gillian has found so much healing through the relationships she has made with other grieving parents, as they are the only ones who truly ‘get it’ and that inspired her to create a space for other bereaved mothers to feel supported and understood. When Gillian is not planning for an upcoming retreat or fundraiser, she is working as a Learning Support Teacher for students with disabilities in an elementary school. She can also be found walking her gentle giant, Maigs, or snuggling on the couch with her earth-side children, Elliott and Olive.

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