Embodied

Anita appreciates how movies and TV are now more representative in portraying narratives about pregnancy termination. But those stories can't compete with talking to real people about their experience having an abortion.

Meet the guests:

- Gretchen Sisson, a sociologist, talks about how television and real life diverge when it comes to abortion — and how fictional portrayals influence our understanding of the procedure and the people who get it.

- Ruth and Margaret share their experiences terminating wanted pregnancies for medical reasons. Both women use pseudonyms in the conversation to protect their privacy.

- Anita's parents on their own abortion story.

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Anita combs through her own tangled relationship with body hair and asks why so many of us invest time and money on removal methods.

Meet the guests:

- Scholar Rebecca Herzig explains when and why we started caring so much about body hair and how hair removal practices have evolved over the centuries.

- Sharan Dhaliwal, founder and editor-in-chief of Burnt Roti, talks about about coming to terms with being a hairy Indian woman.

- Photographer Kristie DeGaris shares how she's raising her daughters to think about their own body hair and trying to normalize NOT removing it.

- Anita's parents on how their upbringings and aging have shaped their views on body hair.

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Embodied is back for a second season!

Anita says all the time "what's personal is political." So, she's interested to see how a new presidential administration will affect the ability of transgender Americans to serve in the U.S. military, which has long suffered from barriers to equity for troops and veterans from marginalized communities.

Meet the guests:

- Lt. Col. Bree Fram, the highest-ranking, out transgender officer in the Department of Defense, shares what it meant to come out after Obama lifted the ban on trans service members and the challenges with Trump's reversal of the policy.

- Marine Sgt. Samson Gibbs talks about how he's experienced more support than transphobia as an active duty military.

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Anita is all kinds of in love with her newborn niece, a relationship that has her thinking more about motherhood. Her thoughts on the matter are at least somewhat informed by listening to "The Double Shift" podcast, which challenges the status quo for moms. This episode explores the roles of gender and community in raising kids through the story of a transgender man named Ted. Plus, Anita extends an invitation for a virtual hangout.

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