The Dignity Lab

Join the dialogue - text your questions, insights, and feedback to The Dignity Lab podcast.

In this episode of the Dignity Lab, Jennifer explores the complex relationship between Thanksgiving and dignity, particularly in relation to Indigenous peoples. She discusses the true meaning of gratitude, differentiating between superficial forms of gratitude and a deeper, transformative practice that honors both ourselves and others. Through this exploration, she emphasizes the importance of recognizing genuine kindness and the full spectrum of human experience.
Takeaways

• The modern Thanksgiving celebration often overlooks the dignity of Indigenous peoples.
• Gratitude can be understood as both a tool and a virtue.
• Comparative gratitude can lead to a harmful mindset that limits gratitude to only times in which others suffer.
• Social or performative gratitude does not reflect true feelings or experiences.
• Prescribing gratitude to those in pain can violate their dignity.
• True gratitude emerges from acceptance and recognition of kindness and acknowledges both challenges and gifts in life.
• Recognizing goodness in others honors their dignity and our shared humanity.

Exploring what it means to live and lead with dignity at work, in our families, in our communities, and in the world. What is dignity? How can we honor the dignity of others? And how can we repair and reclaim our dignity after harm? Tune in to hear stories about violations of dignity and ways in which we heal, forgive, and make choices about how we show up in a chaotic and fractured world. Hosted by physician and coach Jennifer Griggs.
For more information on the podcast, please visit www.thedignitylab.com.
For more information on podcast host Dr. Jennifer Griggs, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/.
For additional free resources, including the periodic table of dignity elements, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/resources/.
The Dignity Lab is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will receive 10% of the purchase price when you click through and make a purchase. This supports our production and hosting costs. Bookshop.org doesn’t earn money off bookstore sales, all profits go to independent bookstores. We encourage our listeners to purchase books through Bookshop.org for this reason.

Join the dialogue - text your questions, insights, and feedback to The Dignity Lab podcast.

This episode of The Dignity Lab features an interview with Tess Carichner, a senior honors nursing student at the University of Michigan who is minoring in disability studies and global health. Tess is the founder of Disability Justice @ Michigan and lead editor of the anthology Accessing Disability Culture. Tess discusses her work in disability health equity and disability justice. She shares her personal experiences growing up in an inter-abled family and her perspective on disability as an identity. The conversation covers various aspects of disability, including visible and invisible disabilities, the importance of dignity in healthcare, and the challenges faced by the disability community.
Takeaways

• Disability is a dynamic and diverse concept that includes physical disabilities, neurodivergence, and chronic illnesses.
• Dignity in disability healthcare involves preserving autonomy, self-determination, and recognizing the importance of individuals' needs.
• Diagnostic overshadowing can lead to healthcare providers dismissing concerns of disabled patients, emphasizing the need for comprehensive primary care.
• Visible and invisible disabilities present different challenges in terms of disclosure, accommodations, and societal perceptions.
• Disability justice involves cross-disability solidarity, representation, and challenging ableist systems.
• The anthology Accessing Disability Culture provides a platform for disabled students to share their experiences and create representation.
• Intersectionality is crucial in understanding the compounded effects of multiple axes of oppression on disabled individuals.
• Non-disabled people can contribute to combating ableism by recognizing the humanity of disabled individuals and creating inclusive communities

Exploring what it means to live and lead with dignity at work, in our families, in our communities, and in the world. What is dignity? How can we honor the dignity of others? And how can we repair and reclaim our dignity after harm? Tune in to hear stories about violations of dignity and ways in which we heal, forgive, and make choices about how we show up in a chaotic and fractured world. Hosted by physician and coach Jennifer Griggs.
For more information on the podcast, please visit www.thedignitylab.com.
For more information on podcast host Dr. Jennifer Griggs, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/.
For additional free resources, including the periodic table of dignity elements, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/resources/.
The Dignity Lab is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will receive 10% of the purchase price when you click through and make a purchase. This supports our production and hosting costs. Bookshop.org doesn’t earn money off bookstore sales, all profits go to independent bookstores. We encourage our listeners to purchase books through Bookshop.org for this reason.

Join the dialogue - text your questions, insights, and feedback to The Dignity Lab podcast.

In this episode of The Dignity Lab, Melissa Anne Rogers, an associate pastor and trained marriage and family therapist, shares her journey with grief, both personal and professional. Drawing from her experiences of losing her high school sweetheart and later her husband, she discusses how grief is fundamentally an expression of love rather than something to overcome. Rogers emphasizes the importance of giving grief its proper dignity, understanding its various forms, and recognizing it as a transformative lifelong journey rather than a temporary phase to be exiled.
Episode Resources

• A Hole in the World: Finding Hope in Rituals of Grief and Healing by Amanda Held Opelt
• The Cure for Sorrow: A Book of Blessings for Times of Grief by Jan Richardson
• Grief Is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss by Lisa Keefauver
• Lost & Found: Reflections on Grief, Gratitude, and Happiness by Kathryn Schulz
• The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
• When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi
• The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and Dying, Nina Riggs
• Spirituality of Grief: Ten Practices For Those Who Remain by Fran Tilton Shelton

