"You’re so sexy when you’re not spreading STIs." That’s right, this week we are exploring the highly prevalent, ever-stigmatized sexually transmitted infections. In this episode, we get into the difference between STIs and STDs, describe some of the most common STIs and of course, talk about their various histories. Specifically, we dig into the relationship between STIs and women, focusing on the ways in which women have been portrayed as vessels that spread infection. To finish up, we discuss ...
Mar 22, 2022•1 hr 3 min
During the pandemic, we both got super into paint-by-numbers. They were just so soothing and an easy way to create while taking our minds off the crazy world around us. It was a way to be calm and focused. And a lot of people use art in this way, to figure out your emotions or as an outlet. But what about using art in medicine? Patients often create art that depicts their disease and experience living with an illness. You can also use art in therapy, to build confidence, decrease depression, and...
Mar 09, 2022•53 min
The thought of shocking someone into having a seizure all for...what? Cure their depression? That sounds crazy! But it’s real! And like so many topics on this podcast, the story of how this concept came to be is just as interesting and seemingly insane as the actual practice. This week we discuss a procedure called Electroconvulsive Therapy, or ECT. A treatment used in the world of psychiatry to treat patients with a range of concerns. Listen in to hear about the serendipitous origins of ECT and...
Feb 22, 2022•54 min
There is nothing quite like a delicious breakfast to start your day, a snack to hold you over, or dinner to put you to bed. Right? But as you eat your tasty food, do you ever think about what exactly is in it? Or what it does to your health? Join us in this episode to talk about how the food you eat can play into the leading causes of death in women: heart disease, cancer, and stroke. To explore the health effects of food, we touch on what diets are maybe not the best and what diets are recommen...
Feb 08, 2022•58 min•Season 1Ep. 33
Internist? Intern? Fellow…doctor? Oh no just, fellow? Can SOMEONE please explain what these words MEAN? Yes, yes we can. We’re back this week to chat about the field of Internal Medicine, the branch of medicine that covers a lot of the parts that you are probably familiar with, specialties like cardiology, gastroenterology, infectious disease, etc. This episode though, we’ll be clarifying what exactly Internal Medicine is, what is included in it, what’s not, the history of it and more! We’ll tal...
Jan 25, 2022•58 min
When you think of witches, what comes to mind? If I had to guess I’d say you thought of Halloween, potions, broomsticks, and big pointy hats. But the witches in this episode didn’t wear pointy hats, at least I don’t think so. They are your mom, your elderly neighbor, your best friend. Join us in this episode to learn who was considered a witch across time and cultures. Then we will discuss the persecution of witches and why these women were targeted for centuries. In our exploration of witches, ...
Jan 11, 2022•57 min•Season 3Ep. 33
Hyper-promiscuity, mood swings, nausea, anxiety, drowsiness, loss of appetite, aging, back pain. Those are some symptoms of hysteria to name a few. Hysteria is a word that is thrown around a lot from “Oh that was a hysterical joke” to “that woman is hysterical don't listen to her” and even “the new album is causing mass hysteria.” But what even is hysteria? Well, in history it has meant a lot of things to many different people. Throughout time as the definition changed and each time it meant som...
Sep 28, 2021•51 min•Season 2Ep. 30
Tying tubes, hysterectomies, withholding medical care without proof of contraception use...these are just a few ways that forced sterilization has occurred in the United States. The history of forced sterilization is sewn into the fabric of US history, and has played an insidious role in this country. This episode, we learn about the eugenics movement, its impact on communities of color and how these issues continue to manifest today. Then join us in our Feminist Corner as we discuss forced ster...
Sep 14, 2021•57 min
It’s the 1800s and the realm of medicine hasn’t quite adjusted to modern thought quite yet. Physicians still believe that dirty air is what is causing that rash on your arm and that when you menstruate, your brain is too exhausted and confused to hold a job. That is at least until Dr. Mary Putnam Jacobi comes along. Dr. Putnam Jacobi would work most of her life advocating for biochemically based medicine and evidence-driven theories about women. Not only that, but she also worked to ensure women...
Aug 31, 2021•49 min
A little poke of a needle and a moment of pain in the name of what? Beauty? Wealth? Tradition? Maybe all of the above? The history of body piercings is a long one, dating back millennia and spanning many civilizations. In this week’s episode, we dive into why Egyptian pharaohs would execute anyone with a belly button ring and how in Ancient Mesoamerica, shamans would pierce their tongues as blood sacrifice. Beyond the ancient histories of piercings, this form of body modification is now also a p...
