The Longest Shortest Time: A Women’s Health Show for Everyone

The day Sophie got her period, there were phone calls and high-fives all around. Sophie was psyched. But her mom, author Amy Silverman, felt torn. What does it mean to have a daughter with a grown-up body, and a mind that doesn't quite match?

⭐️ This episode originally ran on March 15, 2017 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with an update from Sophie and her mom!

…

Get Wedlocked!

Hillary has a new audiobook — a thriller about women’s health. Grab a copy anywhere you get audiobooks!

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s here! My original audiobook WEDLOCKED is out now. LST production assistant Virginia Marshall turns the tables and puts me in the hot seat to talk about my new feminist thriller, steeped in the world of women’s health. (Plus, you’ll hear clips from the book!)

…

Get Wedlocked!

• Purchase here, and listen wherever you find audiobooks! That includes Apple Books, Audible, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, Libro.fm, and Spotify.

• Wanna chat with me about Wedlocked? Join LST+ and we’ll send you an exclusive link to a virtual book club on Tuesday, November 17 at 7pm ET.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• The wild story of how birth control complications made a woman lose her pilot’s license: Xyla vs. the FAA

• Sex educator Danielle Bezalel spills all: Birth Control Troubles and Vibrator Triumphs

• A mystery about birth parents and secret experiments: Katz BACK in the Cradle

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we bring you a special episode of Weirdly Helpful from one of our favorite podcasters, Zak Rosen. In this conversation, Zak talks to Rebecca Garza-Bortman about her love of “shenanigans,” or humor-driven chaos. Rebecca talks about how she works that chaos into parenting and listeners share their own family shenanigans. (Plus: Hillary shares one of her own shenanigans with Zak at the top of the show.)

…

More Shenanigans!

• Check out Hillary’s book Weird Parenting Wins, which is chock full of shenanigans from you, our listeners!

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

New parents know the feeling. You’re sleep-deprived, scrolling, and desperate to solve the problem with a baby product. One $2000 bassinet later, you feel bamboozled! Chabeli Carrazana, reporter for The 19th, uncovers the manipulative marketing strategies around baby-rearing.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• My very first episode is about struggling to get a newborn to sleep! Your Singing Really Interferes With My Going-To-Sleep Process

• Another early one: My Newborn, the A**hole 😂

…

Episode resources

• Chabeli’s article: You’ll do anything for your baby. The algorithm knows how to exploit that.

• Subscribe to Chabeli’s newsletter about mom guilt and consumerism

• There’s tons of other great reporting on gender, politics, and power from The 19th

…

Get Wedlocked!

I promise, if you love this show, you’re gonna love my original audiobook, Wedlocked. It’s basically a thriller about all of the things we cover on the podcast. Preorder now!

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

A marriage; a miscarriage. A divorce; a guy who looks (and smells) like a caveman. All in this epic love story.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on February 10, 2016 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Becoming a parent can make you more nurturing... but it can also make you meaner. Stand-up comic Ophira Eisenberg confesses her not-so-nice tendencies, and shares tips on how to heckle your haters.

…

Recommendations from the archive

We have a bunch of stories from comedian-moms! Check them out.

• Sona Movsesian Feels Like the World’s Worst Mom

• Negin Farsad Tackles Her Daughter’s Unanswerable Questions

• Casey Wilson on Mothering Without a Mother

• Lauren Lapkus Answers Kids’ Unanswerable Questions

…

Get Wedlocked!

If you like stories about women unleashing bottled up rage, you’re gonna love my new audiobook! Wedlocked is a feminist thriller with lots of blood, gaslighting, marriage trouble, and gynecology. Preorder now!

