Why Postpartum Physical Therapy Is So Important with Pelvic Floor Therapist, Sara Reardon (The Vagina Whisperer!)

Nyssa’s Mia Clarke speaks to Dr. Sara Reardon, also known as The Vagina Whisperer, about why it’s so important to care for your pelvic floor– regardless of whether or not you’ve had a baby. Sara shares her expert opinion on topics like:

- The role of Pelvic Floor Therapy in general health and wellness.
- What to expect in your first appointment.
- The myth of the ‘tight’ pelvic floor and how to think about Kegel exercises.
- The proper way to pee.
- Tips for dealing with vaginal dryness.
- Dealing with pain during sex.
- Preparing for pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum (including the dreaded first postpartum poop!)
- Healing diastasis recti after delivery.

You can learn more about Pelvic Floor Therapy by visiting Sara's website at thevagwhisperer.com.

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Dr. Lopa Pandya, a reconstructive surgeon in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at UI Health. We get deep into the urinary and gynaecological issues that women and vulva owners may need to attend to in their late 30s to late 40s. We talk about the different types of incontinence, the impact of birth on the bladder and pelvic floor, UTIs and much more. 

Dr. Pandya specializes in treating various pelvic floor disorders, urinary issues, and pelvic organ prolapse. Her clinical interests include minimally invasive surgery, surgical outcomes, and finding ways to improve patients' quality of life. She believes in share decision making, and she focuses on helping patients choose the treatment option that is best for them; oftentimes, patients are able to achieve major improvements in their quality of life with relatively simple treatments.  

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Irish journalist Lynn Enright (Vogue, The Guardian, Elle and more) about the importance of knowing the correct language for our anatomy, the changing landscape of conversation around women's sexual and reproductive health, the rise of labiaplasty, the need for more progressive sex education policies in school and much more.

Lynn is also the author of one of the Nyssa team's favourite books, Vagina: A Re-Education.
Vagina provides girls and women with information they need about their own bodies - about the vagina, the hymen, the clitoris, the orgasm; about conditions like endometriosis and vulvodynia. It confronts taboos, such as abortion, miscarriage, infertility and masturbation. It tackles vital social issues like period poverty, female genital mutilation and the rights of transgender women.

Follow Lynn on Instagram here.

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Lauren Kornegay, founder of ENDO Black, a non-profit that advocates for African American women and women of color affected by endometriosis.  ENDO Black is a safe space for women to ask questions, to be encouraged, and to receive advice on how to manage this incredibly overlooked and misunderstood disorder.

We speak to Lauren about the ins-and-outs of endometriosis, pain management techniques that have worked for her, and how we can support friend and family members who are suffering. Lauren also shares her story of racism and isolation in the endometriosis  community and what we can do to be better allies.

Follow ENDO Black's excellent Instagram account here.

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? E-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com.

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to the wonderful Baltimore-based Pelvic Floor Therapist, Dr. Samantha DuFlo. Her clinical practice, Indigo Physiotherapy is an innovative, evidence-based care practice of pelvic physical therapists and bodyworkers working together to elevate healing and care for its clients. Check out her excellent Instagram here.

We speak to Dr. Sam about all things related to pelvic wellness, from understanding topics such as endometriosis and pain with sex and to addressing postpartum-specific issues such as diastasis recti, incontinence and more.

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? E-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com. 

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to design thought leaders and historians Michelle Fisher and Amber Winick. They are collaborating on an incredible book and exhibition launching later this year, Designing Motherhood, which features more than eighty designs—iconic, archaic, quotidian, and taboo—that have defined arc of human reproduction. In this episode, Michelle and Amber discuss the designs that have profoundly shaped the motherhood experience, from the creation of the first at-home pregnancy test (invented by a woman, Margaret Crane), to the Finnish Baby Box to clear screens for c-sections births and much more.

You can read more about the Designing Motherhood project here and check out the excellent accompanying Instagram here.

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? Leave us a message at (336) HI-NYSSA or e-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com. 

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Ruth Martin-Gordon, the founder and CEO of Coddle. Ruth  founded Coddle to share her postpartum struggles and those of other moms  while building a community to empower moms-to-be as well as creating safe organic postpartum products for new mom self care. Like Nyssa, Ruth wants every mom-to-be to prepare for what is one of the most life altering experience she will have. Because every mom should have all the information, care and support they need to prepare for postpartum.

You can read more about Ruth and Coddle here and visit her incredibly information Instagram page here.

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? Leave us a message at (336) HI-NYSSA or e-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com. 

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Alessandra Henderson, CEO and co-founder of Elektra Health.

Elektra  is a new platform for women navigating hormonal health, starting with perimenopause and menopause. Alessandra and her team are building an integrative healthcare solution that is breaking the menopause taboo by providing women with access to leading specialists, evidence-based programs, and a community of women facing similar questions.

Alessandra is an operator, (occasional) angel investor, and educator who is passionate about taboos, women's health and the intersection of art and science. She was formerly at Human Ventures, MIT NYC Startup Studio and Artsy.

You can read more about Alessandra and Elektra here and here. 

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? Leave us a message at (336) HI-NYSSA or e-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com. 

Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, MD about anxiety, our culture of relentless productivity, identity shifts in motherhood, the stigma that still surrounds prescription medication, racism within the medical community and much more.

Pooja is a board-certified psychiatrist and writer specializing in women's mental health and perinatal psychiatry and a frequent contributor to The New York Times Parenting section. She is a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the George Washington University School of Medicine, where she is a clinical supervisor in the Five Trimesters perinatal psychiatry clinic. She maintains a private practice in Washington DC, where she is active in maternal mental health advocacy work and community building, and applies an integrative approach to taking care of women suffering from maternal mental health conditions. Dr. Lakshmin is most passionate about empowering women and sees her clinical work as a perinatal psychiatrist as an extension of this mission. She is a frequent contributor to The New York Times, and her advice has been featured in Glamour, Marie Claire, Self, Harper’s Bazaar, Bustle and various other media outlets. She is working on a book about the tyranny of self-care.

You can read more about Pooja here and here. 

Do you have questions you'd like Nyssa to explore with our network of experts? Stories that you'd like to share? Leave us a message at (336) HI-NYSSA or e-mail us at hello@nyssacare.com. 

Welcome to Season 2 of The Unmentionables! Nyssa's Mia Clarke speaks to Penda N'Diaye, founder of Pro Hoe, a platform (and incredible podcast!) she created to eradicate stigmas surrounding sexual freedom and identity in Black communities. Penda is hyper-focused on using sex and taboo as a means of political change and resistance and is leading the conversation on how societal, racial, and religious constructs stifle our sexual liberties. She has curated and led several community events sponsored by Planned Parenthood, sex therapists, and social workers to create a safe place to discuss sexual experiences and trauma.

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