WUNC - Site Search

An illustration of a group of five people gathered outside at dusk socializing with beverages in their hands. In the foreground are two people standing close to a fire: one is holding a red Solo cup, and the other is holding a white cup that appears to be filled with water. In the background is a group of three people: two are holding red Solo cups, and one is holding a water bottle. At the top right of the illustration is the text “Sobered.”

Sobered: Reexamining Your Relationship With Alcohol

Anita has not participated in a Dry January, but there are times when she's motivated to pay extra-close attention to her relationship with alcohol. Most recently: during the pandemic. While some of us started drinking more, another group of folks committed to sober curiosity: a movement encouraging introspection about your relationship with alcohol. She meets two people who are years into building sober lives and asks them to reflect on how their sobriety journeys have shaped everything from relationships to thoughts about the future.

Decided: Child-Free By Choice

Anita has interrogated so many aspects of parenthood. But how about the decision to become a parent at all? She talks with three women about making their child-free decisions and meets a psychotherapist who's devoted her career to helping people find clarity in that choice.

An illustration from above, looking down on two parents leaning over a bassinet. In the bassinet is a newborn wrapped in a blue and white striped blanket, wearing a blue hat with three thin white stripes on it. The parents' faces are not visible, and the person on the left has one hand down on the baby and the other around the other parent's shoulders. The word "(Un)circumcised" is in the middle of the right half of the illustration.

(Un)Circumcised: How Parents Decide

It's a small procedure, but a big question. Anita talks with a urologist about what medical advice to consider while making the circumcision decision (and where medicine doesn't have the answers). She also meets a rabbi and mother who offers alternatives to centuries-old circumcision rituals and hears from a circumcised father raising an uncircumcised son.

An illustration featuring a woman with dark hair on the beach at sunset. She is wearing a red-orange bikini and has her hands on her lower abdomen, showcasing stretch marks and a C-section scar. A young child plays in the surf nearby, at her feet. In the upper-left of the image are the words "Delivered Part One."

Delivered (Part One): Supporting A Post-Baby Body (Revisited)

Anita has been around enough postpartum folks to know that there's a whole lot they felt unprepared for when it came to how their physical bodies would experience pregnancy and childbirth. In part one of a two-part series, she hears from folks about meeting their new postpartum bodies. A postpartum doula talks about her trauma-informed approach to caring for the physical body; a photographer shares why they're trying to diversify the images we associate with postpartum bodies; and a former Marine talks about navigating the pressures of a highly physical job postpartum.

An illustration of two people with brown skin kissing with a heart above their heads. One person is sitting on a pink and green moped, with pink-framed glasses, a blue shirt and yellow shorts. They're holding on the handlebars of the moped with the second person in their lap facing them, wearing a yellow jumpsuit and white-framed glasses. The background of the illustration is purple. The word “Smooched” is in the upper righthand corner.

Smooched: Why You'll Never Forget Your First Kiss

Anita's highly-anticipated (and highly-awkward) first kiss was in eighth grade … but she remembers it like it was yesterday! A scientist tells her why our brains respond so strongly to kissing and how our kissing customs have changed over time. She also unpacks the power of a kiss with a photographer who documents queer Black love in public and three Gen-Zers school her on contemporary kissing culture.

An illustration of a Black man walking down the street in a suit. He is surrounded by other faceless people, all colored in purples and pinks, and he is looking down and off to the side at someone pushing a stroller with a toddler in it. There is a spotlight on this man, highlighting his purple figure in yellow. The word "Isolated" is in the upper righthand corner of the illustration.

Isolated: The Silence Around Male Infertility

Male fertility issues make up half of all infertility cases … but you’d never know it from consuming fertility content through culture, media and even medicine. Anita meets three men breaking the silence in hopes that others get the help and support they need.

An illustration showing a new parent with long hair clipped back holding a baby in a doctor's office. The person is looking down and to the side. On the wall is a poster saying "postpartum depression" showing a woman with her head in her hands leaning over a crib where a baby is sleeping. "Delivered Part Two" is written in the upper-right corner of the image.

Delivered (Part Two): No More Postpartum Silence (Revisited)

Anita treasures sleep and moments of silence. So when she hears typical narratives of early parenthood that include unending cries and restless nights, she has concerns for the mental toll on new parents. But culturally there is a lot of silence around how challenging it can be and recognizing deteriorating mental health while caring for another person can be isolating. In part two of the postpartum series "Delivered," she meets a prolific artist whose experience with postpartum depression catalyzed a mental health journey and a diagnosis of Bipolar II Disorder. She also talks to a couple about what folks should know about sex and relationships postpartum and why the mental health of non-birthing partners should be part of the postpartum conversation.

An illustration of a Black man sitting on an airplane from the seat in front of him. He is looking out the window with a tear running down his face. He is wearing a red shirt, has a beard and is wearing an earring in the ear that is visible in the illustration. The word “Sobbed” is in the lower right hand corner.

Sobbed: Why We Cry

Anita usually feels better after a good, long cry. But why is that? She explores that question with a poet who spent years diving deeply into the science and culture of crying. And a forerunner of the "crying selfie" trend shares how he pushes back on toxic masculinity by embracing tears.

An illustration split into four separate illustrations. In the top-left corner is a woman sitting alone on a park bench, reading serenely. She has long red hair and her legs and feet are resting on the park bench. On the top right is a co-ed group of folks with their arms around one another facing three crosses. The red-haired woman is among them, and we can only see their backs. In the lower left-hand corner is three people playing mini-golf, with the red-haired woman in the middle. In the lower righthand corner, a group of people featuring the red-haired woman are eating at a restaurant. The word "Unpartnered" is in the upper righthand corner.

Unpartnered: Building A Full, Single Life

A growing number of American adults have the same feeling about romantic partnerships: They don’t want one. Anita meets three people who have chosen singlehood: a scholar who examines the double standard of relationship status, a single mother of two by choice and a man shedding toxic masculinity to build a deliberately single life.

An illustration of a femme-presenting person sitting with her chin resting in her hands. She is wearing blue-rimmed glasses and has brown hair in a bun on top of her head. There are three white clouds surrounding her, and she's leaning on a dark blue surface with a pink background.

Distracted: Adulting With ADHD

Anita passes the mic to our friends at the feminist documentary podcast "Bodies" for an exploration of ADHD and identity. Producer Hannah Harris Green talks about how getting an ADHD diagnosis helped her release the shame she'd been carrying since childhood.

Search results for