Introduction: “This Wasn’t How It Was Supposed To Go” Nobody enters a hospital expecting to feel unseen. We enter, almost instinctively assuming that this is where the answers are, where compassion meets skill, and where someone would look us in the eye and say, “We’ve got you.” However, for many families, this is not how things unfold. Instead, there is waiting. Silence. Carefully chosen words that feel heavy but empty. Then there’s an answer that changes everything: “It’s just protocol.”  Suddenly, the room feels cooler. Conversations turn one-sided. Decisions made behind closed doors. You’re present, but not truly included. And