- 2 days ago
How can you advocate for yourself and your loved ones when you go to a doctor’s office? Knowing your health risks, asking questions, and making sure you get the care you need is key. This conversation shares real stories and practical tips on how to take control of your health, face common challenges, and get support from both healthcare providers and your community.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Well, thank you. Thank you for joining all of us today as we discuss black health empowerment,
00:07advocating for yourself, and advocating for your community. Health is collective,
00:13health is cultural, and health is generational. And when you empower yourself and take care of
00:19your well-being, you strengthen your family, you uplift your community, and you actually lay the
00:26groundwork for future generations. At Pfizer, patients are at the heart of everything that we
00:32do. And that's from the earliest stages of our development, through clinical trials,
00:39through the approval of our medicines, and all the way through the use of our medicines. We are
00:44listening to patients, patient advocates, and caregivers. And we have been doing this at Pfizer
00:50for 175 years. And our work doesn't just end with the innovation and the science. It's all about
00:59doing work with patient advocates around public policy, which I know that you've heard a lot
01:04about today, and also social impact issues. And this conversation is important because so many
01:11of these issues over-impact, disproportionately impact African Americans. And we're aiming to
01:17close this gap by helping ensure that you have the resources you need to advocate for yourself
01:23and your loved ones. So let's get into it. It's important for us to center the patient
01:27in everything that we do. And with me today, we have three phenomenal panelists who are dedicated to
01:34advocating for black health after their own personal experiences with health care. Please note that
01:41these panelists are being paid for their time. Their views are their own and do not necessarily
01:46reflect Pfizer's views. So I'm going to one last time introduce our phenomenal panel, and then we'll
01:52get into the conversation. So we've got Latoya Dennis, who is the founder and CEO of the non-profit
01:59A Chance to Learn. She founded her non-profit, which focuses on transforming the lives of children
02:05and families through comprehensive early education, empowering parent engagement programs, and essential
02:12perinatal health support. And we've got Candace Henley. She is the chief surviving officer and founder
02:20of the non-profit Blue Hat Foundation. She founded the non-profit after being diagnosed with colon cancer
02:26at age 35 to raise colorectal cancer awareness in communities of color through culturally relevant
02:33education, storytelling, and advocacy. And we have Kadeen Ellis. Kadeen is an actress, podcast host,
02:42wife, and mother of four. She's openly shared her personal health journey and how it shaped her
02:48advocacy for mental health support and maternal self-care. So each of you women has a personal
02:56story that is fueling your drive to help others. Latoya, let's start with you. Can you tell us a bit
03:02about your health journey? And it'd be great if you could share a couple of pivotal moments that you
03:06had along the way. Yeah, absolutely. Hey, beautiful people. So advocacy saved my life twice. I had five
03:17miscarriages and the fifth one nearly killed me. The hospital said had I made it to the hospital five
03:25minutes later, I wouldn't be here. So my husband and I decided that we didn't want to have children
03:30and a friend recommended we see another doctor. Upon our first visit, she asked, she phoned my doctor
03:37and said, did you happen to do an autopsy on the fetus to determine why she had miscarried? I didn't
03:43know you can do that. But she ran a series of tests on my body to determine that I was miscarrying
03:51because I lacked progesterone and the baby needed the progesterone to live. So we got pregnant,
03:58she prescribed progesterone, all was well. Fast forward three and a half months into the pregnancy,
04:05I started having miscarriage symptoms again. We go to the hospital and they say,
04:11you've lost your baby. You need to go to the doctor to get a DNC. We go to the doctor. My husband was in
04:19the room, advocacy number one in the room. And my doctor said, well, Latoya, I'm so sorry. Let's just
04:26go across the street to do the DNC. And he said, can we not do a DNC? It'll be the sixth DNC within two
04:36years. We don't know what that's doing to her body. The doctor said, well, if the sac is intact, we have
04:42to do it. But if not, she'll be fine. It'll pass. They did a vaginal sonogram to find that the hospital
04:51had made a mistake. There my baby was kicking and moving. And had I walked across the street,
04:57I would have aborted my baby. We named him Chance because God gave him a chance at life.
