iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

. @theguardian.com reporter @rachelleingang.bsky.social wrote a story that captures the worst & best of what’s happening in Minneapolis—and what resilience looks like in real time. Here, I analyze the neuroscience so you know how to fill your resilience tank, too. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

A teenager, a hug, and a city under stress: The neuroscience of resilience in Minneapolis

From shaky hands to social connection, Minnesotans respond to the collective trauma of ICE with collective care.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 06/11/2025

Dick Cheney’s passing prompts us to ask not just what he did, but why and, more importantly, how we break the cycles he perpetuated that have turned trauma into more trauma. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 12/09/2025

Looking forward to being on @kqedforum.bsky.social on San Francisco's @npr.org station today, talking about cognitive dissonance and the discomfort of going about our daily lives during such dark times. Tune in at 10 am PT / 1 pm EST. www.kqed.org/forum/201010...

kqed.org

Life Goes On While Systems Fray — How Do We Make Sense of the Dissonance? | KQED

We talk about the strange tension of moving through life against a backdrop of catastrophe, and what it does to us. And we hear how you are navigating it.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

Unexpectedly seeing the footage of #CharlieKirk's shooting can be dysregulating. Take care to avoid it or to ground. Notice your stress state. Inhale & exhale for twice as long to slow heart rate. Look around room & notice what's in it. You are here, now. katewoodsome.substack.com/p/charlie-ki...

katewoodsome.substack.com

When political violence hits, your body feels it, too

From Charlie Kirk's shooting to arson to genocide, the body politic is fraying. Caring for our nervous systems is key to breaking cycles of fear and reactivity.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 22/07/2025

Is it naive to be hopeful when everything around us is crumbling? No. It's probably the most pragmatic thing we can do. Such a pleasure to talk to hope scientist Kathryn L. Goetzke to get ground and inspired in this era of despair. katewoodsome.substack.com/p/hopelessne...

katewoodsome.substack.com

Yes, this era is awful. This hope scientist has ideas to help us through.

Hopelessness can be fatal. That's why Kathryn Goetzke and I care so much about the alternative.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 24/06/2025

In periods of reactivity, often elicited by the systems that misuse us, we are prone to react. We become an extension of the system if we are not already a part of it: the victim & perpetrator of ignorance, intolerance & indignity in a war, a workplace or a family. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

With war, we have to be the ones to pause

Cycles of reactivity benefit the people wreaking havoc on our nervous systems.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

During Saturday’s mass civic engagement — No Kings protests and the military parade — I urge one thing: that people practice trauma-informed care with themselves and each other. katewoodsome.substack.com/p/no-kings-m...

katewoodsome.substack.com

Protesting? Parading? Practice this.

If you're going, show up with care.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 09/06/2025

"I hate to be this age in this country and not feel safe expressing my political views" — Michigan woman @ #UniteforVeterans rally. If a White woman doesn't feel safe, "how does everybody else feel?" A dispatch from DC connecting #mentalhealth & #democracy. katewoodsome.substack.com/p/were-in-bi...

katewoodsome.substack.com

Veterans rally against Trump's cuts and violations on D-Day anniversary

"What's your red line?" Live reflections from the "Unite for Veterans" rally in D.C.

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

ProPublica @propublica.org · 30/05/2025

Despite repeatedly raising concerns about labor rights, Nike has grown its presence in Cambodia from about 16,000 factory workers in May 2013 to more than 57,000 as of March. Read more: propub.li/4kIhjCC

Article excerpt: When police used stun batons to hit garment workers seeking a $14 monthly raise from a Nike factory in Cambodia in 2013, reportedly leading one pregnant woman to miscarry, Nike said it was “deeply concerned.”

The following year, when Cambodian police opened fire and killed four garment workers during widespread demonstrations over low wages, Nike and other brands sent the government a letter expressing “grave concern.”

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 25/05/2025

People are in survival mode — a state of perpetual fight, flight, freeze, appease — and it’s hard to speak out when you’re burned out. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

America's leaders got a wake-up call. Here's why psychological safety is the real battle.

Can you defend democracy if you're burned out?

