Embodied

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 circumciseRead the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for Embodied

In Anita's lifetime, the divorce rate for Americans over 55 has doubled. People are living longer, divorce stigma has decreased and women are more financially independent. But leaving a decades-long marriage … is a big life upheaval. Anita gets personal accounts from two gray divorcees about what it was like to rebuild their identities, finances and freedom post-divorce. They discuss money management, surfing and why women initiate divorce most often in heterosexual partnerships.Meet the guests:- Laura Stassi is a writer, editor and the host of the podcast "Dating While Gray."- Dr. Stephanie Han is a literature scholar, award-winning author and educator.Special thanks to Nanette Murphy and Linda Lingo for sharing their thoughts for this episode!Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for Embodied

Anita's been deep in romantasy land this year reading Fourth Wing & ACOTAR. And it's gotten her thinking about the skill required to make steamy sex scenes come alive on the page and out loud. She goes behind the scenes with two prolific erotica author-editors and a former producer for the audio erotica app Dipsea to figure out how the sausage — and the butt slaps — get made.Meet the guests:- Rachel Kramer Bussel has been published in more than 100 erotica anthologies, edited at least 70 others and is the author of “How To Write Erotica.”- Cecilia Tan has written science fiction and fantasy erotica for 30 years and is the founder of the publishing company Circlet Press. - Selene Ross is a former audio producer for the popular audio erotica app Dipsea and an artist and musician with an MFA in fiction from Oregon State University, where she teaches podcast storytelling and writing.Special thanks to Megan Hart and Lee Suksi for contributing to this episode!Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for Embodied

Anita and her partner John have started talking more openly about how his hearing loss informs their relationship and how they'll continue to navigate that as they age. She meets another interabled couple (Anna and Vika) who share the sometimes humorous, sometimes challenging moments that accompany sex and dating with hearing loss. Plus, former guest Yat Li returns to talk about deafness, disclosure, and disabled identity.Meet the guests:- Anna Pulley, author and columnist, talks about her journey with sex and intimacy as a deaf and hard of hearing person- Vika Mass, Anna's fiancee, shares how she has adjusted as part of an interabled couple- Yat Li, disability advocate, inclusive model and creator of “Let There Be Ears” on YouTube, talks about how he learned to self-disclose his deafnessRead the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for Embodied

Tested is a new podcast series from CBC and NPR that asks the question, who gets to compete?  Since the beginning of women’s sports, there has been a struggle over who qualifies for the women’s category. Tested follows the unfolding story of elite female runners who have been told they can no longer race as women, because of their biology. As the Olympics approach, they face hard choices: take drugs to lower their natural testosterone levels, give up their sport entirely, or fight. To understand how we got here, we trace the surprising, 100-year history of sex testing. More episodes of Tested are available here.

It took Anita 12 years and five therapists to find someone who could help her tackle questions of racial and cultural identity. She meets two therapists of color working to make that kind of support more accessible. Sahaj Kaur Kohli, founder of Brown Girl Therapy, talks about approaching wellness from a more collectivist lens, and Jor-El Caraballo shares how he helps clients build tools for resilience in the face of systemic oppression.Meet the guests:-  Sahaj Kaur Kohli is a psychotherapist, the founder of Brown Girl Therapy and the author of “But What Will People Say?”- Jor-El Caraballo is a therapist, the co-founder of Viva Mental Health and Wellness and the author of “Self-Care for Black Men”Special thanks to Lisa R. Savage, Erinn Scott, Melody Li and Susan Chung for contributing to this weeks’ episode.Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for EmbodiedSign up for WUNC's new Politics Newsletter here.