05:04Thank you. Fast forward, you guys. I am on bed rest, diagnosed with gestational diabetes and
05:14preeclampsia. Had an emergency C-section nearly two months before Chance was due. We were fine in the
05:23hospital about seven days. Not even seven days after being released, I'm in the bed laying down. My body
05:31starts seizing and releasing fluid. Advocacy number two. My husband called 911 and they said,
05:40check her blood pressure. He did. It was high. Gave me apple cider vinegar and water.
05:46I find out that I nearly died. The leading cause of death for black women postpartum is gestational
05:56diabetes and preeclampsia. And what happens is your body starts seizing, releasing fluid, and you die.
06:04Advocacy is so important. It's so important for us to have somebody in the room. And if we can't,
06:11ladies, make sure that you're asking questions. Not until you get an answer, but until you understand.
06:19Ask about that morbidity and what it means. And then write it down. Take notes. Not to build a case,
06:25but to better advocate for yourself. Should someone else go with you, you'll be able to tell them
06:30exactly what the doctor said. So it saved my life twice. Thank you. Thank you, LaToya. And I'm going
06:36to repeat what you just said. Ask questions, not just until you get the answers, but ask questions
06:43until you understand. That's how you advocate for yourself. And then the second thing that we heard
06:49is that if possible, have an advocate with you in person or on the telephone. And I'll say we have
06:55at Pfizer a couple of different tools that help you advocate for yourself. We've got a doctor
07:00discussion guide that is on our platform, PfizerForAll.com, where you can anticipate questions
07:06that you should ask your doctor. And for those who want to go down the hall to the Pfizer booth,
07:12we've got health journals so that you can document some of your health information.
07:15They're super cute. You should go grab one. And then I'll just ask Candice real fast.
07:21You've also got some thoughts about how to record your health information.
07:25Oh, absolutely. So often there's a tool that we're not utilizing to the fullest degree,
07:30and that is your patient portal. The patient portal is a very important tool that you can use to
07:35communicate with your doctor, even when you can't get them on the phone. And a lot of times they
07:39usually respond a lot faster through the patient portal than they do on the phone. So utilize those tools
07:44and make sure it, you know, it keeps your summary of your doctor's visits as well as any medications
07:50that you have. So it's a very useful tool to communicate any questions that you may have
07:54after your visit. Yeah. Great. Great. And Kadine and I were having a side chat over here because
07:59we both use our... Co-signing. Yes.
08:01Yes. Patient portal. Patient portal. So Kadine, what did your childbirth experience teach you
08:08about advocacy? So I have four sons and it's funny, I always knew that I wanted to be a mother.
08:17That was at the very top of my list before everything else. And when I started dating my
08:22husband and of course we got married and decided to have children, I was so impressed and it was
08:27actually kind of romantic to see how invested he was in the process with me. So he was doing a lot
08:34of research as my spouse because he really genuinely wanted to understand everything I was going
08:41through in this moment, right? It was our first time having a baby, first time pregnant, experiencing
08:46this together. So I was really impressed to see that not only was he reading the books with me and
08:51watching the videos, but he was doing it on his own as well to the point where there were certain
08:55things happening to my body or I was feeling and he would like jump in and say, hey, that's happening
09:01because at this phase, the baby needs this and you need more of that. So it was just really,
09:06really nice to have someone who was so invested in the journey alongside me. And it became very
09:12important how that process and how he showed up for me. It became so important after having my first
09:19son because we got to the hospital, I was induced. I had elevated liver enzymes. So because of that,
09:26and they didn't know where that was coming from, I had to be induced. After getting a really botched
09:31epidural job, I delivered my son. And after the baby was delivered, a lot of the attention went to
09:37him because we knew in utero that he had a clubbed foot. So the doctors, a lot of the pediatric staff
09:44went immediately over to the baby, but my OBGYN had stepped out of the room for a moment and my
