Vicious Cycle

A lot can happen in a few months, and your hosts can prove it. We share Where We Bled, exciting NEW ways to bleed, and we do a love spell... with menstrual blood. Hold onto your cups and spin them widdershins — season three is hitting the ground bloody!

Mark your cycle-tracking calendars: Vicious Cycle is back with season 3 on November 13th! Are you following us on Instagram? You should be - we're full of surprises over there: @viciouscyclepodcast. See you on 11/13! Music: Beach Party by David Szetsay (c) copyright 2016. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/David_Szesztay

It's our last episode of season two, and we're sending you off into the menoPAUSE with song! We brought back the cast of Vicious Cycle the Musical to lay down some tracks, play some live performances, and share some never-before-heard B Sides. If you didn't get a chance to see the show in person, you can feel like you were there. Timecodes for each song are below, so you can enjoy this pod like an album. 7:45 - Welcome to Menstruation 11:19 - Don't Tell No One You're Bleeding 15:33 - In Your Vagina 19:31 - Carmen Miranda 23:46 - Need A Can 29:06 - Thank U Cups 33:26 - You Are Gonna Bleed All Right 38:40 - Menstrual Squad 42:28 - So I Leak 45:05 - Menstrual Bleeding 47:38 - Cryin' On My Own Happy bleeding and we'll see you for season three!

We managed to sit down with Luna in between her trips around the country doing stand-up to talk about her menstrual journey - and what a journey it has been. She tells us about growing up in Louisiana (and the unusual myth about periods there), her experience with PCOS, and introduces us to the term "down to clown." Make sure to clench those kegels during this ep, you might lose your tampon from laughing...

The hosts of "Sssh Periods" and grand prize winners of NPR's student podcast competition sat down (remotely) with your hosts to remind us what it was like to be in middle school. All the awkward memories flooded back in (like hiding your big ol' pad in your Lisa Frank trapper keeper on the way to the bathroom), but they also gave us a lot of hope. Go yell "period" from a rooftop and break down some taboos with us and these incredible bleeders.

Your blosts did their research and found that there are multiple ways you can use your own menstrual blood, and they range from sciency, to witchy, to... a little gross. Come for the pro-tips on how to utilize the flow you've been letting go – and stay for the surprise song. Pop in a cup and catch this episode!

You may have noticed our Instagram account is filled with sometimes beautiful, but more often than not hilarious, art inspired by periods (and if you don't follow us on IG, like, what are you waiting for?). Two of our favorite artists – Annie Wong and Crystal Ro – sat down with us to talk about their process, their periods, and we even get an exclusive excerpt from a teenage diary. Splash some menstrual blood on a canvas and listen in!

We're back with Dr. Kate White, and we jump right in talking about menopause, how stress affects your period, strange things pulled out of vaginas, and what the deal is when your period comes out in one long sheet (yeah, that's a real thing and Dr. Kate even sent us a pic...). Most importantly, we discuss how to find the right gyno for you, and it's so simple and SO IMPORTANT. Burn all the speculums and press play!

Two Megs. Two Kates. One pod. This week we bring you part one of our interview with the kind, patient, and wonderful Dr. Katharine White (Dr. Kate to us). And blisteners, you are going to learn so much and occasionally have your mind blown. In this episode, we cover early periods, unpleasant doctor visits, ecto-prego, and WHY IT'S BROWN. So throw your feet in some stirrups, scoot your butt down, and listen now.

Maybe you didn't know that eating disorders can affect menstruation... or maybe you know it all too well. This week, we learn about amenorrhea (the abnormal absence of a period) with health writer, podcaster, and bad ass human Michelle Konstantinovsky. She tells us about her experience with losing her period, disordered eating, and how to be an expert of your own damn body. Grab a snack (no judgment) and hit play.

World getting you down? Then this episode will pick you back up. We interview trailblazer Nadya Okamoto about her organization PERIOD and her recently published book Period Power - she's a leader in the menstrual movement and gave your hosts hope for the future. And we listen to blistener phone calls (one of which sparks a heated "would you rather" debate). Pop in some tamps and some buds and tune in!

We're wrapping up our hysterical interview with comedian Carla Lee in this week's episode, and we've got plenty of ground to cover. We talk about changing tampons while your children watch (and some interact!), we hear from more moms who called in, and we try to keep our sh*t together as Carla tells us her favorite lactation story. So, sidle up with a sippy cup and press play.

Blisteners! We had such a blast making this episode, we had to split it up (we blame all the laughter). In part one, we chat with Carla Lee: hilarious writer, actor and creator of Nice Tan comedy - oh, and mom to Julia. We ask Carla, and moms calling in, some questions about pregnancy, child birth, and periods all along the way. There's a first-period-post-pregnancy story that has got us SHOOK. Come bleed out with us!

Dying to hear the thrilling conclusion to Kathleen's interview? Are you ready to meet Rita? It's all happening in this week's episode. We cover staining your shorts (and the beauty of fast-drying fabric), expelling giant clots in your 50's (we nearly fainted), and learn that no two people menopause the same way. Pop in those earbuds and ride out your hot flash with us!

We are so honored to bring our moms (Deb, Kathleen and Rita) into your earholes. We asked about their first periods, menstruating in the 1960s... and menopause. Yeah, not only did we go there, they REALLY go there. In part one, you'll hear from Deb (Meg T's mom), and the first half of Kathleen's interview (Kate's mom). Grab your sanitary garter belt and your mom's hand and join us on this menstrual journey.

Maybe you've already heard (because we've been shouting it from the rooftops), but we wrote a musical about menstruation! We sat down with our cast - Gabby Momah, Alissa Sanchez and our very own Meg Hayes - to talk about their menstrual journeys...which includes cadavers somehow? And, of course, we give you a taste of a few songs.

Did ya hear a movie about periods WON AN OSCAR?! Yeah, we were pretty excited, too. So excited, we got Sophie Ascheim, a producer of the award winning film "Period. End of Sentence." to chat with us! We talked about making the film, as well as the Pad Project, bleeding at karate, and period lockers (aka, why Meg Hayes cried this week).

This week Meg T opens up about her recent ectopic pregnancy. Spoiler alert: she wouldn't recommend one. She takes you on the entire journey - from finding out, to treatment, and the inevitable miscarriage. Is this episode a little sad? Yes it is. But are there also lots of laughs and an enormous amount of love sent directly into your ear holes? BIG TIME. Find an overnight pad to hug for support and play on.

Since we started this podcast, we've been gathering questions about animals and menses, like: do female dogs wear diapers because of menstruation?; are chicken eggs periods?; and what does a spiny mouse say when she's bleeding? Good news - we've got answers to these important questions... and a song, of course. Snuggle up with a furry friend and hit play!

Standup comedian and journalist Francesca Fiorentini, from web series Newsbroke and podcast Bitchuation Room, joins your hosts in the studio (aka, Kate's living room) to cover all aspects of menstruation, including: DivaCups, periods in comedy, and the wonders of bloody pad art... which leads to your hosts showing off their own "masterpieces."