🌟 Overwhelmed, but Still Speaking 🌟

Sharisse Stephenson
1 day ago
2 min read

Sometimes it feels overwhelming when people celebrate me for my advocacy work.

The truth is, this was never the role I wanted for myself.

I was content being a physician.

I loved taking care of patients — that was my joy.

Every visit, every phone call, every telemedicine appointment fed me.

Patients thought I was helping them, but in reality, they were giving me life.

When that was taken from me — after I spoke up about patient safety and was forced onto unwanted leave — it was devastating. I didn’t know how to cope with losing the work that meant everything to me.

At first, speaking out wasn’t a mission.

It wasn’t a strategy.

It was survival.

I had kids to provide for.

Animals and fosters to care for.

A home to keep.

And I quickly realized that being polite, quiet, or trying to work “within the system” would never protect me

— or anyone else.

Only public pressure made these institutions even pretend to act responsibly.

Finding My Voice in a Space I Never Wanted

So I started — grudgingly — posting on social media.

Every time I did, I could feel the attempts to suppress my voice.

And every time they tried to bury it, it made me more creative.

Along the way, I learned my story wasn’t unique.

There are countless others who’ve been retaliated against for speaking up about safety, fairness, or justice.

I couldn’t stay silent.

I started amplifying other voices, even when my platform was tiny.

That’s how Retaliation Help began.

And now, the Phoenix Advocacy Network.

The Spotlight Still Makes Me Uncomfortable

Here’s the vulnerable truth:

I’m not someone who wants attention.

I never wanted to be a public figure.

I never imagined myself doing interviews, writing op-eds, or filing federal injunctions.

I was happy as a doctor.

So when something happens — like my press release being picked up by Yahoo Finance — it’s overwhelming. I’m grateful. Deeply grateful. But also uncomfortable.

Still, I know I’m doing the right thing.

And that matters more than my discomfort.