She Wants More - podcast cover

She Wants More

iHeartPodcastswww.iheart.com

Are more women having affairs? Or are they finally just talking about it? Throughout history, women have been stigmatized, ostracized, and so much worse for committing adultery—while men have too often been given a pass. But the truth is that women have the same wants, needs and desires as men despite cultural assumptions.

Hosted by journalist Jo Piazza, this groundbreaking podcast series features real women of different ages and backgrounds telling the stories of their affairs, many for the first time. After five years of reporting on marriage in the wildly popular Committed podcast, Jo is now uncovering the other side of monogamy and finding some surprising answers about the motivations behind female infidelity – from sex, to empowerment, to self-esteem, and even love.

In She Wants MoreJo explores the double standard of cheating, unpacking the guilt, shame, and the expectations placed on women. She has candid conversations with women about the affairs that have either strengthened or broken their marriages that will make you feel like you're eavesdropping on an intimate conversation between two friends. These stories will make you question everything you thought you knew about desire, monogamy, and marriage.

She Wants More was inspired by the book A Passion for More by Susan Shapiro Barash.

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Episodes

Bonus: Inside a Mother's Open Marriage

When She Wants More host Jo Piazza landed an interview with the author Molly Winter about her new memoir discussing her open marriage she knew it had to go into our podcast feed. Molly Winter recently hit the New York Times bestseller list with her account of the first ten years of opening up her marriage when her children were young. She is still happily married and she says her marriage and sex life is better than ever because she has been able to explore more facets of herself with her partne...

Feb 14, 202458 min

Once a Cheater, Always a Cheater?

In the final episode of “She Wants More” we look at the darker side of an affair. While many of the women we talked with found empowerment and fulfillment through infidelity, today’s guest, “Sarah” has a different kind of story. "Sarah" fell in love with her kid's pediatrician when she was married to another man. She had an affair, left her husband and got married. But then, her story took an unexpected twist, leaving her devastated and vindictive. Her story serves as a reminder of the real stak...

Apr 04, 202325 minSeason 1Ep. 8

Affairs in the Digital Age

Twenty years ago you'd need to meet someone in person to cheat. Now, technology has enabled women to carefully curate and select available men on any number of digital dating or social media websites, and hide their indiscretions through a number of different tools. Affairs can be conducted in real life or entirely virtually. In this episode, technology and relationship expert, Dr. Jaclyn Cravens Pickens, explains all the different ways women use technology to step out on their husbands – and wh...

Mar 28, 202324 minSeason 1Ep. 7

Opening Up

More and more women are seeing multiple partners outside of their marriage without lying to their spouses. While an open marriage may not be an affair in the traditional sense, it is another way for women to explore what they want and need from a partner without the lying and subterfuge. This week's guest "Alice" craved new bodies, new excitement, new experiences, and like many of the women we've talked to in previous episodes, she decided to step out on her husband to find what she wanted. But ...

Mar 21, 202331 minSeason 1Ep. 6

Are Affairs the New Self-Care?

In the past couple of years the media has positioned women’s exploration of sex, passion, and desire, as a form of "self-care" -- a wellness practice that helps them feel better about themselves. Today's guest "Michelle" breaks down how her affairs, particularly one with a sexy personal trainer, have become a form of self-care for her. She says they make her feel better and take better care of herself. So, can an affair be another form of self-care, like yoga, meditation, or dry brushing? Is an ...

Mar 14, 202327 minSeason 1Ep. 5

Thank You for Being a Friend

Loneliness is an epidemic in America, even for people who are married. It is a major driver of depression and it can drive people to desperate measures to feel less lonely, including having an affair. This week's guest "Sabrina" didn't initiate her affair because she wasn't feeling fulfilled sexually -- she was feeling neglected by her husband and lonely and friendless. The man she is having an affair with has since become her best friend and she can't imagine her life without him. Now she worri...

Mar 07, 202322 minSeason 1Ep. 4

Can One Partner Give You Everything?

Can one partner give you everything? In this episode, we talk to "Monique,” a woman in her fifties who was happy with her husband, but not getting her sexual needs fulfilled by him. "Monique" decided to explore her sexuality and desires outside of her marriage and her affairs have made her a better mother, a better wife, and helped her regain the identity she felt she lost after kids. She says that she thinks her husband might suspect she is having these affairs, but that he doesn't mind because...

Feb 28, 202331 minSeason 1Ep. 3

The Walk of Shame

Affairs have always been more dangerous for women than men. Throughout history women have faced persecution, shame and sometimes even death for cheating on their husbands. But are women still judged more harshly than men for cheating? In this episode, Jo is joined by cultural critic and anthropologist, Wednesday Martin, to explore the origins of shame surrounding female sexuality. We then meet "Catie," who had to move to a new city and get a new job to escape the fallout from her affair with her...

Feb 21, 202335 minSeason 1Ep. 2

Is Everyone Having an Affair These Days?

On the cusp of her seven year wedding anniversary, host Jo Piazza begins her investigation into female infidelity. For so long the trajectory for women has been that we would be good daughters, good wives, good mothers and good caretakers. But contemporary women have more choices and options and frankly they want more. In fact, the rate of infidelity among women has reportedly risen by about 40% since the early 1990s, while the rate of male infidelity has remained pretty much the same. So, what’...

Feb 14, 202336 minSeason 1Ep. 1
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