09:50husband noticed that I was bleeding profusely. And he kind of summons to my mom, who was also a nurse
09:57at the time. And she's like, that doesn't look normal. So both my mom and my husband went to get
10:02the doctor. I was literally bleeding out at this point, had to go under emergency surgery, which was
10:08of course, super scary because you make a birthing plan and you think you know what's supposed to
10:12happen. And then when the unknown happens or that rare situation happens, it's very off-putting. And of
10:19course, it's scary. So when my doctor finally figured out what happened, it turned out that I had an
10:25internal vaginal wall tear and I had to get 27 stitches in order to stop the bleeding and to
10:33pretty much be mended together again. So after that, I realized had my husband and my mom in that moment
10:40not been attentive and not went to call for the doctor, I would have been borderline transfusion
10:45or having to stay in the hospital for a longer amount of time. I didn't spend the first day with
10:50my baby because I was in recovery after surgery. So in that moment, because I could not advocate for
10:56myself, it really let me know the importance of having a spouse or a family member who was able to
11:02advocate for me. Fast forward after baby number two and number three, I had baby number four at home with
11:09a midwife. And that was a really great environment because it was at home. It felt very natural. I had
11:15gotten over the trauma of the first baby because clearly I had two and three and four. So proud of
11:21you, by the way. If I was that traumatized, Jackson would be an only child, you know. But I went back
11:26again and again and again. So after my fourth son, I then found myself in another situation where I had
11:33to, again, have someone advocate for me. I had a severe headache postpartum, nine days, thinking it was
11:39just fatigue. I'm tired. I had a baby. I'm up nursing at night. Then this headache wouldn't go away.
11:45My midwife was like, FaceTime me. Let me see your hands and your feet. They were swollen.
11:49Check your blood pressure. My blood pressure was 202 over like 197. It was ridiculous. So I was
11:57borderline seizure, had to be rushed to the ER. In the ER, my husband was then again rallying behind
12:03me to make sure that the hospital staff was attentive because far too many times black women end up in
12:08situations where they write off a headache and just say, you're just tired. Oh, that's normal. That comes with
12:14the territory. And it let me know in that moment that these things are not normal. And I'm happy
12:19for spaces like this. So thank you to Pfizer and to you ladies for giving us a space to have these
12:25conversations. Yeah. And thank you for that. I mean, what a story. And, you know, you said a couple
12:33things about advocacy. First of all, you have an advocate who was along for the whole journey,
12:38right? A very educated advocate in your husband, but as well as your mother and an advocate who
12:45helped you get past second guessing what things might be or others in the room helping second
12:49guess. Because I do think it's human nature to say that's not, not, that's nothing at all. So having
12:54an advocate who's like, no, no, no, I know you and I, I know the situation. So yeah. So thank you.
12:59So Candace, let's move over to your story. I'm here. It's a little bit different. Yes. When you
13:06were diagnosed with colon cancer, you were 35 years old. Yes. And a mother of five children. Yes.
13:14Most people think that colon cancer impacts older men. Yes. So what is it that you want the folks who
13:21are watching virtually and the folks who are in this room to understand about colon cancer? Well,
13:26first of all, it is uncommon to be diagnosed with colon cancer at 35. And for me, I was preparing
13:32for my first bodybuilding contest. And so I want to say to you that you're healthy until you're not.
13:39And so often we walk around thinking that we're healthy and everything is well, but then we don't
13:44realize that we may have a family history like colon cancer. I didn't know that I had a family history
13:49until 11 years later. And we don't know the signs and symptoms. Colon cancer is very prevalent in the
13:55black community. We have the highest rates of diagnosis and death of colorectal cancer and the other in more than
14:01any other groups. So we're not aware of screening when to be screened, which is 45, unless you have a family
14:09history, which is 10 years before the age of the person that was diagnosed. So I was diagnosed at 35.
14:15My daughters had to be screened starting at 25. Do your research. Learn what the signs and symptoms are.
