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Throughout our formal education and extending into our professional careers, most of us will have participated in some form of mandatory surveys, ranging from feedback for thought leaders to problem-solving conflict resolutions. You provide your thoughts and opinions... then what? The ideal is change happens. But how is the gathered information and data used? Is it even used, or is it a practice of tokenism? The unfortunate truth is it takes more effort to make change than it does surveying opinions and thoughts. In S5E22, Leen and Harjit discuss the consequences of truthful surveys.

Awareness of your inner child can bring more fulfilled, lighter, carefree years during adulthood. Inner Child Work is healing childhood experiences and recognizing how those experiences come out in the way we behave and react as adults. Reconnecting with one’s inner child is evaluating and healing the parts of one’s self that perhaps didn’t get attention during childhood. In S5E21, Margaux and Harjit reflect on their childhoods, and how their experiences have carried with them through the way they interact with patients and their careers in medicine.

SisterSong—leader of the reproductive justice movement—defines reproductive justice as "the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities." But how do systems of oppression such as racism, ableism, and sexism, make it harder for some to access reproductive care? In S5E20, Lina and Hạ talk with Juliette Friedland, co-chair for diversity and inclusion at Optum UnitedHealth, about the disadvantages and inequalities of reproductive health, and the history and future of obstetrics and gynecology.

Discovering where you come from contributes to knowing where you're heading. We are built from the generations before us—our mothers and grandmothers before them—through their sacrifices, pain, and all they've had to endure. Each mother loves and nurtures differently, and sometimes that love and nurture are affected by historical and cultural complexities. In S5E19, Hạ, Harjit, and Margaux dedicate a tribute to the matriarchs of their lives, sharing stories of generations prior and reflect on how they are shaped by the narratives of their ancestors.

Raising children is a community effort, but our society can make us feel we should be able to do it successfully alone. But the instincts are not always natural, and the expectations are not always met. And the advice you receive may not be the help you need. Matrescence—the physical, mental, and emotional transition into motherhood—comes differently to different women. Returning from parental leave, in S5E18, Margaux talks to Dr. Manpreet Kaur about the support network needed during the postpartum period, and how their knowledge of medicine and being working physicians contributes to their new roles as mothers.

Asian Americans are often stereotyped as educated, thriving, intelligent—"model minorities" who are perceived as achieving higher degrees of socioeconomic success to accomplish the American Dream. But stereotypes of the model minority, while seemingly positive, can cause damage and harm to the demographic. The often invisibility of anti-Asian racism and hate crimes are indistinguishably connected to the model minority myth. In S5E17, Hạ talks to fellow medical student and Asian-American Derek Chang about how increases in anti-Asian hate crimes have affected their Asian identities, and reflects on their experiences growing up and living under the model minority myth.

Oxford English Dictionary defines masculinity as "Qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men." Societies and cultures have long built the image of what a man should say, should feel, should be, and it is often projected in a way that is opposite of what it means to be a woman. In S5E16, Harjit and Mariam talk to medical students Sajjad Askaryar and Neil Sahasrabudhe about challenging societal and cultural definitions and standards of what it means to be a man, and embodying masculine traits in a way that is healthy and authentic to their own identities.

You probably wouldn't say "hip hop" and "health care" in the same sentence. But despite their surface differences, hip hop ties into health care's disparities. Hip hop is a form of resistance, voices of the unheard—it is a culture that is so often appropriated and viewed in a lesser-than lens because its origins come from a place in society that normally does not hold power. In S5E15, Harjit and Hạ discuss growing up among hip hop cultures, the influences the genre has had on their lives, and how it impacts their patient/provider interactions.

The Black Experience should be celebrated every day, not just during Black History Month. Through traumas and adversities, there are also successes and excellence that are worth highlighting and uplifting in our everyday conversations. But to round out this year's Black History Month, on a special episode, Lina and Harjit talk to Juliette Friedland and Liese Rodger about their lived experiences as Black women, and share thoughts on how to elevate and listen to Black voices—remembering the history, living the present, and striving for the future.

