This episode comes from our listeners, and features their stories about diagnosis and recovery, health and illness - documenting what they have lived through, how it has changed their bodies, and what this health journey has meant to them. 

This episode features stories from Kasia Woźniak and Melissa Kirk.

These immersive and personal audio stories from our listener community come from First Person Health, a storytelling workshop from Overlooked. If you have a story about your health that you want to tell, learn more and sign up here: https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/firstpersonhealth

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

Nancy King Reame, Professor Emerita at Columbia University's School of Nursing, has spent decades researching tampon safety. She was on the FDA task force that investigated the link between tampons and toxic shock syndrome in the early eighties - a deadly outbreak that killed dozens of women and affected hundreds more. Her research led to the absorbency scale printed on every box of tampons sold. Nancy King Reame says even today, we still don't fully know what goes into a tampon.

Nancy Reame is the Mary Dickey Lindsay Professor of Health Promotion, Risk Reduction (Emerita), at the Columbia University School of Nursing. This episode covers:

-The history of toxic shock syndrome and its link to tampon absorbency in the 1980s

-How tampons are still tested using a synthetic vagina and blue-dyed salt water — not menstrual fluid

-Why we don't know the specifics of what goes into a tampon

For a further deep dive into this episode, subscribe to our newsletter: https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/f8ebd706ad

What to listen to next: another episode on women’s health history - the story of the Dalkon Shield IUD: https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/the-dark-history-of-the-dalkon-shield-iud-with-chikako-takeshita

This episode is sponsored by Raesyn Footwear. Raesyn is built for women who move - with purpose, with pace, and on their own terms. What began as a belief that walking deserves better became a movement to take it seriously again. Raesyn women's walking shoes are engineered for long walks, fast miles and all-day comfort. Overlooked listeners can click this link for a discount on their purchase: https://raesyn.com/discount/OVERLOOKED

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

Cesarean births are one of the most common operations in the world, and yet, we know surprisingly little about the impact and legacy of this surgery in our bodies.

Host Golda Arthur had two emergency cesarean births, and 20 years later, she's still making sense of their legacy. In this episode, she sits down with Rachel Somerstein, author of Invisible Labor: The Untold Story of the Cesarean Section, and Helena Grant, president of New York Midwives, to talk about why cesarean births are overlooked. 

They discuss:

- The origin of this surgery, which in the United States was first practiced on enslaved women.

- Why the rate of c-sections is so high in the US.

- Why recovery takes far longer than anyone tells you. 

- What to know if you’re pregnant, or trying to have a baby, and want to know more about cesarean births. 

If you would like to share your story with us, write to us at [email protected].

The newsletter that accompanies this episode has more links and resources and a deeper dive into this topic. Subscribe here or at www.overlookedpod.com

Listen to this next: an episode on preeclampsia - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/new-ways-to-predict-preeclampsia-and-save-lives-with/id1706322130?i=1000735203960

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

This episode comes from our listeners, and features their stories about diagnosis and recovery, health and illness - documenting what they have lived through, how it has changed their bodies, and what this health journey has meant to them. 

This episode features stories from Spencer Moore and Jen Johnson.

These immersive and personal audio stories from our listener community have come out of First Person Health, the very first storytelling workshop from Overlooked, and will be a regular feature on the show. 

First Person Health teaches participants how to tell their stories in sound by using audio diaries and learning narrative storytelling skills. 

To learn more about First Person Health, or apply to be in a workshop, click here. 

For the backstory on this episode, subscribe to the newsletter here. 

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

A 'previvor' is a person who doesn't have cancer but carries a genetic risk for developing it. And if that's you, it can feel like you've suddenly been pulled into a world that can be overwhelming and scary. Michelle Zimmerman, CEO and co-founder of Previvor Edge, talks about what previvorship actually means, why people resist genetic testing, and how to move past the fear of knowing your cancer risk.

More background on this episode:

Previvor Edge: https://www.previvoredge.com/

Subscribe to the newsletter for the backstory on this episode, and a deeper dive on the content.