14:21Know what colon cancer is. When I was diagnosed, I didn't know what colon cancer was. And so, and unlike
14:27these ladies, when I was diagnosed with colon cancer, I didn't have someone for me to speak. I had to
14:34speak. That was me. And so, so often we find ourselves in situations where we're the only one in
14:40the room. And so then we have to make choices. And so make sure that you're making informed choices.
14:46I was rushed through the process. If you don't know something, don't let them rush you through the
14:50process. Say, wait a minute. Give me a minute. Let me, let me understand what you're saying to me.
14:56And if you're not satisfied with that, tell them, wait a minute, let me get someone with me. Yes.
15:01Yes. So we have to advocate for ourselves. Yeah. Cause you do sometimes have to self-advocate. And
15:05when you do self-advocate, you really do have to use your tools. Yes. And I know that Blue Hat has
15:09tools. I know that A Chance to Learn has tools. Pfizer has a cancer tool that's called This is Living
15:14with Cancer. Yes. Where you can get pre-information and actually find out what some of your risk factors are.
15:19Oh, absolutely. And I advocate write it down. Yes. Write it down. Write it down. Okay. Thank you. So
15:26Kadeen, during your childbirth journey, you developed preeclampsia postpartum. So what did that teach you
15:33about the pregnancy process? And what do you want folks in here to understand? Absolutely. So if
15:39you're planning to become pregnant or happen just to become pregnant, I think there's a lot of focus on
15:44the first three trimesters, right? You hear first trimester, second trimester, third trimester,
15:50but far too often I'm finding as I speak to other moms who are first time moms or just vet moms that
15:56are like, these are the things I didn't know about. There's something we call the fourth trimester.
16:00And that is essentially the time once you deliver the baby up until at least six weeks postpartum.
16:06And what most people don't know is that's where a lot of things can go wrong. So to Latoya's point
16:13as well, not knowing that gestational diabetes, postpartum preeclampsia, no, people don't know
16:19what these things are. And it wasn't until I started to share my story publicly that people said, oh my
16:25goodness, I had no idea. There was a possibility that after having the baby, things can go awry. I could
16:31potentially lose my life. Not just during childbirth, but after. So let's start talking more and letting
16:38people be aware of and informing people of the symptoms to look out for. Nausea, high blood
16:45pressure, headaches. There are all of these telltale symptoms that one will experience that can literally
16:51let them know these are the red flags that are associated with postpartum preeclampsia or
16:57gestational diabetes. Wow. Thank you. And, you know, you shared a term that I was not aware of, and I have
17:03two children, which is fourth trimester. And I think it's just so important for those of us who've had kids and
17:09those of us who haven't to look out for the women in our lives and to keep our antenna up for symptoms and make
17:16sure that they're aware of the symptoms. For sure. And just by having the conversation, I've had people write into my
17:21podcast or to DM me and say, I experienced the same thing. And at the time, I didn't know what it was.
17:26Or I experienced this. And because I heard your conversation, I knew to then say to my doctor,
17:32can you please check for this? And those are lifesaving tools and techniques for sure.
17:39And you know what? Not only that, it's so common, right? You hear about preeclampsia and so many
17:44people have it. So we think it's just, you know, a general morbidity, but with women of color,
17:51it can literally kill you because it's just high blood pressure. And so to your point,
17:57just making sure that you get checked prior to being dismissed because it is the leading cause
18:03of death postpartum for black women. Yeah. Thank you. And I think that this is a great segue
18:08just to talk about community, right? So after all of these experiences that we've had a conversation
18:15about and the experiences that you all have encountered, what advice do you have for everyone
18:20in this room about actually elevating these issues within our community?
18:25Well, I'll definitely tell you for one of the things is colon cancer has always been looked at
18:30as a taboo topic. And it wasn't until after I started sharing my story and sharing not only,
18:37you know, was I 35 with colon cancer, but actually sharing that I was misdiagnosed for six months.
