Women’s Healthcast

In the late summer of 2026, the news is full of coverage about postpartum mental health. While people are thinking a lot about this topic, we wanted to re-share a conversation with Dr. Ryan McDonald about common postpartum mental health concerns.

Dr. McDonald is a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology in the UW Department of Ob-Gyn. In this interview, he talks about postpartum mental health signs and symptoms, a variety of treatment and support options, and important resources for parents and families navigating postpartum depression or anxiety.

RESOURCES: 

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Our summertime risks from extreme heat exposure are rising. And while extreme heat exposure can be dangerous for all of us, pregnant people are especially vulnerable.  

Dr. Laura Hanks joined this episode of the Women’s Healthcast to talk about extreme heat and pregnancy. Dr. Hanks is an obstetrician-gynecologist and assistant professor in the UW School of Medicine and Public Health Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. In our conversation, she helped define extreme heat, talked about common signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke, and shared her recommendations for staying safe and staying cool in periods of high heat.

More resources for heat safety:

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There can be many paths to becoming a parent. Third-party reproduction – or using donor eggs, donor sperm, donor embryos, or gestational carriers as part of a person or family’s fertility care journey – is incredibly common.  

Dr. Laura Cooney joined this episode of the Women’s Healthcast to talk about the whole range of third-party reproduction options. Dr. Cooney is a reproductive endocrinology and infertility physician in the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She talked about common types of third-party reproduction, why people and families might choose these services, the important role of mental health support during the fertility process, and some of the legal and financial considerations of third-party fertility care.  

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Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause, or GSM, is incredibly common – some research suggests more than 80 percent of people might experience symptoms like vaginal dryness, pain with intercourse, or urinary incontinence after menopause. And unlike some other symptoms of menopause, like hot flashes or night sweats, genitourinary symptoms don’t get better over time. That makes recognizing the symptoms and learning about treatment options all the more important.  

Dr. Margaret Wilkes joined this episode of the Women’s Healthcast to demystify GSM. Dr. Wilkes is a urogynecologist in the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She talked about the normal hormonal changes that cause GSM, the three categories of GSM symptoms she most commonly sees, and the variety of hormonal and non-hormonal treatments available today.  

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Over the last few months, the Women’s Healthcast has focused on how aging can affect our health. For the last two episodes in the Health and Aging series, we consider the impact of aging on metabolism – including societal implications. 

In Weight and Wellness, Part 1, Dr. Kate Sample  joined us to talk about how different life stages can affect body composition. In the second half of our conversation, Dr. Sample discusses additional options for improving health with age, the potential impacts of GLP-1 medications, and how to tell whether so-called “simple” solutions on social media are actually effective. 

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Over the last few months, the Women’s Healthcast has focused on how aging can affect our health. For the last two episodes in the Health and Aging series, we consider the impact of aging on metabolism – including societal implications. 

Dr. Kate Sample joined us to share her insight into changes in body composition that come with age. Dr. Sample is a clinical associate professor in the University of Wisconsin Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. In part one of this interview, she talked about natural changes in weight, muscle mass, and bone density that come with age, the effects of life stages such as pregnancy and menopause on metabolism, as well as how hormonal changes affect our bodies. 

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For the last few months, the Women’s Healthcast has been taking a look at health and aging, covering everything from perimenopause to sex to heart health. In our second-to-last episode of the Health and Aging series, we’ll focus on an all-important but sometimes under-appreciated group of muscles in the body: the pelvic floor.

This complex basket of muscles and connective tissue sits under the pelvis, supporting our organs and helping manage important bodily functions like going to the bathroom, having sex, giving birth, even standing and sitting. Repeated stress, pregnancy and birth, hormone changes, and more can all affect how well our pelvic floor functions.  

Maureen Sheetz is a nurse practitioner in the Division of Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery in the University of Wisconsin Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Maureen joined this episode of the Women’s Healthcast to talk about how to tell if you’re experiencing common pelvic floor issues like incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, the range of treatment options available for these conditions, and how to protect our pelvic floor health as we age.  

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Cardiovascular disease – things like heart disease and high blood pressure – can have huge impacts on our overall health. For women in particular, life events like pregnancy and menopause can raise our risk of cardiovascular disease. 

Dr. Anupama Joseph joined this episode of the Women’s Healthcast to talk about heart health and aging. Dr. Joseph is an assistant professor of cardiovascular medicine in the University of Wisconsin Department of Medicine. She talked about how to recognize common signs and symptoms of cardiovascular disease and what we need to know about improving our heart health. 

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A lot about our lives can change as we get older, and that includes our sex lives. Our last episode covered some of the physical changes that can impact sex as we age. For this episode, Madelyn Esposito joins the Women’s Healthcast to talk about the mental and emotional aspects of sex and aging. 

Madelyn is a licensed sex therapist and program manager of UW Health’s Sexual Health Clinic. She answered questions about what sex therapy is, common changes to mental and emotional health that impact sex, and what she wishes more people knew about sex and aging. 

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