What to listen to next: where host Golda Arthur's previvor story began: https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/a-full-hysterectomy-could-prevent-cancer-but-it-also-kickstarts-menopause-pamela-esposito-amerys-story

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

In the last week of 2025, host Golda Arthur went to the emergency room with a sudden, intense headache. The scan showed nothing. But sitting in an uncomfortable chair with an IV in her arm, she realized something.

In this audio essay, Golda talks about her experience in the ER, and why pain - how we express it, what we know about it, how we treat it - will be a central theme of Overlooked in 2026.

If you have a pain story, or a suggestion for a specific pain topic, email us at [email protected]. 

Subscribe to the newsletter for the backstory on this episode, and a deeper dive on the content: https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/f8ebd706ad

What to listen to next: Endometriosis and Pain, with Gabrielle Jackson https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/endometriosis-and-pain-with-gabrielle-jackson

[The episode features 'Morning Glare' and 'Pacific Time', music from Blue Dot Sessions]

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

Cait Reeves lived with severe adenomyosis pain for years before getting a diagnosis. In this episode, she tells us about the struggle to be heard by doctors, the breakthrough moment when she found language to describe her pain - comparing it to a garden trowel carving into a pumpkin - and the changes that helped her reclaim her life. A listener-requested episode.

The newsletter has the backstory to this episode, sign up for it here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/f8ebd706ad

What to listen to next: Discovering a borderline tumor in your 20s, with Lucy Rudd https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/discovering-a-borderline-tumor-in-your-20s-with-lucy-rudd

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

This is a listener-requested episode about the connection between migraine and hormones - and one hormone in particular. You guessed it: estrogen. Dr Rashmi B. Halker Singh from The Mayo Clinic talks about migraine at puberty, pregnancy and perimenopause, and how the menstrual cycle can worsen migraine, which is considered a chronic condition. She outlines the symptoms, an approach to treatment, and explains how a migraine actually unfolds.

Earlier this year we did an episode with Sally Herships about the experience of living with constant migraine - take a listen to that episode here: https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/the-migraine-diaries-with-sally-herships

The newsletter has more resources on migraine and the backstory to this episode - subscribe to it here: https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/f8ebd706ad

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

Preeclampsia is one of the most dangerous conditions in pregnancy, and we’ve struggled to see it coming. That’s changing fast, as tests to predict this condition are being developed. Dr Neel Shah is the chief medical officer of Maven Clinic and in this episode, we explore the breakthrough science that's finally solving the mystery of preeclampsia, what to know if you’re pregnant, and how new life-saving technology can be made available to everyone.

For more about Dr Neel Shah and preeclampsia, subscribe to our newsletter and read here.

Want more from 'Overlooked'? Listen to this episode next: Mapping the ovaries, with Dr Kathleen O'Neill: https://overlooked.simplecast.com/episodes/mapping-the-ovaries-with-dr-kathleen-e-oneill

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.

Two-thirds of people with Alzheimer's are women, but we don't really know why. Dr. Gillian Einstein, who studies women’s brain health at the University of Toronto, is uncovering how life experiences like surgical menopause and caregiving stress in the 30s and 40s might plant the seeds of this disease decades before symptoms appear.

For the backstory to this episode and a deeper dive on Alzheimers in women, subscribe to the newsletter.
Gillian Einstein is The Wilfred and Joyce Posluns Chair in Women’s Brain Health and Aging, Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto.

What to listen to next: Surviving an almost fatal brain aneurysm, with Alicia Trujillo.

Overlooked tells powerful stories about women's health conditions that don't get enough attention. The show is hosted by Golda Arthur, an audio journalist and producer. Learn more about the show at www.overlookedpod.com. 

CLICK 'follow' wherever you listening to this, and episodes will come to you automatically.

JOIN A STORYTELLING WORKSHOP to learn how to tell your own health story in sound. Sign up here - https://overlookedpodcast.kit.com/a0aa7482e5

Get in touch:

Email: [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/overlookedpod/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/105541285/admin/dashboard/

DISCLAIMER What you hear and read on ‘Overlooked’ is for general information purposes only and represents the opinions of the host and guests. The content on the podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. Every person’s body is unique, so please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions that may arise.