The Pain Gap

Anushay Hossain

Join Anushay Hossain, feminist author, podcast host, and powerful women’s health advocate as she interviews doctors, advocates and medical experts about the most urgent issues in women's health. Based on her Audible bestselling book, “The Pain Gap: How Sexism and Racism in Healthcare Kill Women," The Pain Gap podcast provides a vital platform for critical conversations about medical gaslighting and misogyny. Anushay's point is clear: center women's stories and empower listeners to advocate for their health. She also invites male listeners to stand as allies in women's healthcare. Afterall, women's rights is a human rights issue. Through candid discussions, The Pain Gap podcast provides a much needed examination of the women’s health crisis in America. By fostering dialogue, Anushay aims to drive positive change and close #ThePainGap in women's health.

  1. 16H AGO

    62. Fixing America’s Blind Spots: Midwives, Mental Health, and the Fourth Trimester with Adrianne Nickerson

    Adrianne Nickerson is a healthcare operator and entrepreneur who built Oula after years of working inside major health systems and consulting on healthcare transformation. And if you’ve ever wondered why maternity care feels so outdated, so fragmented, and, too often, so unsafe, Adrianne is one of the clearest voices I’ve heard on what’s broken… and what a better system can actually look like. In this conversation, we talk about what she saw from the inside that convinced her real change couldn’t come from within bureaucracy alone, and why innovation sometimes has to be built outside the system, then pulled back in to scale impact. We get into why this maternal health crisis is solvable, even if it doesn’t always feel that way, and the redesigns we already know work: integrating midwives, building real community support, extending postpartum care beyond a single six-week visit, and treating mental health as essential healthcare, not an afterthought. Adrianne also breaks down why so many women say, “No one ever told me,” and how that disempowerment isn’t just emotional; it can become a clinical risk when women don’t feel safe enough to speak up about what’s happening in their bodies. This episode is about what it would take to rebuild maternity care with women at the center, not as a slogan, but as a measurable, scalable standard of care. Episode Resources: Oula The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    48 min

  2. 3D AGO

    61. Special Episode: One on One with Anushay -Why Women Are Opting Out with Soraya Chemaly

    Today’s episode is part of a special one-on-one series featuring some of the most urgent and incisive thinkers of our time. And this conversation is exactly that. I’m joined by writer and feminist theorist Soraya Chemaly to talk about rage, resilience, and what she calls male supremacy, not as a buzzword, but as a belief system that shapes our politics, our culture, and our most intimate relationships. In this episode, we unpack why backlash isn’t a sign of feminist failure, but proof of feminist success. We talk about Gen Z women refusing oppressive structures, why solidarity is being punished in real time, and how everyday acts of refusal, from leaving a marriage to canceling a subscription, are deeply political. This conversation is sharp, honest, and at times uncomfortable. But it’s also clarifying. Because as Soraya reminds us, if everything women have accomplished had happened overnight, we would call it a revolution. Episode Resources: Soraya Chemaly Order All We Want Is Everything Here The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    43 min

  3. FEB 26

    60. How to Stop Managing Other People’s Emotions with Tracy Vadakumchery (“Bad Indian Therapist”)

    There’s a moment so many women, especially women of color, know in their bones: you finally try to put yourself first. You say no. You set a boundary. You admit you’re not okay. And suddenly, you’re labeled: selfish, dramatic, ungrateful… bad. Today, I’m sitting down with Tracy Vadakumchery, known as the “Bad Indian Therapist,” to unpack what “bad” really means within rigid cultural expectations, and what it costs women when being “good” requires self-abandonment. We talk about the myth of the "good girl", intergenerational guilt, and the way patriarchy, trauma, colonialism, and community pressure get packaged as “culture” and then handed to women to carry. Tracy also breaks down how stress shows up in the body, why mainstream mental health spaces often miss the cultural realities behind guilt and shame, and what it looks like to stop soothing other people’s discomfort, so you can finally come home to yourself. If you’ve ever felt trapped between belonging and being honest, this episode is for you. Episode Resources: Visit Tracy's website, thebadindiantherapist.com, to learn more about her offerings, including her toxic guilt course, individual therapy, and group therapy. The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    1h 1m

  4. FEB 19

    59. The Pay Gap Is the Pain Gap: The Hidden Cost of Being an Ambitious Woman with Stefanie O’Connell

    Stefanie O’Connell joins The Pain Gap for a fiery, deeply validating conversation at the intersection of women’s health, financial health, and power. A leading voice on money, ambition, and gender equity, Stefanie breaks down what she calls “the ambition penalty”: the reality that ambition is praised and rewarded in men, but often penalized in women, at work, at home, and in public life. Together, Anushay and Stefanie connect the dots between the pay gap and the pain gap, how patriarchy relies on undervaluing women’s labor, time, and bodies, and how gaslighting (culturally and politically) keeps women questioning what they know they’re experiencing. They unpack why financial advice for women so often tells us to “shrink” (save, sacrifice, coupon) while men are encouraged to “build” (earn, invest, accumulate), and why women aren’t “risk averse”; they’re risk-aware. They also dive into the real-life consequences of inequity: how women face backlash for negotiating, why burnout isn’t caused by women “wanting too much,” and how community and collective care, not individual self-optimization, are the path forward. Stefanie shares the mission behind her work, the importance of data in cutting through gaslighting, and why women are entitled not just to income, but to wealth and long-term power. Plus: Stefanie’s new book, The Ambition Penalty: How Corporate Culture Tells Women to Step Up and Then Pushes Them Down, is available for preorder now and ships May 19. Episode Resources: The Ambition Penalty: How Corporate Culture Tells Women to Step Up and Then Pushes Them Down: amazon, barnes & noble, bookshop, books-a-million @stefanieoconnell on Instagram Stefanie's Substack The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    1h 1m