Long-term stays in psychiatric institutions were once a relatively common treatment in this country. They’re not anymore, but that doesn’t mean they’ve gone away entirely. Anita meets someone who spent three years living in a psychiatric hospital in the early 90s and talks with an activist whose time spent in contemporary psychiatric hospitals pushed them to fight for alternatives.Meet the guests:- Suzanne Scanlon spent three years living inside the New York State Psychiatric Institute in her early 20s and is the author of the memoir  “Committed: On Meaning and Madwomen”- Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkulu is an organizer, healer and the founder and director of Project LETs**If you or someone you know is in an emotional crisis, reach out to the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting 988.**Special thanks to Chanika Svetvilas and Laura Lopez-Aybar, who contributed to this episode.Read the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for EmbodiedSign up for WUNC's new Politics Newsletter here.Places to find diverse narratives about psychiatric institutionalization: - Vesper Moore- Nadia Naomi Mbonde- Depressed While Black online community

When you live in a disabled body, you don’t always get to see yourself in the love stories you consume. Anita talks with three folks changing that through their own writing. She meets a novelist, essayist and activist who share their disability love stories and how writing has changed their relationships with others and themselves.Meet the guests:- Keah Brown, journalist and author of "The Pretty One," talks about her experience with cerebral palsy and her multi-year journey to self-love- Maria Town, activist and CEO and president of the American Association of People with Disabilities, discusses opening up about her romantic relationship for the first time in her essay, ”This is My Solemn Vow”- Talia Hibbert, British romance author, digs into how her own experiences as a disabled person inform the romantic leads that she writesRead the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for EmbodiedSign up for WUNC's new Politics Newsletter here.Dive deeper:“Disability Intimacy,” edited by activist Alice Wong

Anita's nail habit has evolved in the past decade from $10 drop-in manicures to 90 minute appointments with a nail artist. That artist joins her for a conversation about how Black women have shaped nail culture. Plus a fashion historian details nail history from Egyptian mummies to ‘90s Chanel colors, and a Vietnamese-American woman tells the story of growing up inside her parents' nail salons.Meet the guests:- Crystal Sanders, nail artist and entrepreneur, shares her business and artistic philosophy and talks about the overlooked role Black women have played in the history of nail art- Suzanne E. Shapiro, fashion historian and author of "Nails: The Story of the Modern Manicure," explains the historical context of manicures and nail art and ties both art forms into larger cultural forces- My Ngoc To, Vietnamese-American writer, talks about her experience growing up in the nail salons that her parents owned and how that has influenced her relationship with nail art todayRead the transcript | Review the podcastFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for EmbodiedDig deeper:Crissy Shined Nails on IGBlkgirlnailfies on IGMore context on Black women in nail artNYT nail industry exposeMy Ngoc’s piece about her family’s nail salonsNailed It documentarySign up for WUNC's new Politics Newsletter here.

It’s been two years since the Supreme Court revoked the federal right to an abortion. Now, nearly one in five people seeking abortion care has to cross state lines to get it. Anita meets someone who spent 20 hours on the road to get her abortion, learns how folks afford thousands of dollars worth of travel and reviews the ways that Hollywood has taken on the abortion road trip.Meet the guests:- Taylor Shelton, abortion-seeker who traveled from her home state of South Carolina to North Carolina three times to get her abortion, shares the emotional toll that all that travel took and why she decided to join a lawsuit suing South Carolina over its abortion law- Serra Sippel, interim executive director of the Brigid Alliance, talks about some of the tangible ways that her organization supports folks who have to travel for abortion care and how they navigate an ever-changing legislative landscape- Gretchen Sisson, sociologist who studies portrayals of abortion in TV and film, traces the abortion road trip subgenre and explains how these representations affect the audiences who watch themRead the transcript | Review the podcast on your preferred platformFollow Embodied on X and Instagram Leave a message for EmbodiedSign up for WUNC's new Politics Newsletter here.Dive deeper:A visualization of abortion travel from The New York Times A Guttmacher Institute analysis on abortion travel & data on abortion numbers and travelThe cost of traveling for an abortionMore on Taylor’s story:From NPRFrom PBSMore on The Brigid AllianceMore ‘navigators’ helping people access abortion careAn Abortion Road Trip Movie List:Grandma (2015), directed by Paul WeitzNever Rarely Sometimes Always (2020), directed by Eliza HittmanUnpregnant (2020), directed by Rachel Lee GoldenbergPlan B (2021), directed by Natalie MoralesRed, White and Blue (Short 2023), directed by Nazrin ChoudhuryTripping (Short 2024), directed by Amelia Xanthe Boscov