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What Next; How IVF Became the GOP's Next Battle Jun 18, 2024

Show notes

Now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned, the Christian right seems to be setting its sights on banning in-vitro fertilization. But even though the Southern Baptist Convention passed a resolution against IVF, it’s a very popular and widely accepted procedure, which is why Senate Republicans signed a statement in favor of access to IVF, the same day almost all voted against protecting it by law.

Guest: Megan Messerly, health policy reporter at Politico.

Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.

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Care & Feeding: Dads Can Suffer From Postpartum Depression, Too Jun 13, 2024

Show notes

On this episode: Lucy sits down with researcher and friend of the show Tova Walsh to talk about her work on dads who experience postpartum depression. Paternal mental health is a topic we don’t talk about nearly enough, so we wanted to give you some advice — and some resources to learn more and get help.

Tova wants to share the following:

Lucy, Zak and Elizabeth will also debrief on our week in parenting with a round of Triumphs & Fails — including ROLY-POLIES.

Listeners, we want your advice – and your questions – about how to prevent the dreaded summer backslide. You know where to find us (and if you don’t, keep reading).

Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318.

If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus to help support our work.

Podcast produced by Maura Currie.

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Well, Now: Doctors Agree: Obesity is a Disease. The Public Needs to Catch Up. Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

Ever since it showed up on the Body Mass Index, the label “obese” has been used to judge and often shame people with larger bodies.

Medical providers, family and friends, even strangers make assumptions about fat people’s health solely based on their size.

At the same time, excess quantities of fat can lead to poor health outcomes such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes.

Over the decades, medical associations have evolved their understanding of obesity. The American Medical Association, the National Institutes of Health, and the American Obesity Society all classify obesity as a disease requiring medical treatment.

How does that change the way medical providers care for their obese and overweight patients? And does that mean people with fatter bodies can now face less discrimination?

As a part of a series of ongoing conversations on Well, Now on weight and health, we discuss the current medical definition of obesity and how to treat it with Dr. Angela Fitch, former Associate Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center.

If you liked this episode, check out: The Isolation of a Life-Threatening Diagnosis

Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel.

Editing and podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with oversight from Alicia Montgomery.

Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com

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What Next: Wait, Is JUUL Banned or Not? Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

Two years ago, the FDA announced it was banning JUUL nicotine vapes from sale in the U.S.—and then quickly announced it was holding off on the ban to allow for review. How did regulating ecigarettes end up playing catch-up?

Guest: Jamie Ducharme, health correspondent at Time, author of Big Vape: The Incendiary Rise of Juul.

Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.

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Death, Sex & Money: My Shy Bladder Jun 11, 2024

Show notes

Christopher Zara didn’t finish high school, and can sometimes feel like an outsider working in a field where it’s more common to have a college degree. Sometimes he’s able to push through his social anxiety, to put on a tough face. But other times his body won’t give him a chance to feel at ease – it seizes up, and in Christopher’s case that means not being able to pee even when he really, really has to.

“Imagine you’re unable to perform a basic function like move your hand or your leg,” Christopher said, “You're standing, in my case, in front of a urinal or wherever the bathroom is, and it just doesn't happen.”

In this episode, Christopher talks to producer Zoe Azulay about “paruresis,” more colloquially known as shy bladder syndrome, how it’s been disruptive to his life, how he thinks it's connected to class anxiety, and how it’s gotten better.

Christopher Zara’s memoir is called Uneducated: A Memoir of Flunking Out, Falling Apart, and Finding My Worth

Podcast production by Zoe Azulay

Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus.

And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com.

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Well, Now: The Isolation of a Life-Threatening Diagnosis Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

Each week, we’ve explored wellness from different perspectives, but we haven’t talked about what it means to live a full life while grappling with the real possibility of death.

Most of us hope for a full, long life with “good” health. But a serious, possibly fatal diagnosis changes everything: Our relationships with work, loved ones, and even the way we see ourselves.

On this week’s episode of Well, Now we speak with author, journalist, and artist Suleika Jaouad. Many learned about her work in the Oscar-nominated documentary American Symphony – which chronicled her marriage to musician Jon Baptiste as his career soared and her leukemia re-emerged.

But Suleika began documenting illness and identity long before starring in an award-winning film.

If you liked this episode, check out: “People Feel Like They’re Drowning”: The Long COVID Survivors Left Behind

Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel.

Editing and podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with editorial oversight by Alicia Montgomery.

Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com

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Death, Sex & Money: I Was Afraid of Losing Myself to Motherhood. I Found Myself Instead. Jun 04, 2024

Show notes

Elissa Strauss always knew she wanted to be a mother, but she also knew she didn’t want motherhood to take over her personality. After all, she had spent years as a blogger making fun of anyone who took motherhood too seriously. She bemoaned the natural birth movement and people who made “mom friends.”

Then Elissa had a son, and her view of caretaking started to shift. “I had put so much energy into figuring out how not to lose myself to caregiving,” Elissa writes in her new book, “that I completely ignored the possibility that I might, in fact, find some of myself there.” In this episode, Anna and Elissa talk about why it feels uncool to talk about liking motherhood, the ways caretaking can take from us, but also how it can fill us up and engender “moral transformation.” Plus, the economics of care, and what really valuing care in society would look like.

Elissa’s book is called When You Care: the Unexpected Magic of Caring for Others. She also wrote a piece last month in Slate called “It’s Weird Times to Be a Happy Mother.”

Are you a paid caregiver? We want to hear from you for a future listener episode. Tell us some things you’ve taken away from the experience – wild stories, observations about class, lessons about the way you want your own loved ones to be cared for. Send us your thoughts and stories at deathsexmoney@slate.com.

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How To!: Be Lonely Jun 04, 2024

Show notes

Paula has a big family, lots of friends, and a girlfriend she adores. For most of her life, however, she has experienced an underlying and unshakeable sense of loneliness. On this episode of How To!, Courtney Martin brings on Kristen Radtke, the writer and illustrator behind Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness, to talk with Paula about an emotion that’s hard to talk about—and even harder to confront.

If you liked this episode, check out How To Find Your People and How To Survive a Silent Retreat.

Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

How To! is produced by Rosemary Belson, with Kevin Bendis. Joel Meyer is our senior editor/producer. Derek John is our executive producer.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now at slate.com/howtoplus.

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What Next TBD: Would You Buy Poop On the Internet? Jun 02, 2024

Show notes

“Fecal microbial transplants” treat someone’s unhealthy gut with poop from someone else’s healthy gut, and proponents of FMT claim it can help treat everything from IBS to autism. But if your doctor isn’t ready to fill you up with someone else’s poop, the internet will happily oblige.

Guest:

Luke Winkie, Slate staff writer who published “The Poop Broker.”

Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

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Well, Now: How Doulas Make Childbirth Safer For Everyone May 29, 2024

Show notes

Everyone has a different birth experience.

Obstetricians and midwives are well-known members of the birth team. Along with the pregnant person, they are central to labor and delivery.

Doulas are lesser known, but they can provide essential support for pregnant women and their loved ones.

On this week’s episode of Well, Now: What to expect when working with a doula with Latham Thomas, founder of Mama Glow.

If you liked this episode, check out: Overcoming a Complicated Pregnancy

Well, Now is hosted by Maya Feller, CDN and Kavita Patel, MD.

Podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with editorial oversight by Alicia Montgomery.

Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com.

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