Embodied

Anita passes the mic to our friends at the feminist documentary podcast "Bodies" for an exploration of ADHD and identity. Producer Hannah Harris Green talks about how getting an ADHD diagnosis helped her release the shame she'd been carrying since childhood. Meet the guests: - Hannah Harris Green, contributing producer for "Bodies," shares her journey to an ADHD diagnosis as an adult and how the disorder has impacted her entire life - Matthew, Hannah's partner, talks about how Hannah's ADHD impacts their relationship and helps her come to terms with her diagnosis - Dr. Andrea Spencer, child psychiatrist and vice chair for research for the Psychiatry Department at Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago, explains her research on the intersection of ADHD and PTSD Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

A growing number of American adults have the same feeling about romantic partnerships: They don’t want one. Anita meets three people who have chosen singlehood: a scholar who examines the double standard of relationship status, a single mother of two by choice and a man shedding toxic masculinity to build a deliberately single life. Meet the guests: - Dr. Kris Marsh, associate professor at the University of Maryland and author of “The Love Jones Cohort: Single and Living Alone in the Black Middle Class,” brings us into her research on single, Black Americans and some of the larger structural forces that shape an individual's choice to be single — and how that work has informed her own embrace of singlehood - Aisha Jenkins, a single mother by choice and the host and creator of the "Start to Finish Motherhood" podcast and blog, shares her journey to becoming a parent and the key relationships that have supported her along the way - Lucas Bradley, author of "A Single Point of Light" Substack newsletter, explains what he has put into place to create a fulfilling life for himself as a deliberately single man Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita's highly-anticipated (and highly-awkward) first kiss was in eighth grade … but she remembers it like it was yesterday! A scientist tells her why our brains respond so strongly to kissing and how our kissing customs have changed over time. She also unpacks the power of a kiss with a photographer who documents queer Black love in public and three Gen-Zers school her on contemporary kissing culture. Meet the guests: - Sheril Kirshenbaum, science communicator and author of “The Science of Kissing: What Our Lips Are Telling Us,” explains what's happening in our brains when our lips touch another person's and digs into the cultural history and evolution of kissing - Kadar Small, photographer, director and filmmaker, shares his photo series "PDA," which aims to highlight and normalize images of Black and brown queer intimacy - Donna Diaz, Parys Smith and Chris Williams, all current and past WUNC Youth reporters, talk together about their first kisses, how they think about boundaries and what makes a good kiss Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita usually feels better after a good, long cry. But why is that? She explores that question with a poet who spent years diving deeply into the science and culture of crying. And a forerunner of the "crying selfie" trend shares how he pushes back on toxic masculinity by embracing tears. Meet the guests: - Heather Christle, poet and author of "The Crying Book," takes us into some of the science of crying and looks at tears through a political and gender-informed lens - Viorel Tanase, a model and creative director, explains why he decided to share a crying selfie (before the trend took off) and how being vulnerable is part of the human experience Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita treasures sleep and moments of silence. So when she hears typical narratives of early parenthood that include unending cries and restless nights, she has concerns for the mental toll on new parents. But culturally there is a lot of silence around how challenging it can be and recognizing deteriorating mental health while caring for another person can be isolating. In part two of the postpartum series "Delivered," she meets a prolific artist whose experience with postpartum depression catalyzed a mental health journey and a diagnosis of Bipolar II Disorder. She also talks to a couple about what folks should know about sex and relationships postpartum and why the mental health of non-birthing partners should be part of the postpartum conversation. Meet the guests: - A’Driane Nieves, artist and mother of two - Shannon Purdy Jones, co-owner of Scuppernong Books in Greensboro and mother of two - Darren Jones, Shannon’s husband and director of Pricing at Mack Trucks, Inc Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita has been around enough postpartum folks to know that there's a whole lot they felt unprepared for when it came to how their physical bodies would experience pregnancy and childbirth. In part one of a two-part series, she hears from folks about meeting their new postpartum bodies. A postpartum doula talks about her trauma-informed approach to caring for the physical body; a photographer shares why they're trying to diversify the images we associate with postpartum bodies; and a former Marine talks about navigating the pressures of a highly physical job postpartum. Meet the guests: - Lydia-Carlie Tilus, birth and postpartum doula at her practice, SageFemme Wellness, and a certified massage therapist talks about her philosophy on postpartum care - ash luna, social worker, photographer and founder of the 4th Trimester Bodies Project shares her experience photographing postpartum bodies for more than a decade - Letticia Solomon, teacher and mother of two takes us into her experience being a postpartum woman in the U.S. Marine Corps Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita is no stranger to anxiety, but her spirals are mostly short lived. In this episode she meets folks who often get caught in loops of extreme worry and compulsions with little relief. A married couple shares how OCD put them in survival mode and a woman whose OCD symptoms began in kindergarten talks about learning how to open up about her experience in friendships and dating. Meet the guests: - Mike and Nicole Comforto, writers who published a Modern Love essay about how Mike's OCD impacted their marriage, share their story and talk about what led to Mike's diagnosis, what the experience was like for both of them and how Mike's OCD impacts other relationships in his life - H.T., a writer who wants to remain anonymous for personal and medical privacy, explains how her OCD symptoms first showed up as a young girl, how she navigated getting an OCD diagnosis and how she discloses her OCD to those she is close to Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here! Here’s a link to the International OCD Foundation, where you can find an OCD specialist near you.

It's a small procedure, but a big question. Anita talks with a urologist about what medical advice to consider while making the circumcision decision (and where medicine doesn't have the answers). She also meets a rabbi and mother who offers alternatives to centuries-old circumcision rituals and hears from a circumcised father raising an uncircumcised son. Meet the guests: - Dr. Emilie K. Johnson, a pediatric urologist and associate professor of urology at Northwestern University, answers Anita's questions about the procedure and shares her research on disparities in access to circumcision - Rabbi Elyssa Cherney, founder of Tackling Torah, talks about the role of circumcision in the Jewish faith tradition, how she works with interfaith couples on what parts of that tradition to follow or preserve — and she explains how she handled the circumcision decision with her son - Chris Silva, a father, talks about how his thinking on circumcision evolved after his son was born prematurely, from assuming they would have the procedure for his son to ultimately decided not to circumcise Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!

Anita has interrogated so many aspects of parenthood. But how about the decision to become a parent at all? She talks with three women about making their child-free decisions and meets a psychotherapist who's devoted her career to helping people find clarity in that choice. Meet the guests: - Sarah Deavitt, certified holistic nutritionist, talks about her decision to live a child-free life and how taking over care for her grandfather with Alzheimer's solidified that decision - Samhita Mukhopadhyay, writer and former executive editor of Teen Vogue, shares how watching her friends with kids struggle during the pandemic reinforced her decision to be child-free - Uriah Rex, a quality assurance representative, explains how her childhood influenced her choice of a child-free life - Merle Bombardieri, parenting decision coach and author of “The Baby Decision: How to Make the Most Important Choice of Your Life,” shares strategies for those struggling to decide whether or not they'd like to become parents Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here! Dig deeper: Merle’s blog Fencesitter subreddit Child-free subreddit Rich Auntie Supreme

Anita sniffs out what's so fascinating about the science of smell — and gets her mind blown. A psychologist shares why smell is our most emotional sense, plus stories about the mental health consequences of anosmia (losing your sense of smell) and a scent designer describes how to re-create memories through candles. Meet the guests: - Bonnie Blodgett, author of “Remembering Smell.” - Rachel Herz, neuroscientist and author of “The Scent of Desire.” - Christina Degreaffenreidt, founder and creator behind Multifaceted, a candle-making company based in Greensboro. Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!