Have you ever wondered what drives nurses to do what they do? We took a walk in one nurse’s shoes to get a better understanding of what makes her truly remarkable.
Emily Danz of Fort Lee, New Jersey, grew up watching her Yiayia (“grandmother” in Greek), battle heart disease. As a child, she listened with curiosity and amazement as the doctors explained cardiac procedures and outcomes to her family.
Then, when she was old enough to drive, Danz became responsible for taking Yiayia to and from her doctor’s appointments and hospital visits.
Inspired by all she learned about her grandmother’s journey, Danz decided to enter nursing school after graduating high school—a decision that made her grandmother burst with pride.
“She told me when I graduated nurse practitioner school that it was one of the greatest things she witnessed in all 89 years of her life,” said Danz. “She knew I’d go far and do well.”
Courtesy of Emily Danz
And she has. Nurse Danz has used her childhood experiences as an onlooker to her grandmother’s care as a springboard into caring for others. The very first patient she cared for after graduating nursing school in 2014 was suffering from an active tuberculosis infection. Although tuberculosis is curable and preventable, it’s also highly contagious and transmittable by air. It takes the inhalation of only a few of these germs to become infected.
“I remember being petrified to walk into that room,” said Danz.
Fortunately, an experienced nurse mentor gave her a pep talk that she will never forget—in fact, she says, it shaped the entire trajectory of her career.
“[She told] me not to be afraid and that caring for a tuberculosis patient is like caring for any other patient, but just with a special mask and gown. From that day on, I realized that there was no reason to ever be afraid or scared of a patient, and I actually took care of that patient every time I worked for the entirety of their stay — which was over three months.”
Emily | Heroes Behind the Masks presented by CeraVewww.youtube.com
Years later when she found herself working in a hospital during a global pandemic, Nurse Danz channeled that early experience to get her through the fear of caring for patients infected with COVID-19.
“When I was assigned [my first] COVID patient, it was like my very first day of nursing all over again … my mind quickly traveled to the pep talk I was given and reminded me of the oath I took to care for patients no matter the situation,” said Danz. “I continue to carry this empathy with me every day for every single patient I care for—it is something instilled in me.”
Danz, who has also become an instructor to nursing students in their last year of nursing school, recognizes the importance of seeing every patient as an individual and not just a number. She teaches these students bedside clinical skills and medication administration, focusing clearly on arming them with the confidence to interact with patients comfortably, no matter the situation.
Courtesy of CeraVe
“From day one, I learned not to be afraid and it has helped me tremendously throughout my career. In every single class, I make sure to tell my students stories, events and real-life scenarios I’ve been through to prepare and engage them. It is imperative that the new nurses coming into the field are confident and empathetic. When you’re afraid, patients sense it and it affects their healing,” said Danz.
The goal of CeraVe’s Heroes Behind the Masks Chapter 2: A Walk In Our Shoes campaign is to highlight exceptional nurses like Nurse Danz and recognize the profound impact they have on their patients and communities. Follow along this week for more stories and to learn about CeraVe’s ongoing commitment to the nurse community here.
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Not just coworkers—family, friends, strangers, kids…
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Urgent dash to the bathroom! 🚪🏃♂️
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."