The V Word

Dr. Nawal Nour is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School and the Director of the Global Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. 

Born in the Sudan and raised in Egypt and England, Dr. Nour is Committed to the eradication of FGC, and travels throughout the country conducting workshops to educate African refugees and immigrants on the medical complications and legal issues of this practice.  

She also established the African Women's Health Center in Boston and in 2003 was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow for creating the country’s only center of its kind that focuses on both physical and emotional needs of women who have had or undergone FGC. Her work has been covered by the Associated Press, New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, O and Essence magazine and CNN. 

Brittany Daniel is an American television and film actress, best known for her role as Jessica Wakefield in the 1990s syndicated teen drama Sweet Valley High and Kelly Pitts on the CW/BET comedy-drama The Game. In 2011, she was diagnosed with stage IV non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and as of 2014, is cancer-free. She talks openly about the mental health hurdles of undergoing cancer treatment and is a continued philanthropist and supporter of various cancer charities. 

You can follow her on her lifestyle and wellness blog, Sweet Collection XO, along with her twin sister, Cynthia Daniel.

It's time we stop stigmatizing the very thing that commemorates our life as women. Menopause isn't something to be feared, shamed, embarrassed by, or ignored. We should be celebrating this reproductive life milestone just like we celebrate puberty and pregnancy. Listen to this primer on menopause and then go throw someone you love a #MenopauseParty!

Angela Garbes is the best-selling author of the book, Like A Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy, which was the NPR Best Book of 2018. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, New York magazine's The Cut, and been featured on NPR's Fresh Air. 

Like a Mother explores the emerging science and long-standing cultural myths of pregnancy and motherhood, in a hilarious and empowering way. She's currently working on a book of reported essays about (brown female) bodies. You can follow her on Instagram: angelagarbes or Twitter: @agarbes.

In start-up land, there's no end to advances in healthcare technology, but what really IS at-home fertility testing, should you be doing it, if so-when, and what are the potential down sides? Special interviews with Afton Vechery, CEO and Co-Founder of Modern Fertility, and Lea Von Bidder, Co-Founder of Ava Fertility.

Does it feel real enough for you yet? In this special episode on abortion bans, we break down the brief history of how we got here; review the new, very evil types of abortion laws that old white male governors (and Kay Ivey) have recently passed; and hear from the Physicians for Reproductive Health "Voices of Courage" event awardees: Dr. Stephanie Ho, Dr. Rachel Masch, and Helmi Henkin, chair of the clinic escort group West Alabama Clinic Defenders.

Megan Koester is a comedian, writer, actress, and activist. She recently wrote an article for Experience Magazine on her decision to get sterilized and all the hurdles she faced in accessing this care. Tune in for some real talk on deciding to not have kids and the barriers our society puts up against that.

In the much awaited sequel to our Transwomen episode, we again visit gender affirming treatments and the overall welfare of transgender individuals, focusing this time on transmen or transmasculine people. Special interview with Sam, a transman who recently completed his gender affirming process.

UTIs, or urinary tract infections, are SUPER common in vagina-owning people, and most womxn will experience at least one in their lifetime. Listen in & get all your burning (get it) questions answered as Executive Producer, Bethney Bonilla, talks with Dr. Aviva Weinberg, a Urologist, surgeon, artist, mother, and UTI expert at Kaiser Permanente. 

Gina Gutierrez is the CEO and Co-Founder of Dipsea, a female-founded tech company and story studio that creates audio stories and experiences to set the mood and spark imagination. 

As Gina says, feeling turned on is more than a wing up to sex. It's a way to feel more alive, heighten intimacy, unlock confidence, and cultivate well being. We couldn't agree more, Gina. Keep up that sexual health empowerment!