…

More from Ophira

• Watch Ophira’s new special—I Used to be Nicer—on her website

• Check out Ophira’s special about deciding to have a kid: Inside Joke

• Ophira’s podcast: Parenting Is a Joke

• Ophira’s book: Screw Everyone: Sleeping My Way to Monogamy

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's it like to nurse piglets in one hand and your own baby in the other? Life on a farm, with baby.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on February 22, 2016 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like many first-time parents, Sona Movsesian felt as if she was doing everything wrong. In this episode, she opens up about the challenges of conception and her C-section turning unexpectedly vivid — plus, how being Conan O’Brien’s personal assistant prepared her for raising toddlers.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• More on the grueling reality of IVF: One Woman, 3 Kids, 15 Rounds of IVF

• Another revealing C-Section story: A Childless Man Gets a C-Section

• Our series about discrimination against working moms: It’s a Real Mother

…

Episode resources

• Sona’s books: The World’s Worst Mom and The World’s Worst Assistant

• Sona’s (and Conan O’Brien’s!) podcast: Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Public radio icon Terry Gross talks about why she chose to never have children. And her recurring nightmare about a baby.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on April 19, 2016 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to surveys, Gen Z is having less sex than previous generations. But why? Carter Sherman is here to explain.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• More on Title IX’s rollback: Preventing Teens from Joining the Manosphere

• Teaching consent to teens: How to Not (Accidentally) Raise a Rapist

• When sex ed is left in the hands of gym teachers: The Staircase

…

More on Carter Sherman

• Read Carter’s book: The Second Coming

• Listen to her podcast from The Guardian: Stateside with Kai and Carter

• Carter mentions Peggy Orenstein’s book in this episode: Girls & Sex

…

Carter’s recommended resources

• For anyone who suspects that their Title IX rights may have been violated: National Women’s Law Center.

• For combatting workplace sexual misconduct: Time’s Up Legal Defense Center

• For organizing and supporting survivors of sexual assault: Advocates for Youth, and their initiative Know Your IX. Also, End Rape on Campus and RAINN.

• For LGBTQ+ youth who may need mental health support and community, The Trevor Project offers a 24/7 hotline

• For keeping up with the state of reproductive rights in the US: Autonomy News

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

…

Cover image credit: Mustafa Mirza

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two friends try to figure out how to stay friends after one of them has a baby. The one without the baby hatches a secret plan.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on May 24, 2016 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a panic attack nearly made him lose control on the highway, Mark Anthony Neal continued to bottle up his anxiety and pretend everything was fine. Years later, when he secretly started therapy, he unpacked how the pressures of Black masculinity led him to a mental health crisis.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• A scholar’s take on why “colorblindness” is dangerous: How to Not (Accidentally) Raise a Racist

• More on the stigma around therapy in the Black community: When Are You Gonna Be Normal Again?

• A Black mom on raising a passing son: How Will They Know I’m Black?

…

Episode resources

• Mark Anthony Neal’s book: Save a Seat for Me: Notes on American Fatherhood

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's the best way for white parents to talk to their kids about race? We called in Dr. Brigitte Vittrup, who studies children's racial attitudes, to help us out—and to answer questions about cringeworthy moments with your own kids.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on March 8, 2017 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

Take advantage of your LST+ membership at https://longestshortesttime.com/club

• Join the conversation for this episode!

• Bond with other listeners!

• Suggest a story idea!

…

• Follow us on Instagram

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamilah Lemieux’s greatest fear was becoming a single mom. When she found herself pregnant without a partner, she panicked and tried to convince her daughter’s father to get back together with her. But over time, she’s come to embrace single motherhood — and the unexpected joys of co-parenting.

…

Recommendations from the archive

We have lots of stories about single parenthood!

• For something funny: W. Kamau Bell Asks His Mom About Sex

• For something political: The Political Power of Black Motherhood

• For a story with a twist: Becoming a Single Dad While Trans

…

Episode resources

• Jamila’s book: Black. Single. Mother.

• Jamilah’s website: https://www.jamilahlemieux.com

• Co-parenting book that Jamilah recommends: The 50/50 Solution

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

…

Cover photo credit: Aria Askari Jocelynn Pedro

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cece Bell lost her hearing at age four. In this interview, the Newbery-award-winning author and illustrator talks about how she's used her hearing aid for good ... and evil.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on June 7, 2016 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with a brand new episode.

