How do childhood trauma, relationships, and our environments shape who we become? Reflecting on my experiences growing up in foster care, I explore the biopsychosocial model, emotional healing, the importance of supportive relationships, and how one school social worker helped me recognize my dignity and worth.

What happens when foster care support ends before a young person is ready for independence? Drawing from my personal experience aging out of foster care and a 2017 conversation with Karen Bass, I explore California's AB 12 legislation, the challenges facing transition-age foster youth, and why lived experience must help shape social work policy and advocacy.

How do childhood experiences, family separation, poverty, and discrimination shape who we become? Through a life history interview, I explore the connections between adversity, attachment, resilience, and identity—and reflect on what one woman's remarkable story taught me about human development and social work.