Embodied

Anita learned in the early days of this show that there's no such thing as "normal" sexual behavior. But what *is* worth considering: how your relationship with sex affects your life. She meets two women whose compulsive sexual behaviors led them to seek support, and a sex-positive psychologist shares how she helps folks with sex addiction in their recovery.Meet the guests:- Krista Nabar, the executive director and founder of the Carolina Sexual Wellness Center, explains her sex-positive approach to hypersexuality and treatment- Erica Garza, author of “Getting Off: One Woman’s Journey Through Sex and Porn Addiction," shares her history with sex addiction and how she's recovering in a sex-positive way- Mz. Cici, a content creator on Instagram and TikTok, talks about her efforts to bring more awareness to hypersexuality and her experiences with hypersexuality and bipolar disorderRead the transcript | Review the podcastFollow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita has not participated in a Dry January, but there are times when she's motivated to pay extra-close attention to her relationship with alcohol. Most recently: during the pandemic. While some of us started drinking more, another group of folks committed to sober curiosity: a movement encouraging introspection about your relationship with alcohol. She meets two people who are years into building sober lives and asks them to reflect on how their sobriety journeys have shaped everything from relationships to thoughts about the future. Meet the guests: - J.Nicole Jones, co-host of the “Sober Black Girls Club” podcast and host of “The Grief Bully” podcast talks about choosing sobriety at age 23 - Tawny Lara, co-host of “Recovery Rocks” podcast, shares what it was like to become sober after years working as a bartender Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita has been unpacking intergenerational trauma ... thanks, in part, to Hollywood. Seeing herself in movies like "Turning Red" and "Everything Everywhere All At Once" has helped her make sense of her own family's challenges. She talks with three women who've investigated how events in their own family histories have rippled through the generations to influence their bodies, parenting and culture. Meet the guests: - Dr. Ramona Beltrán, multiracial Chicana, mother, scholar and dancer, shares how generational trauma has manifested in her own family and how "Encanto" is a great example of the different ways intergenerational trauma can show up - Brandy Wells, a licensed independent social worker and conscious mother of three, talks about how she realized the trauma she inherited once she started having children - Merissa Nathan Gerson, author and sex educator, explains how her ancestors' Holocaust experiences influence her life today Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Dive deeper: - “A Survivor’s Granddaughter Visits a Place Haunted by Unshakeable Memories” by Merissa Nathan Gerson

