Pregnancy and the year following childbirth are deeply transformative periods in a woman’s life, involving intense emotional, physical, and psychological shifts. While maternal mental health is vital for all women, Black women in particular face unique mental health challenges that often go unaddressed. Unfortunately, we are less likely to receive a diagnosis or adequate care. And cultural stigma, mistrust of medical systems, and underrepresentation in healthcare further widen the gap in support and understanding.

This episode features Dr. Lyneia Richardson, a mama, healer, psychologist, educator, author, and maternal health advocate. Her work is rooted in decolonizing therapy and education through a Mothering Praxis that centers care and aims to uplift the voices of those who have historically been marginalized and silenced. She is currently a professor of counseling at McDaniel College and the owner of Melanated Women's Therapy, LLC, where she provides therapy and support to Black women and mothers, addressing issues at the intersection of race, gender, and mothering.

For more information about this episode click here.

In conversations about social justice and equality, some of the most urgent and devastating issues remain under-discussed—among them, the epidemic of violence against Black transgender women. The statistics are harrowing: 56% of Black transgender women experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime, 65% of transgender gun homicide victims were Black trans women, and nearly 75% of identified perpetrators in fatal attacks against Black trans women were Black cisgender men- with whom the victims often had a relationship with.

Understanding the roots of this violence involves delving into a complex web of societal factors, including entrenched racism, transphobia, and misogyny, which often manifest in harmful stereotypes and prejudices. This episode features Pamuela Halliwell (she/her), a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who specializes in working with transgender, non-binary and gender non-confirming individuals. She earned her master’s degree in counseling psychology from Argosy University and is the author of "Characterizing the Prevalence and Perpetrators of Documented Fatal Violence Against Black Transgender Women in the United States (2013–2021)"

For more information about this episode click here.

For decades, Black women have faced barriers to swimming. Much of this stems from historical segregation across swimming spaces, cultural myths about bodies of water, and a lack of access to swim instruction in Black communities. For many Black women, the added challenge of hair maintenance—given chlorine damage and ill-fitting swim caps—has made the water feel even more unwelcoming. In fact, nearly 70% of Black adult women have little or no swimming ability. Tragically, this contributes to the reality that Black individuals are five times more likely to drown than their white peers.

But the tide is turning. To discuss the ways in which Black women are reclaiming their spaces in the water, we are in conversation with Dr. Dawn Norwood. She is an associate professor and interim department chair at Queens University of Charlotte in the Department of Health and Human Performance.

For more information about this episode, click here.