Student-run clinics are one of the most comprehensive examples of experiential learning in medical school education—and in combination, are meant to provide primary care services to underserved communities. But the structure of student-run clinics can create a moral dilemma between experiential learning and empowering patients for their better health. In S5E13, Hạ and Harjit talk to medical student Siale Teaupa about the flaws of student-run clinics and providing health care for underserved and uninsured patients with an anti-racist, equity, and inclusive lens.

Across identities and ethnicities, sexual liberation can look different to different people. But, the expectations, objectification, and sexualization placed onto women from societal pressures to appeal to the standard norm are common. And, on top of power-dynamic struggles, the narrative around sex-positivity for women of color can be very different from some of the mainstream feminist conversations. In S5E12, Harjit, Lina, and Mariam talk about how the sexualization of those who identify as women impacts our life stories, and the importance of unapologetically exploring your sexuality on your own terms.

With its high-stress environment, medical school can be an isolating experience. The competitive nature of medicine can sometimes make it difficult to foster authentic relationships that offer support and add to your overall well-being. When you think about a true, wholesome friendship—what does it entail? In S5E11, Leen, Harjit, and Lina talk about how their views on friendships have changed as they've grown into their own identities, and the importance of creating and maintaining authentic relationships in medicine.

Afghanistan is a region that, for years, has made headlines of war—but is often overlooked in its culture, beauty, and people. In S5E10, Mariam talks to fellow medical students Lilly Kanishka and Sajjad Askaryar about their experiences balancing their identities as Afghan-Americans in medicine, and reclaiming what it means to be Afghan in reshaping the narrative that is often perpetuated.

How does a health care system ensure the population it serves gets the care it needs? The intentions of cultural competency may begin with wanting to deliver trauma-informed care to diverse communities, but the assumed generalization of a group of people can lead to ignored identities among individual patients. In S5E9, Lina, Hạ, and Mariam talk about the flaws of cultural competency in the patient/provider relationship, and learning cultural humility to make health care patient-centered.

There's a misconception from society that we need to be self-made to be successful. But so many of us are community-made. Communities lift us to be better versions of ourselves—and for some, are the driving forces behind our achievements. In the first episode of 2022, Hạ, Leen, Lina, and Mariam talk about finding yourself through passions and dreams, and deliberate on who we would have become without our communities.

A lot of society tells us that some people can be angry and others can't—and that rage is an emotion often associated with certain stereotypes. But just because someone else can't understand your rage doesn't mean it's not real. Rage is our lived experiences and the policing of people's rage can be used as a tool of oppression. In S5E7, Harjit, Hạ, Leen, and Lina talk about the definition of radical rage, and how to move forward with rage in a healthy way to strengthen the power that may have been taken from you.

Confidence is often said to be a characteristic of a leader. "You need to work on your confidence" if you want others to take you seriously. But is there a correct way to be confident? And when does showcasing what others may perceive as confidence interfere with your authentic identity? In S5E6, Leen, Harjit, and Mariam talk about the different forms of confidence, and the toll it can create trying to live up to other people's standard of confidence.

Research should be about pushing the boundaries of knowledge—and when done well, is built out of community and collaboration. It should not be about outshining one another. But so often in the field of medicine, the pressures to be published are attached to career gains and advancements. In S5E5, Margaux, Hạ, Harjit, and Lina talk about navigating being in a system of quantity over quality, and going back to the authentic root of gathering data and conducting research for knowledge.

There's a skewed mindset that we need to give 100% all the time. But there's strength in admitting you're not at full capacity—even momentarily—and a break is needed. That's when community matters. Concluding the comeback of our IDENTITY SERIES—a three-parter exploring who we are as human beings—in S5E4, Lina talks to Noor Mashal about the strengths and struggles of their shared identity as Palestinians, and how the Israel–Palestine conflict impacts their personal and professional lives in medicine.

Living as a minority in America, there can be pressures to conform and fit in with the majority. Continuing our IDENTITY SERIES—a three-parter exploring who we are as human beings—in S5E3, Mariam and Harjit talk about the complexities of being first-generation/immigrants in America, and how assimilation has impacted their experiences in both their personal and professional lives.