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

The New Republic @newrepublic.com · 08/05/2025

RFK Jr. has long dehumanized people with autism: “These are kids who will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job ... Many of them will never use the toilet unassisted.” Petitions, supported by action from governors like Pritzker, are resisting. “This is not support. It is surveillance.”

newrepublic.com

Dem Governor Launches Plan to Counter RFK Jr.’s Autism Registry

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has a plan to undermine the autism registry RFK Jr. keeps talking about.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

It was such a pleasure to take time with the Voice of America’s @newsguy.bsky.social to discuss the silencing of VOA but also resilience and what it takes to stay grounded and act with integrity — even when the system around you feels like it’s collapsing. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

Join us tonight @ 7 p EST katewoodsome.substack.com

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

Save VOA @savevoa.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

On Wednesday evening at 19:00 EST (23:00 GMT), @newsguy.bsky.social will be joining his former Voice of America colleague @kwoodsome.bsky.social , for a live video chat on her Substack. They’ll be taking questions from the audience. Save the date and join them in this exciting conversation. #SaveVOA

newsguy.substack.com

Old Colleagues, New Conversation: Join Me and Kate Woodsome Live

Previewing our Substack live video chat set for Wednesday

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

You're invited to chat with me and @voanews.com.web.brid.gy correspondent Steve Herman on Wednesday, May 7, at 7 pm EST on Substack. Ask questions and share reflections about #pressfreedom & the psychological toll of censorship. 🎙️ katewoodsome.substack.com/p/voa-steven...

katewoodsome.substack.com

You're invited: Chat with a voice of America

Join me and Voice of America reporter Steve Herman 5/7 @ 7 pm EST

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

It’s #PressFreedomWeek — and it’s not just for journalists. You have the right to think clearly. To feel deeply. To speak freely.

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

NPR @npr.org · 29/04/2025

Speaking to NPR in his first media interview since his detention, lawful permanent U.S. resident Mohsen Mahdawi finds peace in meditation and hopes "America will fulfill its promise."

npr.org

Detained on verge of U.S. citizenship, Mohsen Mahdawi speaks from Vermont prison

Speaking to NPR in his first media interview since his detention, lawful permanent U.S. resident Mohsen Mahdawi finds peace in meditation and hopes "America will fulfill its promise."

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 22/04/2025

The federal government plans to eliminate services for LGBTQ youth who call 988, the national suicide and crisis hotline, according to a Health and Human Services budget draft leaked last week.

motherjones.com

HHS plans to cut the national suicide hotline’s program for LGBTQ youth

In February, the program received an average of 2,100 contacts per day.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

A recent survey by the scientific journal Nature revealed that 75% of the 1,600 scientists surveyed were considering relocating to Europe or Canada, citing actions taken by President Donald Trump. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

75% of US scientists who answered Nature poll consider leaving

More than 1,600 readers answered our poll; many said they were looking for jobs in Europe and Canada.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 21/04/2025

Authoritarianism doesn’t always arrive in combat boots. Sometimes it fills the vacuum left by unprocessed trauma. This month marks 50 years since the Khmer Rouge took power. What Cambodia didn’t heal, it repeated. America, pay attention. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

What the Khmer Rouge can teach us about U.S. authoritarianism

Unhealed trauma can become the foundation for tyranny. In America, it's already being built. We can — and must — redirect the pain.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

Americans got grit. But, considering the strained, broken state of our minds & body politic, we need something else. Resilience isn’t about pushing through. It’s about knowing when to pause, how to reset & where to find support. #mentalhealth #democracy katewoodsome.substack.com/p/got-grit-w...

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

The New Republic @newrepublic.com · 07/04/2025

“This was an illegal act,” U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis told an attorney for the Justice Department. “Congress said you can’t do it, and you did it anyway.”

newrepublic.com

Judge Orders Trump Administration to Return Wrongly Deported Man

The administration had falsely accused Kilmar Abrego Garcia of being a member of the MS-13 gang.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

Threats to one’s wellbeing can activate the “tend-and-befriend” stress response, especially in women, boosting oxytocin and reducing cortisol. So engaging in collective resistance like protests can reduce anxiety and nurture collective resilience. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

Protest is a public health tool

Watch now (4 mins) | Collective resistance can be resilience — but not for everyone.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

Protest is a vital form of civic engagement, but it’s also an emotionally charged space where people’s pain, hope and history collide. If we don’t prepare our full selves, we risk bringing harm — whether by shutting down, lashing out or burning out. #April5 open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

A journalist’s guide to stay grounded at protests

How to show up without losing yourself in the noise.

