Nobody Should Believe Me

Latest Episodes:

S07 E07: Selling a Story May 07, 2026

Show notes

Stories of “false” allegations of child abuse build on each other to paint the picture of a widespread problem that can affect anyone who brings there child into a hospital. None have made more of an impact than those featured in Take Care of Maya.

The first half of this season was dedicated to John Stewart, and 15-month-old Knowellan Kelly, but what about the other 3 families shown at the end of Take Care of Maya? A story is spun about how these parents were wronged by the system, but there’s a stark omission of what actually happened to their children–how they ended up at the hospital in the first place. Today we look at the truth behind the narrative about Dr. Sally Smith.

Featuring:

Matthew Torbenson, Assistant District Attorney
Dr. Jill Glick, Child Abuse Pediatrician
Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician

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S07 E06: The Experts Apr 30, 2026

Show notes

Child abuse pediatricians have become increasingly villainized in the media despite being among the most specialized and cautious doctors in child abuse medicine. Andrea looks at what these doctors actually do and why their role is so often misunderstood.

Andrea also explores the rise of paid defense experts who offer alternative explanations in abuse cases that fall far outside the medical consensus.

Featuring Experts:

Dr. Stephen Boos, Child Abuse Pediatrician
Matthew Torbenson, Assistant District Attorney
Dr. Jill Glick, Child Abuse Pediatrician

***

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Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

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The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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S07 E05: Beyond a Reasonable Doubt Apr 23, 2026

Show notes

John Stewart is arrested shortly after Knowellan’s death, but despite what appears to be strong evidence of abuse, the case against John is never taken to court. Andrea traces how we ended up here, ten years later, with no one held accountable for taking the life of a child.

Featuring Experts:

Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician
Mike Weber, Former Crimes Against Children Detective
Dr. Cathy Ayoub, Nurse Practitioner and Professor of Psychology at Harvard
Matthew Torbenson, Assistant District Attorney

***

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Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

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The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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S07 E04: Something was Wrong Apr 16, 2026

Show notes

Investigators work to reconstruct Knowellan Kelly’s final hours in the care of John Stewart and his grandfather. John claims there is exculpatory evidence that proves he didn’t hurt Knowellen, but is that really the story the evidence tells?

Featuring:

Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician
Dr. Russell Vega, Medical Examiner

***

Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-mother-next-door-9781250284273/

View our sponsors: https://www.nobodyshouldbelieveme.com/sponsors/

Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/@NobodyShouldBelieveMePod

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Buy Andrea's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Andrea-Dunlop/author/B005VFWJPI

For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit: https://www.munchausensupport.com/

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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S07 E03: Two Steps Apr 09, 2026

Show notes

After 15-month old Knowellan Kelly is rushed to the hospital following a seizure, doctors discover catastrophic injuries. Andrea walks through the medical evidence with experts whose findings point to repeated inflicted trauma. As investigators struggle to reconcile conflicting accounts from John Stewart and Knowellan’s mother and grandfather, a tangled web emerges.

Featuring:

Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician
Dr. Russell Vega, Medical Examiner
Matthew Torbenson, Assistant District Attorney
Dr. Stephen Boos, Child Abuse Pediatrician

***

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Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-mother-next-door-9781250284273/

View our sponsors: https://www.nobodyshouldbelieveme.com/sponsors/

Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/@NobodyShouldBelieveMePod

Follow Andrea on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andreadunlop/

Buy Andrea's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Andrea-Dunlop/author/B005VFWJPI

For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit: https://www.munchausensupport.com/

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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S07 E02: What Happened to Knowellan Kelly? Apr 02, 2026

Show notes

After John Stewart, a Florida man charged with–but never prosecuted for–the death of his girlfriend's 15-month old son reaches out to Andrea to tell her she’s all wrong about his case Andrea goes on a deep dive to find out what really happened to Knowellan Kelly, the baby who lost his life ten years ago. John–who was featured in Take Care of Maya–claims that doctors and investigators falsely accused him: but the truth turns out to be much more complicated.

