Embodied

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.

Join Chris Silva, a father who reexamined his circumcision choices after a premature birth, Dr. Emilie K. Johnson, a pediatric urologist studying neonatal care disparities, and Rabbi Elyssa Cherney, who assists interfaith families. They delve into the emotional complexities of circumcision decisions, discussing cultural significance and medical insights. The conversation also explores alternatives to traditional rituals and the evolving landscape of parental choices in a diverse society. It's a captivating look at balancing personal beliefs with cultural traditions.

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!

Stuttering occurs in every culture with a spoken language. So why do many communities treat it as a source of shame? Two speech-language pathologists and a comedian help Anita question cultural assumptions about stuttering and explore the growing movement to embrace speech diversity. Meet the guests: - Dr. Derek Daniels, licensed and certified speech-language pathologist and associate professor in the department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Wayne State University, shares his own experience of stuttering and what we know about what causes stuttering - Jia Bin, doctoral student at Michigan State University, talks about growing up in rural China with a stutter and what she's hoping to bring back to the stuttering community there - Nina G, comedian and author of "Stutterer, Interrupted: The Comedian Who Almost Didn’t Happen," explains why she decided to embrace her dream of doing stand-up and shares how her stuttering has impacted romantic and platonic relationships Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here! Dig deeper: Matice Morris on YouTube Courtland Crain on YouTube Info about Nina’s upcoming comedy special National Stuttering Association

Anita learns about non-sexual, social nudity and why opting to live life mostly in the nude could actually make her think about her body LESS. [This episode originally aired in September 2021.] Meet the guests: - Naomi Brown, a reporter and host at WUNC, talks about her personal journey to becoming a practicing naturist - Jay Shapiro, lead coordinator and president of Triangle Area Naturists LLC, shares how to separate sex from nudity - Sam and Aleah, creators of Our Natural Blog, share how they're working to bring more young folks into the naturist movement in Florida Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Leave us a message for an upcoming episode here!