Aug 17, 2021•53 min
In the United States, heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, killing 1 in 5. But how did we get here? Cardiology and heart disease is an extremely well-studied field, yet it still feels like women are being left behind as they die at alarming rates. Join us in this episode to talk about the history of heart disease, why there is a gaping hole in women’s heart research, and the state of women’s heart health today. We will also discuss how to take steps in your own health in workin...
Aug 03, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 26
Would you consider yourself a fiery person? Grounded? Dynamic? Maybe a combination of the three? If you looked at your health from the perspective of Ayurvedic medicine, it would probably be some combination of the three with one aspect being dominant. And this combination would be unique to you! But it would also have an impact on the way you receive medical care. Join us this week as we discuss the practice of Ayurveda, a form of medicine that originates in the Indian subcontinent and is still...
Jul 20, 2021•48 min
In a time when most anatomy theories were based on animals, not humans, it's not surprising that ancient physicians may have gotten a fact or two wrong. But it is truly impressive how a single theory can incorrectly span the entire female anatomy. Gotta respect the hustle I guess. In this episode we are talking about ancient theories of female anatomy from general anatomy, to the breasts, to the uterus, to a mystery vein, and more! We will discuss a number of theories involving female anatomy an...
Jul 06, 2021•55 min•Season 2Ep. 24
The issue of trans women in sports is absolutely not a new one, but has recently been in the headlines of many news stories over the last couple of years. This week, we dive into the history of trans girls in sports, looking at the background of gender divisions in sports, how gender binaries have played into the dynamics that we see today and big changes that have occurred over the years that have led us to this point. We then get into the present, talking about salient news stories and events ...
Jun 22, 2021•1 hr 1 min
When you go to the doctor with a psychiatric concern, you would expect them to hear you out and find the treatment regimen that is right for you. But in 1800s Victorian America, this wasn’t exactly the case. Neurologist Dr. Mitchell created the “Rest Cure” for his patients that required women to lay completely still for almost two straight months. A patient undergoing this treatment wasn’t allowed to move a single muscle, feed themselves, or stand up to use the bathroom. After a while, this trea...
Jun 08, 2021•58 min
What’s the ideal number of kids you would have, if any? Two? Ten? Well how about adopting thousands of grown men as your “sons”. That’s essentially what Dr. Margaret Chung did and it is one of the many reasons we are sharing her story in this episode. Dr. Chung was the first Asian-American female physician in the United States and she grew up during a time not so different from our present day, where Asians in America were scapegoated and punished simply for existing. Join us as we learn about M...
May 25, 2021•52 min
In today’s medical schools, half of the students are female. In surgical residencies, one-fourth of the residents are female. Of those female surgical residents, one-fourth of them will drop out from burnout. Women pursuing surgery today are faced with numerous challenges and obstacles, but yet they persist. And it was no different for the millennia of surgeons before them. From Agnodice fighting for her right to practice in Athens to Loyse Bourgeois becoming one of the best surgeons in the 17th...
May 11, 2021•58 min
“On the rag” “lady business” “the red wedding.” These are just a few names we call that time of the month when the uterus sheds its lining and starts the cycle anew. Menstruation has long been a topic of mystery, intrigue, confusion, and just generally associated with a negative connotation. We discuss ideas of menstruation through the ages, ranging from Ancient Mayans believing that menstrual blood of the moon goddess became snakes, poisons and disease, to medieval Europeans believing that the ...
Apr 27, 2021•54 min
When a medical system can’t provide needed care for patients who are continuously left out or ignored, what happens? What does a community do when they are aching for help? Well in the case of access to safe abortions, underground abortion networks are created. In this episode, we will be talking about the emergence of illegal but safe abortion networks within the United States over the last 60 years and what gaps they are trying to fill in the healthcare system. Through looking at abortion legi...
Apr 13, 2021•59 min
The number of times we’ve turned to a medication to relieve our pain or cure our sickness is uncountable. We’ve been searching for ways to restore our health for ages, but today, modern drug development involves jumping through many hoops before a drug can come out the other end and be made available for public use. In this episode, we go from beginning to end of the process of discovering, making, testing and distributing a drug made for the market. We talk about research and development, clini...