18:42Right. And so often again, not, not knowing how to advocate for myself, it was just like I went
18:48through the process, but then when I started talking about it, my family members started
18:54talking about it. And so when we started our event of to raise awareness for colon cancer in church,
19:00we had on our blue fabulous hats and my family members, it was kind of like, you know, what do you
19:05know? The herbal essence effects, right? They tell two friends, they tell two friends, right? So
19:08when people were asking like, why do you have on those blue hats? My family said,
19:12oh, March is colon cancer awareness month. She's a survivor and we're wearing this in honor of
19:18her. But what it also did, it also prompted other people to start telling their stories of other
19:26family members who had been diagnosed with colon cancer, who may have passed on from colon cancer,
19:31or who was currently living with colon cancer. So when we share our stories, we're prompting other
19:37people to finally speak and to say, oh my God, this happened to me or that happened to me. And it's,
19:43it's that commonality. And when people looked at me, they were like, you couldn't have possibly had
19:48colon cancer. I did. But then when I shared the other piece of it, of my financial and the homelessness
19:54that I experienced, people came forward and said, thank you for sharing that because that happened to me.
20:01Yeah. So it can free other people who are looking for stories that resonate with them.
20:06I agree. Thank God we don't look like what we've been through, right? Um, really, you know,
20:12we overcome by the power of our testimony and you talked about storytelling, but I do think it's
20:17important for us to share our stories. Uh, for me, it's been the countless moms that, you know,
20:24we did a 25, a 50 city tour over two years, maternal outcomes matter. It's been the countless
20:30moms that have talked to me about, you know, you shared your story and I ended up being diagnosed and
20:36I demanded that they test me prior to being, you know, released from the hospital and it saved my
20:42life. Um, or, you know, the community, um, organizations that are on the ground doing the
20:48work, like supporting doulas. I think we can all play a part in advocacy by supporting organizations
20:56that are, that are already doing the work. Yes. And I, and I love that you've both brought up
21:01de-stigmatizing elements of stories, which is really important, right? Kadeen.
21:05Absolutely. Yeah. It's so important. And I think just being in a space and in a forum like this to
21:10share publicly, another added layer to, of course, being informed and having resources is also just not
21:17feeling alone. You know, think about how many people are going through something health-wise
21:21that you feel like you're silently having to suffer and you don't have a community to support you.
21:27So by sharing in spaces like this and being a bit vulnerable and sharing your testimony,
21:31that might encourage someone else to either go get checked, to be of support to a family member,
21:36to share a bit of the family history that they have, to prevent future generations from suffering from
21:42the same thing. And to touch on community, even for postpartum moms, you know, if you don't have a
21:47village around you, because we know how important it is postpartum to have people close by. Sometimes
21:52there are people who are professionals that you can lean on for support. There are doulas,
21:56there are night nurses, you know, people who you can kind of cherry pick to build your village so that
22:02you're in support to get through the difficult times. Yes. And thank you for doing a podcast because
22:07that's a village unto itself, right? Indeed. Yes. For folks who might be isolated. Thank you.
22:11Ellis Ever After. We talk about so many different things, but we're very, very, very much on health,
22:17wellness, and all of the, you know, components that are involved in that. I want to interject on
22:22that too, because while we're talking about family history, we have a tagline called Family Secrets
22:28Kill Families. We are a family full of secret keepers. And how many times have you all heard what goes on in
22:35our house stays in our house? Yes. Yes. So that means everything else to go along with it. That
22:40means health. That means anything else. And so we wind up having family history of diseases that no
22:46one is sharing. And so what I want to say to you is stop that cycle, because what you're not sharing
22:54with your family members can kill your children. It can kill your grandchildren. So think about that.
22:59You might think that you're, what you're going through is your business, but think about what if your
23:05child may be diagnosed with cancer and you didn't tell them that that's what it had of them. I wish
23:09I knew. I would have gotten screened 10 years earlier had I known that I had a cancer, you know,
23:15in my family. So then that would have prompted me to be proactive. So knowing your family history
23:20causes you to be proactive. Truth. Truth. Thank you, Candace. Well, we're on our last question. And we've
23:27talked about some heavy things, right? We've talked about increasing rates of cancer. We've talked about
23:33barriers to care. Let's end on a higher note. And I want to know for each of you, what keeps you
23:38motivated, hopeful about the future and excited? And maybe we'll start with Kadeen on this side.