  5. FEB 12

    58. The Sweet Feminist: Pro-Abortion, Pro-Care, Pro-Cake with Becca Rea-Tucker

    Becca Rea-Tucker (aka The Sweet Feminist) joins The Pain Gap for a disarming, deeply human conversation about abortion, stigma, and the radical power of emotional support—served, of course, with cake. Becca shares how it took years after her own abortion to say the word out loud, and why reclaiming language (“abortion isn’t a bad word” and “pro-abortion”) became central to her activism. Together, we unpack how shame gets baked into the “scripts” society hands us—and what changes when we stop debating our right to care and start focusing on the people who actually need it: the ones having abortions. We also talk about her new book, The Abortion Companion, created to fill a gap she felt firsthand: stigma-free emotional companionship, practical abortion information, affirmations, prompts, and even comfort movies for the moments when you just need to breathe. Becca explains why adults deserve emotional education just as much as kids do and why “support” should never require remorse as the entry fee. The episode closes with an honest look at doing this work in Texas as abortion bans intensify (including “bounty” laws meant to isolate communities), the resources Becca trusts most, and the message she’d write on a cake for this moment: We’ll never stop. We’ll always support you. Episode Resources: The Abortion Companion Follow Becca on Instagram The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    45 min

  6. FEB 5

    57. Abortion, Erasure, and Liberation: Reclaiming Our History with Renee Bracey Sherman

    Renee Bracey Sherman is an abortion storyteller, researcher, and movement builder, for a clear-eyed conversation about what gets erased in mainstream abortion narratives, and why reclaiming truth is part of the fight for bodily autonomy. Renee explains why “people of color have always had abortions,” how history has been intentionally distorted to serve white supremacy and population control, and what we lose when we let criminalization, not care, shape the conversation. Together, they unpack the long arc of stigma: how abortion moved from community-based healthcare to something framed as shameful and secret, and how policing and surveillance have always been the through line, then and now. Renee also shares why storytelling is more than personal, it’s political: a way to refuse shame, share “abortion wisdom,” and expose the patterns that gaslighting depends on. The episode closes with a powerful reflection on what Renee would tell her younger self, and why her abortion wasn’t the end of her story; it was the beginning of the life she chose. Episode Resources: Liberating Abortion Website Renee Bracey Sherman Instagram/Facebook/Bluesky/Threads/LinkedIn: @ReneeBraceySherman Twitter: @RBraceySherman The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    1h 3m

  7. FEB 3

    56. Special Episode: One on One with Anushay - Why Being “Too Political” Is the Point with Shannon Watts

    This episode marks the launch of One on One with Anushay, a new series born out of this moment, when staying quiet is no longer an option. While women’s health remains at the center of this show, the crises unfolding around us demand that we zoom out, get informed, and begin organizing together across movements. Joined by Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action and author of Fired Up, for a raw and urgent conversation about why being labeled “too political” is not a liability, but a responsibility. Shannon unpacks the pressure women face to stay silent, the myth that neutrality is safety, and why silence, especially from those with privilege, only reinforces systems that harm the most vulnerable. We talk about Minnesota as a wake-up call, the dangerous illusion that someone else will save us, and what history teaches us about power, privilege, and consequences. Shannon shares hard truths about organizing, accountability, and why real change has never come from politeness but from collective action that risks comfort and demands more. This conversation is a reminder that politics is already shaping our lives, whether we engage or not. And that the only way forward is together, using our voices, our skills, and our willingness to show up. Episode Resources: Shannon Watts Follow Shannon on Instagram The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    28 min

  8. JAN 29

    55. "Your Labs Are Normal. So Why Do You Still Feel Like Sh*t?” with Dr. Efrat Lamandre

    What if the most damaging phrase in modern healthcare isn’t “it’s all in your head,” but “your labs are normal”? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Efrat Lamandre (Dr. E), a nurse practitioner, integrative medicine expert, and self-described “medical disruptor”, to talk about the space most of us live in but the system doesn’t know how to treat: not sick enough to code, but too unwell to ignore. Dr. E breaks down why medicine becomes so binary, either conventional or “alternative”, and why she’s built her work around the medical middle ground: evidence-based care that doesn’t stop at protocols, and holistic approaches that don’t require abandoning science. Together, they unpack how the healthcare system incentivizes diagnosis over prevention, why nurse practitioners are essential to closing America’s primary care gap, and how policies that limit nursing education don’t just hurt providers, they deepen health deserts for everyone. Episode Resources: Dr. Efrat Lamandre The Pain Gap Follow Anushay on Instagram To learn more about Anushay Hossain's work, check out Anushay's website or sign up for her substack. To continue the conversation, feel free to DM @anushayhossain or email me at thepaingap@gmail.com

    58 min
See All (63)

5
out of 5
16 Ratings

About

Join Anushay Hossain, feminist author, podcast host, and powerful women’s health advocate as she interviews doctors, advocates and medical experts about the most urgent issues in women's health. Based on her Audible bestselling book, “The Pain Gap: How Sexism and Racism in Healthcare Kill Women," The Pain Gap podcast provides a vital platform for critical conversations about medical gaslighting and misogyny. Anushay's point is clear: center women's stories and empower listeners to advocate for their health. She also invites male listeners to stand as allies in women's healthcare. Afterall, women's rights is a human rights issue. Through candid discussions, The Pain Gap podcast provides a much needed examination of the women’s health crisis in America. By fostering dialogue, Anushay aims to drive positive change and close #ThePainGap in women's health.

Information

  • Creator
    Anushay Hossain
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    63
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Anushay Hossain
  • Show Website
    The Pain Gap