Silenced by fear: Moms with postpartum depression fear having their children taken away

Women of color are less likely to get treatment for postpartum depression because they fear they'll be judged too quickly or harshly by child welfare services. Research shows those fears may be justified.

This project was a collaboration with WHYY Health + Science. I created a seven-minute audio feature that aired on The Pulse.

I was also interviewed about the project on WURD Radio.

'I'm not letting you die': Six health workers share their most powerful memories of treating gun violence in Philly

In Philadelphia, more than 1,000 people have been shot in each of the last four years, and nearly one in five die. For the health workers who hear the patient’s last words and hold their hands, those are the moments that become embedded in their memories.

This story was in the works for three months, and happened to publish the Monday after a weekend of two mass shootings in the U.S. — one in El Paso, Texas, and one in Dayton, Ohio — bringing national attention again to an issue cities like Philadelphia deal with regularly.

She kept losing her eyesight, and no one knew why. Then a doctor asked about her mental health.

Many clinicians are unaware that Asian Americans often experience physical symptoms of mental illness, so the group of over 21 million goes underdiagnosed and undertreated.

This was one of several stories through which I aimed to diversify the coverage of mental health by examining how different communities experience and respond to mental illness.

Men’s cuddling group aims to redefine masculinity and heal trauma

The two-year-old group draws men from various backgrounds: a 37-year-old Mormon who works as an airport gate agent, a 57-year-old married father of three, a 62-year-old retiree.

After I published this story, it was picked up by national and even international outlets from the U.K. and Australia.

With growing mental-health needs, colleges look to professors for suicide prevention

As the mental-health crisis grows on college campuses, faculty members are feeling pressure to address it in the classroom, too. But not all of them want the added responsibility.

Youth smoking trends in Philadelphia are changing. Now the city's lost a major tool to stop that.

Philadelphia teens are increasingly ditching cigarettes in favor of flavored cigarillos, cigars about the size of a cigarette. Policies credited for cutting cigarette smoking, from limits on advertising to higher taxes, have not been applied to cigarillos or other flavored tobacco products. And now Philadelphia has lost the power to do so.

‘Sex ed isn’t serving young black women.’ These Philly women are trying to fix that.

Black girls are poorly served by sex-education curriculums tailored for a white majority, experts say. A Philly-based nonprofit called Daughters of the Diaspora is enlisting black medical students to help change that.

Listen to an accompanying audio story I created here, on SoundCloud.

North Philly’s Jr. Barber Academy teaches kids the basics of barbering and entrepreneurship

P. Michael Boone learned to cut his own hair out of necessity. Now he teaches kids the trade in his North Philly shop. But students also walk away with entrepreneurial skills and big dreams.

‘I suffered in silence for 12 years’: Rape survivor helps black women talk about sexual violence

Black women are more likely to face sexual violence but less likely to speak out or be believed when they do. LaQuisha Anthony is trying to change that.

This story was also featured on NBC10, for which I was invited as a live interview guest.