Takeaways

• Grief is fundamentally an expression of love, not something to overcome or avoid
• Avoiding grief can lead to anger, depression, and living a less full life
• External barriers to grieving include workplace policies, family expectations, and societal pressures
• Internal barriers include physical fatigue, cultural conditioning, and gender socialization
• Grief is transformative and should be integrated into life rather than treated as a temporary phase
• Understanding grief requires both personal experience and education about different types (disenfranchised, ambiguous, complicated)
• Children grieve differently than adults and may process loss over many years
• Substances, excessive busyness, and other numbing behaviors can

Exploring what it means to live and lead with dignity at work, in our families, in our communities, and in the world. What is dignity? How can we honor the dignity of others? And how can we repair and reclaim our dignity after harm? Tune in to hear stories about violations of dignity and ways in which we heal, forgive, and make choices about how we show up in a chaotic and fractured world. Hosted by physician and coach Jennifer Griggs.
For more information on the podcast, please visit www.thedignitylab.com.
For more information on podcast host Dr. Jennifer Griggs, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/.
For additional free resources, including the periodic table of dignity elements, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/resources/.
The Dignity Lab is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will receive 10% of the purchase price when you click through and make a purchase. This supports our production and hosting costs. Bookshop.org doesn’t earn money off bookstore sales, all profits go to independent bookstores. We encourage our listeners to purchase books through Bookshop.org for this reason.

Join the dialogue - text your questions, insights, and feedback to The Dignity Lab podcast.

Episode Resources

• Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
• Filled to be Emptied: The Path to Liberation for Privileged People, by Brandan J. Robertson
• For Her Own Good: 150 Years of the Experts’ Advice to Women, by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English
• How Not to Be Afraid: Seven Ways to Live When Everything Seems Terrifying, by Gareth Higgins
• Room at the Table: A Leader's Guide to Advancing Health Equity and Justice, by Renée Branch Canady

Exploring what it means to live and lead with dignity at work, in our families, in our communities, and in the world. What is dignity? How can we honor the dignity of others? And how can we repair and reclaim our dignity after harm? Tune in to hear stories about violations of dignity and ways in which we heal, forgive, and make choices about how we show up in a chaotic and fractured world. Hosted by physician and coach Jennifer Griggs.
For more information on the podcast, please visit www.thedignitylab.com.
For more information on podcast host Dr. Jennifer Griggs, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/.
For additional free resources, including the periodic table of dignity elements, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/resources/.
The Dignity Lab is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will receive 10% of the purchase price when you click through and make a purchase. This supports our production and hosting costs. Bookshop.org doesn’t earn money off bookstore sales, all profits go to independent bookstores. We encourage our listeners to purchase books through Bookshop.org for this reason.

Join the dialogue - text your questions, insights, and feedback to The Dignity Lab podcast.

Mary Heinen McPherson, a survivor of domestic violence, shares her experiences with the injustices of the prison system and the role of art in reclaiming dignity. She advocates for incarcerated people and prison reform, using her own experiences to support formerly incarcerated individuals. Mary discusses the power of art, theater, and writing in healing and returning home. She emphasizes the importance of reclaiming dignity through advocacy, activism, and retelling one's own story. The conversation explores themes of justice, freedom, power, healing, and the violation and reclamation of dignity.
Episode Resources

• More about Mary Heinen
• Adolescent Maturity and the Brain: The Promise and Pitfalls of Neuroscience Research in Adolescent Health Policy
• Augusto Boal was heavily influenced by Paulo Freire's educational philosophy, especially his seminal work "Pedagogy of the Oppressed."
• More about Buzz Alexander
• More about the Prison Creative Arts Program
• PCAP’s Michigan Review of Prisoner Creative Writing

Takeaways

• Art, including theater and writing, plays a crucial role in reclaiming dignity and healing from the harms of the prison system.
• Advocacy and activism are essential in addressing the injustices and disparities within the correctional system.
• Reclaiming dignity involves retelling one's own story and becoming the subject rather than the object of harm.
• The power of art lies in making the invisible visible and creating freedom through movement and expression.

Exploring what it means to live and lead with dignity at work, in our families, in our communities, and in the world. What is dignity? How can we honor the dignity of others? And how can we repair and reclaim our dignity after harm? Tune in to hear stories about violations of dignity and ways in which we heal, forgive, and make choices about how we show up in a chaotic and fractured world. Hosted by physician and coach Jennifer Griggs.
For more information on the podcast, please visit www.thedignitylab.com.
For more information on podcast host Dr. Jennifer Griggs, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/.
For additional free resources, including the periodic table of dignity elements, please visit https://jennifergriggs.com/resources/.
The Dignity Lab is an affiliate of Bookshop.org and will receive 10% of the purchase price when you click through and make a purchase. This supports our production and hosting costs. Bookshop.org doesn’t earn money off bookstore sales, all profits go to independent bookstores. We encourage our listeners to purchase books through Bookshop.org for this reason.