We have something very special for you today — about a month ago, we had bestselling author Andrea Bartz join our Patreon book club for a discussion about her new book, The Last Ferry Out. Andrea was on the show previously on one of our best-performing episodes on childfree representation in the media, so go back and listen to that episode!

Our Christmas Markets magic trip in Germany is now open to everyone! Buy your tickets while you still can. 

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Substack, Instagram, TikTok, and Threads at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

In this follow-up to our first tradwives episode, we dive into the toxic world of the manosphere and the concept of “princess treatment.” From Andrew Tate wannabes to algorithm-fed misogyny, we unpack how these online communities are radicalizing young men, feeding the male loneliness epidemic, and warp ideas about relationships. What you’ll hear in this episode:

• What the manosphere is, who’s in it, and how it’s damaging men AND women
  
  
• The role of YouTube algorithms in fueling extremist content
  
  
• Why beauty standards for men are moving backward while women’s are evolving
  
  
• How patriarchy, entitlement, and unrealistic dating expectations feed each other
  
  
• The male loneliness epidemic and why “man up” culture is part of the problem

Important links:

• Mexico City Weekend: Cutoff date Aug. 20, 2025
  
  
• Christmas Markets Girls’ Trip: Prague, Berlin & beyond 

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

Before we talk about today’s episode, consider taking a trip with Dinky! We have two amazing trips: A long weekend in Mexico City, and a Christmas Markets adventure in Germany.

Is your childfree choice written in the stars? In this episode, we sit down with astrologer Christina Garcia to explore what astrology reveals about the decision not to have children. Christina reads Erika + Kristen’s birth charts and walks us through the placements and patterns that might point to a childfree path. We dive into the houses and signs that speak to parenting, autonomy, and purpose — and unpack how astrology can validate, affirm, or even challenge how we see ourselves. Whether you're a chart-curious skeptic or a full-blown astro girlie, this is a juicy one.

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

What if the very thought of pregnancy or giving birth filled you with terror — not just discomfort or anxiety, but real, paralyzing fear?In this episode, Erika and Kristen explore tokophobia, an often-overlooked condition defined by the Cleveland Clinic as an extreme fear of childbirth. Tokophobia can affect people so severely that they may go to great lengths to avoid pregnancy altogether. For those who do become pregnant, the fear can overshadow what many new parents expect to be a joyful time. We unpack the psychological and cultural roots of this condition, share firsthand accounts from those living with it, and discuss how tokophobia intersects the choice to remain childfree. Whether you've experienced this fear yourself, or are just hearing about it for the first time, this episode offers validation, insight, and a fresh perspective on reproductive autonomy.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• 🧠 The difference between primary and secondary tokophobia, and how each type manifests
  
  
• 📊 Statistics from the Norwich Medical School on the prevalence of childbirth-related anxiety and severe fear
  
  
• 🧪 Kristen’s deep dive into the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire (W-DEQ) — including her own results
  
  
• 😨 Erika’s personal experience with extreme physical reactions to discussions of pregnancy
  
  
• 🧵 How tokophobia, PTSD, and general fear of childbirth exist on a spectrum — and why misdiagnosis matters
  
  
• 💊 The limited treatment options for tokophobia, including therapy and planned cesarean births
  
  
• 🗣️ Emotional Reddit confessions from those with tokophobia, and how the childfree identity often overlaps with the condition
  
  
• ⚖️ The impact of abortion restrictions on those with tokophobia — and how forced pregnancy can feel life-threatening to some
  
  
• 🧵 Why “being a woman” can feel like a burden when reproductive autonomy is at stake
  
  

💬 Join the Conversation: Have you experienced tokophobia or a fear of pregnancy? Tell us your story or weigh in on the conversation at @dinkypod on Instagram, or email us at [email protected]. 

Rate & Review:
If you found this episode validating, eye-opening, or just super interesting, don’t forget to follow and leave us a review! It helps other childfree listeners find us.

TAKE A TRIP WITH DINKY:
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
8 Days In Germany + Prague for Christmas Markets: Dec. 6 - 13 (GIRLS TRIP)

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

A lot to unpack in this episode! Today we are talking about Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill": what it includes and, most importantly, what's at stake for Americans when it comes to Medicaid, increasing federal debt, AI, and impacts specific to "childless adults."