23:46Yes, all good. Oh, what makes me hopeful for the future? You know, I think it's existing in spaces
23:53like this. We're talking the talk. We're having the conversation. The cat's bag. There are no more
24:00secrets. And I think by creating safe spaces, right, to have these conversations, more spaces
24:08and arenas like this need to exist. So if there is something in your family that you realize several
24:14family members have been dealing with a history of a particular cancer, maybe getting a pool of people
24:19together who can speak about their shared experiences and then essentially sharing those resources.
24:25Because once you have the resources, you have the knowledge, you have the information, you are more
24:31well-informed as a patient going in to see medical professionals and saying to them, here's what I've
24:37gathered. Here's what I've been experiencing. Now, how can we bridge this gap? And it gives kind of like an
24:43unspoken accountability system that we have between patient and provider. So that way we feel like
24:50we're a team working together for the good of our health versus being on opposite sides of the spectrum.
24:57It gives a bit of a checks and balances system as well to make sure that I know what's happening.
25:02I'm going to lean on your medical professional opinion, of course, but at least I can process this
25:07information and understand it. So here's to more spaces like this where we can speak and share and
25:14love on each other in real time. And I love when we do events like this, we always think about, oh,
25:19this is my idea for the next thing, right? So it's catching. When we engage like this, it's very
25:23catching. Absolutely. Yeah, for me, it is the countless moms that can't speak for themselves,
25:30right? It's a rarity that I'm alive. Most, most women didn't make it. And so having the opportunity
25:38to speak on their behalf, having the opportunity to be the mother to my chance to be a mom, he's in
25:46the audience somewhere. But then also, you know, just being able to partner with corporations,
25:55communities, organizations that are doing the work, like Pfizer having us here today, it's important
26:05for us to have advocates in partnership. And so that motivates me to keep going, too.
26:14Yeah, here's to partnership. Yeah. Research has allowed me to be here. The research is something
26:22that's very important. I just want to say, don't let cancer kill you. Don't let fear of cancer kill
26:29you. So often, we don't get checked because of fear. Also, the research has allowed me to see more
26:37birthdays, more anniversaries, and it has allowed me to see my grandchildren. I have four grandchildren.
26:45And so cancer is not necessarily a death sentence. The sooner you get screened, the better you are.
26:52And the more life you can live. So that's what makes me happy about the future.
26:58Amen.
26:59Yeah.
27:00Keep on.
27:01I was just saying amen.
27:02Okay. Yeah.
27:03Yes. And I was just going to say, Candice, I'm so glad you brought up the research and innovation
27:08because that's what keeps me excited is how phenomenal the science is that is coming our
27:14way in the future. But the work that each of you three is doing is also around making sure that the
27:21existing therapies that we have even before the new innovation get to the patients that need them.
27:26So I cannot thank each one of you enough for sharing your stories. You all gave us incredibly
27:33practical information to go out of this room with. So there are a couple things I wrote down
27:38that I want to make sure we say again. One is get screened. There are screening guidelines for
27:43different cancers at different ages and many resources for you to find out at what age you should
27:48be getting screened. The other is document your health. So go down the hall and get the Pfizer
27:54health journal that's at the Pfizer booth. Ask until you understand. Don't just be quiet when
27:59you've got an answer. If the answer is not something that you understand, advocate for yourself and
28:04advocate for your friends and talk to your family. Family secrets kill families. Thank you. Thank you
28:12for all of this knowledge. And on behalf of Pfizer, I want to thank the panel. And thank you, Angela.
28:17Amazing. And the entire Pfizer team. They've been awesome to work with. So thank you so much.
28:25Thank you, Pfizer. And thank you all for being here.
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