In this heartfelt episode of Another Note from the Principal’s Desk, Dr. Shepard speaks directly to educators, leaders, parents, and caregivers who are carrying far more than they were ever meant to bear. As the semester comes to a close, she offers a powerful reminder: rest is not a reward for finishing everything—it is a biblical command and a necessary act of trust in God.

Drawing from Scripture and lived experience, Dr. Shepard challenges the hustle culture that glorifies exhaustion and replaces peace with pressure. She invites listeners to embrace stillness, release guilt, set boundaries without explanation, and stop carrying unfinished checklists into the next season. This episode offers practical steps for intentional rest, spiritual renewal, and emotional release during the break.

If you are tired, overwhelmed, or struggling to let go, this message is for you. Permission has been granted—pull back, trust God, and rest on purpose.

In this final installment of the trauma series, Dr. Shepard invites listeners into an honest, reflective, and deeply necessary conversation about one of the most misunderstood issues in schools, families, and adult relationships: the difference between a trauma response and a “bad attitude.”

Drawing from personal experience, school leadership, trauma-informed practice, and faith, Dr. Shepard challenges the quick labels we often assign to children and adults alike. She unpacks how behaviors such as emotional outbursts, withdrawal, perfectionism, defiance, and overreactions are often rooted in unresolved trauma—not disrespect.

This episode explores:

• Why trauma does not expire with age
• How childhood wounds often show up in adulthood
• The danger of punishment without understanding
• How educators, parents, and leaders can shift from reacting to responding
• Practical ways to de-escalate, restore, and create emotionally safe environments
• When to support, when to set boundaries, and how to love from a distance

Dr. Shepard reminds us that being trauma-informed is not a strategy—it’s a mindset. It’s about seeing people differently, leading with curiosity, and choosing compassion without excusing harmful behavior.

Whether you are an educator, parent, leader, or simply someone on a healing journey, this episode will challenge you to pause, reflect, and reframe how you respond to others—and yourself.

✨ Some attitudes are not attitudes at all. They are pain asking to be understood.

In this deeply vulnerable conversation, Dr. Shepard sits at the table with a dynamic panel of Black women in education and leadership to explore the intersection of trauma, identity, and leadership. Together, they trace how childhood wounds, family dynamics, loss, and unspoken expectations shaped the way they show up as principals, teachers, social workers, professors, coaches, and mothers.

The women share their journeys of realizing, often in adulthood, that what they experienced was trauma—and how that trauma was silently driving their leadership style, relationships, and self-worth. They talk about how healing is not a one-time event but an ongoing process, and how they are learning to honor themselves while still serving others well.

This episode feels like sitting on the couch with your sisters: honest, spiritual, funny, raw, and full of practical wisdom.