Note: We’re recording this on June 20, 2025 and the Senate won’t even start debating the bill until at least June 22, 2025. So, some details about this conversation MAY have updates by the time this episode goes live, but the generalizations should remain in tact. 

Take a trip with Dinky:

We have two long weekend trips to:
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
Mexico City Weekend 2: Oct. 16 - 19 (GIRLS TRIP)Plus 8 Days In Germany + Prague for Christmas Markets: Dec. 6 - 13 (GIRLS TRIP)

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

Our guest today needs no introduction, as you’ve likely seen her all over your FYP educating the masses on midlife and menopause. Tamsen Fadal is the bestselling author of How To Menopause: Take Charge of Your Health, Reclaim Your Life, and Feel Even Better Than Before, the host of the Tamsen Show Podcast, and the creator, producer, and executive producer of the PBS documentary The M Factor: Shredding The Silence On Menopause. Beyond that, she is also a 12-time Emmy award-winning journalist and documentarian. Her regular appearances in media outlets include Oprah Daily, The Today Show, The New York Times, and The Harvard Business Review. Long story short? She’s a big fucking deal and we’re so excited to have her with us today! 

Take a trip with Dinky:

We have two long weekend trips to:
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
Mexico City Weekend 2: Oct. 16 - 19 (GIRLS TRIP)Plus 8 Days In Germany + Prague for Christmas Markets: Dec. 6 - 13 (GIRLS TRIP)

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Wanna get your finances in order? Use our link to sign up for a FREE 34 day trial of YNAB (You Need A Budget) and support the show.

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

Today we’re revisiting a crowd fave: regretful parents! We spiced it up this time and went to a new source for regretful parents content: Facebook’s “I Regret Having Children” page. Can you imagine anything more depressing than posting about regretting parenthood on Facebook?? Me either! Tune in for a great recap of three stories found on Meta's worst platform. 

We have two long weekend trips to:
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
Mexico City Weekend 2: Oct. 16 - 19 (GIRLS TRIP)
Plus 8 Days In Germany + Prague for Christmas Markets: Dec. 6 - 13 (GIRLS TRIP)

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast.

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

R. O. Kwon is the author of the two best selling books —The Incendiaries and Exhibit, the second of which received a New York Times Editors’ Choice award. Kwon’s writing has appeared in The New York Times, New Yorker, Time, Vanity Fair, The Guardian, and beyond — often writing about abortion rights, being childfree, as well as her identities as an Asian American and queer woman. Born in Seoul, Kwon has lived most of her life in the United States. You can find more info on ordering her books here.

We have two long weekend trips to:
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
Mexico City Weekend 2: Oct. 16 - 19 (GIRLS TRIP)

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast. 

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

Let’s talk about the SAVE act — the new legislation moving through Congress that has TikTok worried that many women and trans people will no longer be eligible to vote. If you’re unfamiliar, the SAVE Act would require all Americans to prove their citizenship with documentation unavailable to millions and upend the way every American citizen registers to vote.

We have two long weekend trips to

Mexico City going live on May 7!
Mexico City Weekend 1: Oct 9 - 12
Mexico City Weekend 2: Oct. 16 - 19 (GIRLS TRIP)

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast. 

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.

If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

If you’ve been thinking about joining Dinky on a trip but not yet quite sold, this is the episode for you! In March, Dinky took 20 members of the Dink Squad to the bucket list destination every person who wanted to become an archeologist dreamt of going: Egypt. In this episode, we’ll recount the experience and share some audio clips from the travelers — and hopefully inspire you, too, to add Egypt to your list of travel spots to visit! 

The Dinky Patreon is officially live! Join now to support the show + gain access to weekly, ad-free episodes, chat with us & other childfree pals in the Dinky Discord, join our virtual book club, and more! 

Dinky is now on Substack — free of charge! Subscribe now to access exclusive content, unhinged memes, guest articles, and stay up to date on the podcast. 

Wanna connect with us on social media? You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and BlueSky at @dinkypod. Follow us on YouTube.  If you have a question or comment, email us at [email protected]

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.