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Vote for us for the Webby's People's Voice Award: https://vote.webbyawards.com/PublicVoting#/2026/podcasts/features/best-indie-podcast

Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-mother-next-door-9781250284273/

View our sponsors: https://www.nobodyshouldbelieveme.com/sponsors/

Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/@NobodyShouldBelieveMePod

Follow Andrea on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andreadunlop/

Buy Andrea's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Andrea-Dunlop/author/B005VFWJPI

For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit: https://www.munchausensupport.com/

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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S07 E01: The Catalyst Mar 26, 2026

Show notes

Welcome to Season Seven of Nobody Should Believe Me. Andrea revisits the case of Maya Kowalski—the story at the center of the Netflix film Take Care of Maya–and the family’s high-profile lawsuit against Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. What became widely framed as a story about “medical kidnapping” began when hospital staff reported suspected medical child abuse after Maya arrived with a history of extreme ketamine treatments.

How did a case of horrific abuse become a story about evil doctors kidnapping children?

Featuring:

Ethen Shapiro, Attorney for Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

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Listen to our 4-part recap of the Kowalski Case: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisiting-kowalski-part-one-the-turn/id1615637188?i=1000750439578

Listen to our season 3 coverage of the Kowalski Case: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s03-e01-special-report-watching-take-care-of-maya-re-release/id1615637188

Listen to Andrea and Dr. Bex’s coverage of the Kowalski v Johns Hopkins Trial: https://www.patreon.com/collection/548199

Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-mother-next-door-9781250284273/

View our sponsors: https://www.nobodyshouldbelieveme.com/sponsors/

Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/@NobodyShouldBelieveMePod

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Buy Andrea's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Andrea-Dunlop/author/B005VFWJPI

For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit: https://www.munchausensupport.com/

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines: https://apsac.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Munchausen-by-Proxy-Clinical-and-Case-Management-Guidance-.pdf

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Season 7 Trailer Mar 19, 2026

Show notes

Season 7 of the groundbreaking true crime podcast Nobody Should Believe Me investigates why so many Americans believe doctors are “medically kidnapping” children from innocent parents.

Florida man John Stewart insists he was falsely accused of the murder of 15-month-old Knowellan Kelly—a story media outlets and documentary filmmakers have echoed in sympathetic portrayals. But a months-long investigation into the case, including interviews with the doctors involved and with Stewart himself, reveals a far more complicated story of violence, deception, and injustice.

Season 7 asks the questions others didn’t: what really happened to Knowellan Kelly?

As the season unfolds, Stewart’s case leads us into a disturbing ecosystem of parents who claim they were falsely accused of abuse, alongside fringe medical experts and hardline parents’ rights activists. Together, they are fueling conspiracy theories about “evil” child abuse pediatricians and successfully advocating for laws that undermine child abuse investigations and weaken protections for vulnerable children.

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Revisiting Kowalski Part Four: The Aftermath Mar 12, 2026

Show notes

In this final recap episode, we revisit the final months of Maya Kowalski’s sheltering at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and the tragic events that followed. While the dependency case and abuse investigation continued, tensions within the Kowalski family were escalating. After a difficult court hearing in January 2017, Beata Kowalski died by suicide, leaving behind emails asking others to “take care of Maya”.

Following Beata’s death, Maya was eventually released to her father’s custody, where she continued to improve and was able to return to school without further ketamine treatment. In the years that followed, the Kowalski family filed a lawsuit against the hospital that would ultimately lead to a high-profile trial, widespread media coverage, and the Netflix documentary Take Care of Maya.

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Just a note that today’s episode includes mention and description of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help please call 988 or visit 988lifeline.org

***

Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy.

Click here to view our sponsors. Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have full episodes and lots of bonus content.

Follow Andrea on Instagram: @andreadunlop

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For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit MunchausenSupport.com

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines can be downloaded here.

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Revisiting Kowalski Part Three: The Breaking Point Mar 05, 2026

Show notes

In the third part of our Kowalski recap, Andrea walks through the events that led to Maya’s hospitalization and what hospital staff observed in those first days. As doctors quickly became concerned about both Maya’s condition and the unusual treatments she had been receiving, the hospital brought in a child abuse pediatrician and an investigation into possible medical child abuse began.

***

Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster

Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy.

Click here to view our sponsors. Remember that using our codes helps advertisers know you’re listening and helps us keep making the show!

Subscribe on YouTube where we have full episodes and lots of bonus content.

Follow Andrea on Instagram: @andreadunlop

Buy Andrea's books here.

For more information and resources on Munchausen by Proxy, please visit MunchausenSupport.com

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s MBP Practice Guidelines can be downloaded here.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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