Anita is a sucker for live storytelling, so when she and the Embodied team planned their first in-person event, they knew the vibe they were going for. They invited five people to stand on stage in front of a live audience and explore how purity culture has shaped their faith, relationships and sexuality. In part two, you'll meet a poet and a producer who're questioning what purity culture taught them about sexual identity and masculinity. Meet the guests: - Ashley Lumpkin, a poet and educator, shares their story about the talk their parents DIDN'T have with them - Ryan Clark, co-host of "Touch Podcast," explains how waiting to have sex until marriage impacted his relationship with his wife Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita met Embodied listeners IRL for the first time earlier this year at the show's first in-person event "Purified." The evening was part late night talk show and part live storytelling. With music DJ-ed by Quilla to set the tone, five people shared their unique experiences with purity culture on stage in front of a live audience. In part one, you'll meet a social worker, preacher and faith leader who take you from church camp to the pews. Meet the guests: - Indhira Udofia, a student in the joint program of social work at UNC Greensboro and North Carolina A&T, shares her journey through purity culture and participating in True Love Waits - Reverend Solomon Missouri, senior pastor at Invitation AME Zion Church, explores how purity culture presents a double standard when it comes to the Christian mandate to care for the sick - Angie Hong, writer, speaker and founder of Kinship Commons, describes the need for a space to examine and interrogate the ways purity culture harms women of color in particular Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita has a lot of practice talking about taboo topics with strangers. But when it comes to having these conversations in her own family, especially around the holidays, she gets squirmy like the rest of us. She invites her older sister Priyanka onto the podcast to reflect on tricky — but often inevitable — conversations with family members. Priyanka, a mom and pediatrician, talks about her ongoing journey to broach difficult subjects that come up a lot this time of year: loss, family dynamics and parenting boundaries. Meet the guest: - Priyanka Rao, a mom and pediatrician (and Anita's older sister!), shares her parenting philosophy when it comes to some of the thornier issues that come up around the holidays Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita wouldn't have made it through her 20s without her work friends. But now that she's a manager and working in a hybrid office, she's noticed that work friendships don't come as easily as they used to. A psychologist answers her burning workplace relationship questions and dives into the surprising amount of data about work besties. Plus, a Gen Z writer urges her to re-think the importance of work as a primary social hub. Meet the guests: - Dr. Marisa G. Franco, a psychologist and author of "Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends," shares the benefits of a work bestie and talks about why employers are invested in these positive relationships in the workplace - Katherine Hu, assistant editor at The Atlantic, talks about how her generation is navigating the social scene at work Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita has not lived with her parents since leaving for college. But during the pandemic, many Millennials and Gen Zers returned home. For some of them, especially those with unpartnered parents, this meant new and unexpected insights into their parents’ love lives. Anita shares an episode of the podcast “Dating While Gray” that features conversations between parents and their adult kids about the ongoing search for a happily ever after. Adult children of single parents … are they a source of emotional support and strength, or a disruptive influence in finding a “happily ever after”? We explore with guests including the millennial daughter of our ever-so-curious host. After two divorces, Gia’s on the fence about getting back out there. Daughter Lauryn aims to help by sharing ideas and resources, including this podcast. Then there’s gray dater Laura, whose partner seems less than enthusiastic about moving their relationship along. Are his grown kids the reason, or an excuse? Finally, DWG host Laura Stassi and her daughter compare notes on living together while exploring individual romantic pursuits. (How did that no-sleepovers pact turn out?) Read the transcript Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram

Anita hasn't always loved getting her photo taken, but seeing herself through the artistic eye of a close friend and photographer has changed her perspective. She meets two intimate photographers who take her behind the scenes of their shoots and share their philosophies on capturing the erotic in an image. Plus, she talks with a model about her intimate work that explores disability and sexuality.Meet the guests:- LaQuann Dawson, an artist and community organizer, shares his passion for documenting the Black, queer community through intimate photography and what it's been like to turn the lens on himself- Shoog McDaniel, a queer, fat photographer and artist, describes the process of guiding others through intimate, mostly-nude shoots in nature and what it's like to witness them discover new ways of being in their bodies- Trista Marie McGovern, a writer, photographer, speaker and model, talks about using intimate photography as a tool to explore the intersections of disability and sexualityRead the transcript | Review the podcastFollow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Dive deeper:- LaQuann’s on Instagram- Shoog on Instagram- Trista on Instagram- Trista’s essays on disability and sexuality

Anita agrees to a suggestion posed by a listener: Explore why the hair-pulling disorder trichotillomania is so taboo. She talks with an artist who started pulling their hair more than two decades ago but only recently told her parents…after publishing part of their story in a national news outlet. A psychologist on the front-lines of studying trich treatment talks about the importance of acceptance; and a hairstylist with trich takes us into why her salon is a safe haven for other folks with hair loss. Meet the guests: - Haruka Aoki, a writer and illustrator who recently published a comic about their trichotillomania journey in The Washington Post, shares what it was like to learn a term for the disorder later in life - Dr. Suzanne Mouton-Odum, a licensed psychologist and board member for the TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors, describes her counseling work with folks who experience trich - Dorin Azérad, a hair loss hairstylist, shares how her ongoing journey with trich shapes the services she offers to other folks with hair loss at her salon Read the transcript | Review the podcast Follow Embodied on Twitter and Instagram Dive deeper: - Self-Care Provider Directory for folks with BFRB - The TLC Foundation on Trich - Haruka’s children’s book “Fitting In”