…

Read the book

Pick up a copy of Cece’s incredible graphic memoir El Deafo!

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

As curator of the Museum of Sex, Sarah Forbes was an expert on kinks and turn-ons. But motherhood taught her that sex is more complicated than attraction — and that something as unsexy as her partner changing a blowout diaper could get her in the mood.

…

Recommendations from the archive

Check out our sex + parenthood series, which includes:

• The Parents’ Guide to Doing It with Jane Marie and Dan Savage

• The Parents’ Guide to Doing It with Dr. Hilda Hutchinson and Twanna Hines

• The Parents’ Guide to Doing It with Esther Perel

…

More about Sarah Forbes

• Sarah’s website: https://www.curatorforbes.com

• Sarah’s book: Mama Sex

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

...

Cover photo credit: Rebecca Smeyne for Cosmopolitan Magazine

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the father of four boys, Arin Schultz treasures his sleep… and because he works at a mattress company, he spends most of his waking hours thinking about sleep. In this episode, sponsored by Naturepedic, Arin shares the company’s dramatic origin story, and some sleep hygiene tips he’s picked up along the way.

…

Recommendations from the archive

We have more episodes about kids and sleep!

• Start with our very first episode: Your Singing Really Interferes With My Going-To-Sleep Process

• If you like that one, check out the follow-up four years later: Music Together-ish

• In 2018, we hosted a call-in show at 2 a.m. for all the sleepless parents out there: You Up?

…

Episode resources

• Thanks to Naturepedic for sponsoring this episode! You can find their products, and a store near you, at https://www.naturepedic.com. Plus, get 20% off with code LONGSHORT

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most consent education focuses on survivors, and rightly so. But that leaves perpetrators without resources to repair harm. Drew Davis, a die-hard feminist, aims to fix that with a new online tool.

…

Recommendations from the archive

• Our first episode with SafeBAE: How to Not (Accidentally) Raise a Rapist

• Hillary’s personal episode about sex ed and consent that relaunched LST: The Staircase

…

Episode resources

• SafeBAE’s website: https://www.safebae.org

• Try SafeBAE’s online tool: Vibe Check

• SafeBAE’s guide for parents: Check Their Vibe

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

Consent education in school is mostly insufficient or non-existent — even when it’s required by state law. An organization called SafeBAE is trying to change that by training teens to teach each other about consent. SafeBAE’s executive director Shael Norris talks about what works and what doesn’t when discussing this topic with young people. We’ll also hear a cautionary tale about a time when Shael’s own daughter attempted to get justice for sexual assault survivors back when she was in high school.

⭐️ This episode originally ran on February 5, 2025 and is a favorite from the archives. We hope you enjoy, and we’ll be back next week with an exciting update on what SafeBAE is up to now… stay tuned!

…

Episode resources

• Check out http://safebae.org for info on consent ed for teens

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2017, comedian Negin Farsad came on the show to tackle kids’ unanswerable questions. Now she’s a mom, wrestling with how to explain death, slavery, and war to her own child. Plus, a delightful episode crossover moment with another former guest. (Hint: hot firefighters!)

…

Recommendations from the archive

Want to hear more comedians answer kids’ questions? Check out the whole series!

• Kids Ask Negin Farsad Unanswerable Questions

• Lauren Lapkus Answers Kids’ Unanswerable Questions

• Kids Ask Chris Gethard Unanswerable Questions

…

Episode resources

• Negin’s podcast: Fake the Nation

• Negin’s book: How to Make White People Laugh

• We recorded this episode at the women’s clothing company M.M.LaFleur in Manhattan. And they’ve got a special promo for you! You get 15% off first-time orders with the code LONGSHORT15

…

• Join LST+ for community and access to You Know What, another show in the Longest Shortest universe!

• Follow us on Instagram

• Sign up for our newsletter, where we recommend other parenting + reproductive health media

• Buy books by LST guests (your purchase supports the show!)

• Website: http://longestshortesttime.com

…

Cover photo credit: Joyce Zhang

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices