As families, communities and nations navigate the physical, emotional, social and financial challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, I want to share my thoughts as a […]
Blog
Coronavirus Pandemic: A Women’s Health Issue
Pandemics – diseases that spread throughout populations – highlight and exacerbate social inequalities. Who is most exposed to pathogens and who is able to avoid […]
The “Harmfuls” of Shame-based Drug Treatment Programs
The “Harmfuls” exercise pasted in below was sent to me by my friend Grace Fogarty. She currently lives in a residential substance abuse treatment program […]
Buy Pink to Support Breast Cancer? Pinktober 2019 Round-up
The pink ribbon extravaganza — a month-long consumer fest that turns women’s fear and pain into cold hard cash. This year I’ve collected a few of […]
Living in a House of Cards: The Women of Can’t Catch a Break
For more than a decade I have been working with women who experience(d) extreme poverty, chronic illness, criminalization and abuse (see the book Can’t Catch […]
Eulogy for Kahtia
Kahtia passed away last week. Her death was sudden, unexpected, still unexplained. Her husband found her lying in bed, unresponsive, when he came home from […]
Kahtia: Loving mother, Faithful friend, Brilliant and funny woman. You left us too soon.
Dear Friends of the Women of Can’t Catch a Break I am writing to share devastating news. My dear dear friend “Kahtia” passed away on […]
How Opioid Abuse Took Root In Weymouth – And What Can Be Done About It
For a copy of the report contact Susan Sered: ssered@suffolk.edu In 2018 I conducted research in Weymouth, Massachusetts, a town hit hard by the current opioid […]
Farewell Isabella
I never thought I’d have to write this eulogy for Isabella. Even though she struggled with addiction and a host of other challenges, Isabella always […]
Institutional Betrayal: Roots of the Opioid Crisis
In an April 2018 post (Gender, Race, Class and the Root Causes of the Opioid Crisis) I laid out data indicating that the opioid crisis […]
Can’t Catch a Break: September 2018 Update
Over the past year life seems to have settled down for quite a few of the formerly incarcerated Massachusetts women whom I first met a […]
Babes From Their Parents’ Arms
My friend and colleague Lois Ahrens’ recent piece in the Daily Hampshire Gazette reminded me that in this time of outrage over the separation of children […]