Intersex advocacy and the fight for bodily autonomy with Pidgeon Pagonis

Growing up, Pidgeon Pagonis was told a lot about their medical history: They were born with cancerous ovaries, so the doctors removed them to save their life. Except that wasn't true. In reality, they were born intersex. And those were not cancerous ovaries, they were undescended testes. And that …

What is foreign accent syndrome? After a stroke, one man’s southern drawl turned British

What makes a man who grew up in the American south suddenly sound like he has a British accent? Hear from Kenley Byrd, who’s had this accent since he had a mini-stroke thirteen years ago. He is one of fewer than 100 known people in history to have Foreign Accent Syndrome. And find out what we kno…

Views from the end: David Meyers

When you know you’re months, maybe weeks away from your own death, what do you most want people to know? As the first in a series of conversations with people near the end of their lives, we get to know David Meyers. He’s a physician who was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2018. Hear his reflection…

Spectrosexuality: When a spirit is your spouse

On past episodes of our Audacious Love series, we’ve talked with people who’ve been married for over 50 years, people who’ve fallen in love with synthetic companions, people who’ve fallen love with objects, and today, you’ll meet four people who are married to spirits, ancestors, or gods. GUESTS: …

Forgiveness: How we define it and how it defines us

How do you define forgiveness? Turns out, the definition tends to be as different as every person. And that definition changes depending on where you are in the process, too! On this episode of Audacious, Chion talks about it with a best friend, a pastor, a philosopher, and a man who lost his fac…

Discovering delight - and despair - in dumpster diving

You know what kind of day today is? It’s a GREAT day to go dumpster diving! A seasoned pro takes me into the depths of a dumpster in West Springfield, Massachusetts, plus a TikTok star talks about how she got hooked on dumpster diving. You’ll also get some do’s and don’ts from a guy who wrote a b…

The One Where All The Guests Are Named Pat Smith

The most common name in the United States is Smith, and if that's your surname, you'll have around 4.5 million others in the world to share it with. But just because you have a popular name like, say, Pat Smith, that doesn’t mean that you’re common! The four Pat Smiths you’ll meet are unique: an …

Born Again: The Art & Healing Of Reborn Dolls

Have you ever seen Reborn Babies? They’re these hyper-realistic-looking dolls that are collected for their extraordinary artistic accuracy… And they’re also used therapeutically for people who suffer from anxiety and depression. Hear from a woman who uses them for just that reason. Plus, meet a p…

I Regret Becoming A Parent

It’s one thing to have a hard time with parenthood. But what if you wholeheartedly regret it?  Hear from two parents who feel this way, and find out how they balance feeling full of regret while wanting to make sure their kids are well taken care of. And is it really possible to love someone whom …

Going Flat, or Building New Breasts: Two Women’s Post-Mastectomy Stories

Imagine you’ve got breasts. It shouldn’t be too hard to imagine, because most every human being has’ em! And that means that most of us are candidates for breast cancer. This hour, we hear very intimate conversations with two women who go through the process of getting a double mastectomy - the re…