Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
From the Radiolab podcast: What do sex hormones do to your brain?
After reading something that said her menstrual cycle changes her brain each month, Senior Correspondent Molly Webster goes on a reporting mission to see if that’s true, and,if so, how.
This journey into sex hormones and the brain involves females and males, and exacting self-experimentation. It gets into PTSD, and ends with a new twist on self-care (hint: it’s biological). And it starts to reveal a sneaky truth: that each one of us is at the mercy of a crashing sea of chemicals inside of us—those things we call hormones.
Special thanks to Emily Jacobs, Laura Pritschet, Pavel Shapturenka and Dr. Catherine Woolley.
EPISODE CREDITS:
Hosted by Molly Webster
Reported by Molly Webster
Produced by Mona Madgavkar
with help from Molly Webster
Fact-checking by Diane A. Kelly
Episode Segments:
0:00 Segment A
19:17 Break
20:15 Segment B
39:17 Credits
🎧 Subscribe to Radiolab wherever you listen to podcasts: lnk.to/radiolab!youtube
🔎 Subscribe to Radiolab on YouTube: bit.ly/3I9KI53
🖋 Subscribe to Radiolab’s Newsletter: radiolab.org/newsletter
🌱 Check out Radiolab's Starter Kit Playlist: bit.ly/3sX8f4P
👍 Like this video ✏️ and leave us a comment!
Follow Radiolab:
Instagram — instagram.com/radiolab
X — https://x.com/Radiolab
Facebook — facebook.com/Radiolab
Threads — threads.net/@radiolab
TikTok — tiktok.com/@radiolab
Our newsletter includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up here: radiolab.org/newsletter
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today: radiolab.org/the-lab
Photo illustration by Jared Bartman
Video by Joanna Strogatz
From the Radiolab podcast: What do sex hormones do to your brain?
After reading something that said her menstrual cycle changes her brain each month, Senior Correspondent Molly Webster goes on a reporting mission to see if that’s true, and,if so, how.
This journey into sex hormones and the brain involves females and males, and exacting self-experimentation. It gets into PTSD, and ends with a new twist on self-care (hint: it’s biological). And it starts to reveal a sneaky truth: that each one of us is at the mercy of a crashing sea of chemicals inside of us—those things we call hormones.
Special thanks to Emily Jacobs, Laura Pritschet, Pavel Shapturenka and Dr. Catherine Woolley.
EPISODE CREDITS:
Hosted by Molly Webster
Reported by Molly Webster
Produced by Mona Madgavkar
with help from Molly Webster
Fact-checking by Diane A. Kelly
Episode Segments:
0:00 Segment A
19:17 Break
20:15 Segment B
39:17 Credits
🎧 Subscribe to Radiolab wherever you listen to podcasts: lnk.to/radiolab!youtube
🔎 Subscribe to Radiolab on YouTube: bit.ly/3I9KI53
🖋 Subscribe to Radiolab’s Newsletter: radiolab.org/newsletter
🌱 Check out Radiolab's Starter Kit Playlist: bit.ly/3sX8f4P
👍 Like this video ✏️ and leave us a comment!
Follow Radiolab:
Instagram — instagram.com/radiolab
X — https://x.com/Radiolab
Facebook — facebook.com/Radiolab
Threads — threads.net/@radiolab
TikTok — tiktok.com/@radiolab
Our newsletter includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up here: radiolab.org/newsletter
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today: radiolab.org/the-lab
Photo illustration by Jared Bartman
Video by Joanna Strogatz
