Cramped Podcast Launches: The Silent Epidemic Of Period Pain

Let's talk what is collectively described as a cramp. For most men, cramping is a condition brought about from dehydration, excessive physical activity, or just getting old. In effect, the pain is episodic and may only last for a few minutes or even a few seconds.

Now, let's ask women about cramps. That's a totally different story. The pain is monthly, often excruciating, lasting for days or becoming chronic, and affecting women's lives, quality of life, and often produces eye rolls from men who don't know what they don't know about menstrual cramps.

It's a canon of U.S. health care that men, especially white men, get gold-standard health care while other groups -- women, people of color, LGBTQ advocates, and neurodivergent people often suffer from neglect, lack of understanding, and ignorance.

Thankfully, independent podcasting and Kate Helen Downey have come to the rescue.

Produced in partnership with the Simons Foundation’s Science, Society, and Culture initiative and the Arkansas Podcast Collaborative, this new podcast from acclaimed producer and storyteller Kate Helen Downey (Wondery's Diss & Tell) tackles the staggering lack of research and understanding around menstrual pain—and how that neglect ripples through health, economics, and everyday life.

CRAMPED: One Nerd’s Quest to Understand Period Pain pulls back the curtain on one of the medical world’s most dismissed mysteries: why do we know so little about period pain?

Over the course of 10 episodes, listeners join Downey on a deeply personal, often hilarious, and hopeful quest to uncover why period pain has been dismissed for so long—and what it will take
to fix it. Drawing from her own two-decade battle with “death cramps,”

Kate interviews top experts, patient advocates, and fellow “crampers”. From TikTok wellness scams to groundbreaking lab research, CRAMPED is equal parts science, storytelling, and cathartic comedy about a problem that affects millions but is still treated like a punchline—or worse, ignored entirely. As Downey puts it, “Because having a microphone gets you more answers than having a uterus.”

Upcoming episodes tackle topics like:
● What actually causes period cramps, what treatments exist, and why so many people get stuck in 'limbo', with Dr. Karen Tang, a leading gynecologist & author
● The surprising ways TV and media shape women’s health, with Madeline Di Nonno, President & CEO of the Geena Davis Institute.
● A field trip to a cutting-edge research lab finally working to uncover the causes of period pain.
● Patient advocates helping Congress craft a bill for women’s healthcare funding, featuring Jonelle Henry, co-founder of the White Dress Project.
● How much period pain is costing the GDP and what can be done about it?
● Why severe period pain is so often dismissed or mistreated in emergency situations with Dr. Darien Sutton, ER doctor and ABC News medical correspondent.

And one of Kate’s favorite parts? Talking to fellow crampers like podcaster Sydney Battle about how they cope. “After years of trying to deal with this pain alone, I didn’t expect to have so much fun talking about something that hurts so much,” Kate shares. “This podcast is for anyone who deals with period pain, loves someone who does, or is simply curious about why something so common is still so misunderstood.”

Kate Downey has built a career turning complex topics into entertaining and accessible stories. As the creator of CRAMPED, she draws on her background producing hit podcasts like Diss
and Tell and Glamorous Trash, live shows for hit podcasts like Revisionist History and

Scamfluencers, and her work co-founding the acclaimed science comedy venue Caveat NYC.

Each episode empowers listeners with knowledge, builds a sense of community for those who have felt isolated by their experiences, and pushes for systemic change. In essence, listeners will be able to laugh and cry at the podcast.

Check out Cramped. While I am sure that the audience is largely pre-menopausal women, it is incumbent on all of us (I'm looking at you, men) to understand how menstrual cramps seriously impact the quality of life of the women in our lives.

I remember once being in a supermarket and seeing a male neighbor in the feminine hygiene aisle. He appeared embarrassed and blurted out, "I had to buy these for my wife. I don't want to know anything about, you know, her period."

I narrowed my eyes and said, "I hope she doesn't have that attitude if you ever suffer from erectile dysfunction."

Follow the conversation and join the community at katehelendowney.substack.com.