Periodic Chats

Activist, Author, and Consultant Robyn Steward is our guide for this week's episode on looking at periods through the lens of autism. Our hosts Ellen and Christina ask her what has her experience has been like, the takeaways from her best-selling book 'The Autism-Friendly Guide to Periods', and what we can do better to include individuals diagnosed with autism. 

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Periods? Menstrual Health? Having the builders in? From the humorous to the bizarre, there are a lot of ways we refer to periods. Joining us this week is acclaimed wordsmith and menstrual activist extraordinaire Janie Hampton. Amongst other things we ask her, what should we say when we talk about periods? 

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Christina performs her poem, 'to bleed in nature's steps', exploring the language we associate with periods. 

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Period Poverty: What actually is it? How is it recognised by the government? What do we mean by improving 'access', and why is employment law for women in Taiwan important for us to consider? Joining us this week is Period Poverty expert Lucy Russell, who has decades of experience working for non-profits and as a Co-Chair for the U.K. Governments Period Poverty Task Force. Along with our wonderful hosts Ellen and Christina, we try to get to the root cause of all of this, in this, our first episode of our second Season!

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In our final episode of Season One, we interview PERIOD Youth Advisory Council Member Allyson Crays. We find out how Transgender men get excluded from the conversation on menstruation, what you can do to help, and why it's so important to not be exclusionary in our definitions of womanhood. 

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We invite IGEA CEO Sarah Boateng onto the show this week. Her company IGEA has done pioneering work in Ghana in teaching people about menstrual health, in distributing environmentally-friendly pads, and in changing the world one girl at a time. Tune in to find out how a 21 year old straight out of higher education created IGEA out of sheer passion and ingenuity, and the obstacles and necessary steps required in her fight against period poverty. 

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What is Endometriosis? Why is it not taken as seriously as other conditions? And just how many women suffer from it? Ellen is joined this week by one of the leading experts in the field, Elaine Denny, who has written books on endometriosis, pain, and has decades of experience working with healthcare practitioners trying to get to the bottom of these questions. Basically, the authority on these matters.

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Hiding period products, pretending we don't menstruate, awkward conversations with family, all commonplace situations...but why? Joining Ellen this week is Sarah Smidi, a member of PERIOD's Youth Advisory Council and budding attorney-at-law. We'll be sharing our embarrassing stories, looking at how the taboo persists across other cultures and, above all else, asking why on earth should having a period be embarrassing in the first place? 

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This week, we are ecstatic to invite one of the UK's foremost Tampon Tax campaigners and activists, author Laura Coryton. From having her petition calling for the abolishment of the Tampon Tax debated in parliament, to the current situation around the world, to her new book Speak Up! In this episode we explore one of the most sexist issues around period poverty, and look to its future. 

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On this episode, join Ellen and Maria as they delve deep into how what we see in media reflects how we feel about certain issues. From young people's attitudes, to how women writers represent periods in literature, and quite a lot in-between. We're delighted to also offer an exclusive sneak peek into Maria's current research, 'Menstrual Activism in the Media: Reducing Stigma and Tackling Period Poverty', as well as her new book which is set to be published in June. 

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