Mar 30, 2021•58 min
In a time with no understanding of the womb, female anatomy, or germs, a complicated childbirth was the last thing you wanted. The options to save yourself or save your baby were slim, and there was rarely an option to save you both. The development of the C-section changed that, well kinda. As medicine evolved over a thousand years, so did this procedure as it developed with the times. However, I wouldn’t call this history a successful story as this procedure had many, MANY, setbacks. But today...
Mar 19, 2021•47 min
As diseases like typhoid, diphtheria and tuberculosis ran rampant through Antebellum America, it was the enslaved Black women that carried out most of the sickcare on plantations in the South. This week, we dive into plantation sickcare and the women that made it possible. From the last rung of the social totem pole in which they diligently worked, to the remarkable care and treatment they provided all of their patients, these women were true doctors of their time yet barely known for it. Learn ...
Mar 02, 2021•51 min
Surprise! We are back with another bonus episode for you all! A couple of weeks ago we sat down with Mayo Clinic’s Dr. Stephanie Faubion and Peter & Caleb from Leading the Rounds to talk about Dr. Faubion's research, work, and roles as a female in medicine. In this episode we discuss menopause and sexual function in aging women. We answer questions like: How are women who experience menopause affected by this life change? Is menopause becoming a dark hole in medicine? What steps do providers...
Feb 23, 2021•35 min
From the fall of nursing in the 1800s (reference episode 1 for more info!!) to now, the profession has done a full 180. Nurses today are some of the most respected and valued healthcare workers in the field. This shift in the profession wasn’t random or a chance of luck. It was because of Florence Nightingale, the Mother of Nursing. In this episode you will learn about an incredible woman who played a role in shaping what it means to be a nurse, public health policy development, bringing awarene...
Feb 16, 2021•54 min•Season 2Ep. 14
There are some parts of medicine that have been around for so long we sometimes forget that they were new at some point, and the vaccine is one of those things. But with the COVID vaccine at the forefront of media and conversations these days, we thought it would be interesting to take a look back at the history of vaccines and of course, highlight the role of female-identifying individuals in the development, promotion and success of vaccines through the ages. We start with the earliest inocula...
Feb 02, 2021•47 min
Imagine you're relaxed, music is playing, the room is warm and smells good, your qi is flowing as needles are being stuck into you… wait, what is happening? Well, a lot is actually happening but to put it simply, acupuncture! But what even is acupuncture? I mean more than the laying on the table with needles in your back. You may be surprised by how much there is to learn about acupuncture and how it applies to the medical field today. So in this episode, we are talking about the intersection be...
Jan 19, 2021•52 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Imagine smearing white lead poison on your skin and lips as a way to be more beautiful. Sound crazy? Well this was an actual practice in the ancient world and is not that far off from what we do to ourselves today, in many ways. Welcome back for seasons 2 of From Skirts To Scrubs! We’re starting off our second season by talking about beauty standards of the past and present, covering Ancient Egyptian makeup, foot binding practices of the Chinese Han dynasty, supermodel vibes of the ‘80s and more...
Jan 05, 2021•51 min
When you think of careers like being a teacher, firefighter, secretary or engineer, what gender do you envision those people? Many careers are associated with particular genders, and the same goes for medicine. We explore this idea in our first ever live show, where we sit down with two highly specialized female-identifying physicians and have an honest conversation about a recently published academic paper titled 'When a Specialty Becomes "Women's Work": Trends in and Implications of Specialty ...
Dec 01, 2020•50 min
We’re living in a COVID world, that’s just a fact. But we’ve been here before in a way: in 1918 when a Flu virus took over the world. This week, for the final episode of our first season, we take a look at how a simple strain of the Flu killed 5% of the world’s population. Find out where the Spanish Flu got its name, why the virus seemed to affect mostly young men and the revolutionary impact it had on women at the time. Then join us as we compare it to the COVID-19 and how this pandemic continu...
Oct 06, 2020•51 min
The symbol of the breast is well known throughout society. Breasts symbolize sexuality, motherhood, femininity, and more. But what do breasts mean to women who lose them? In this episode, we explore the history of the surgical procedure of breast removal, the mastectomy, in the context of breast cancer. After discussing how this procedure came about, we discuss the difficult decisions that women face after this breast removal surgery. Considering all the societal pressures on what it means to ha...
Sep 22, 2020•54 min•Season 1Ep. 9