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

Jen Woolard @jlwoolard.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

They’re saying it out loud. Two year olds as irredeemable.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 25/03/2025

Billionaire Jeff Bezos reportedly plans to use The Washington Post to push a dangerous myth: that economic freedom = human freedom. But in the U.S., where income inequality is among the highest in the world, this story gaslights people into believing capitalism = liberty. 🧵 🔗 bit.ly/3Y2zSbx

bit.ly

Jeff Bezos Has a Very Billionaire-ish Idea of What Freedom Means

We need media that advocate for well-being, not gaslight people into believing their suffering is liberty.

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

Bill Smith @iambillsmith.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Beyond unacceptable.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 19/03/2025

Time feels like it’s folding in on itself—past and present collapsing into a single, disorienting breath. Déjà vu, but deeper. More like déjà vécu—the sense that you’re reliving something, not just recognizing it. 🧵

bit.ly

The Voice of America needs us to hope

Hope is not a wish. It's an action.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 16/03/2025

Job Alert: Rare opportunity for culturally-sensitive storytelling & communications at the Smithsonian. To work at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage would be a silver lining in this cloudy sky. Email ButvinHM@si.edu by DEADLINE March, 20, 5 p.m. EST. folklife-media.si.edu/docs/folklif...

folklife-media.si.edu

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

When Elon Musk lashed out at two Jewish lawyers by suggesting they’d suffered #trauma, he meant it as an insult. It has turned into something else entirely — a teachable moment on the lasting biological, psychological and social impacts of adversity. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

open.substack.com

Thanks, Elon Musk, for the teachable moment on trauma

When Elon Musk mocked two Jewish lawyers by suggesting they’d suffered trauma, he meant it as an insult. It sparked something meaningful instead.

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Reposted by Kate Woodsome

Steven Hassan PhD @cultexpert.freedomofmind.com · 17/02/2025

🚨 The Shocking Truth About Self-Censorship in Politics 🚨 What happens when people prioritize economic promises over democracy? Watch the full episode here to find out: youtu.be/2G_Yixuc3Qg

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Cognitive dissonance doesn't just stay in your head. It shows up in your body as tension, guilty. When assaults on democracy & humanity are normalized, this is everywhere. But it’s not all bad. Your discomfort could be a first step toward clarity & action. katewoodsome.substack.com/p/cognitive-...

katewoodsome.substack.com

Cognitive dissonance is a signal

Are you listening?

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

To cut through the panicked media coverage of Trump, I spoke w/ Dr. Cedric Alexander, a lifelong Republican, law enforcement veteran & clinical psychologist, about America's underlying depression & division, & strategies to respond to agents of distraction & rage. open.substack.com/pub/katewood...

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

I hear both immense despair — and hope — across America. For those grappling with the uncertainty & anxiety of polycrises, it can test people’s ability & will to imagine a better future. This may be a time for grief, but it is not a time to stop imagining: katewoodsome.substack.com/p/peoples-ma...

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

So grateful for the opportunity to be on @npr.org this morning and chat with 1A's Jenn White about covering the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and the unexpected opportunities it revealed for personal and political healing. #mentalhealth #democracy #trauma #politics #healing the1a.org/segments/kat...

the1a.org

Kate Woodsome on her life after Jan. 6 and what this anniversary means for America

In these four years, she’s made major changes in her professional and personal worlds.

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Kate Woodsome @kwoodsome.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

Coverage of the violence in New Orleans & Las Vegas by members of the military isn't getting at the underlying drivers of this pain. Hurt people hurt people — including themselves. I cover the ties between #mentalhealth & #democracy… open.substack.com/pub/katewood... #ptsd #resilience #veterans

open.substack.com

Violence against Americans by members of the military is a wakeup call

Sure, we can fret. We can also reassess how we care for each other and ourselves.

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