The Luminescence Podcast with Schuyler Grant
The Luminescence Podcast with Schuyler Grant is a science-based, culturally curious, and politically fearless conversation series illuminating women's health. Each episode features a roundtable of female health experts who cut through shame, explain the latest research, and have honest, raw conversations about what women experience in their bodies and in the world. The podcast aims to address the historical neglect of women's health in science and provide imperative understanding for the 51% of the population with a vagina.
Episodes
Empathy, Elderhood & What Comes Next: Giving Fewer F*cks Part 2 of 2
You came into this season navigating a transition. You're leaving with a different relationship to what's on the other side of it.
This is the season finale of the Luminescence Podcast. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower close out by looking forward — to grandchildren, creative reinvention, travel, radical career pivots, and the profound privilege of becoming
Partnerships, Priorities and Purpose in Midlife: Giving Fewer F*cks Part 1 of 2
Somewhere in your mid-forties, you realize that the compromises you made in your thirties stop sitting right. The relationships that used to feel necessary start feeling optional. The drive to be everything to everyone, quietly or not so quietly, starts to dissolve.
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower
Trauma, Resilience & Better Coping: What Used to Work Doesn’t Part 2 of 2
We're all coping with something. The question is whether what we're reaching for is actually helping, or just numbing us from the discomfort we're too busy to sit with.
This is part two of the conversation on coping in midlife. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower dig into the deeper current running beneath perimenopause: the old traumas that float to the surfa
Alcohol, SSRIs & Midlife Coping: What Used to Work Doesn’t Part 1 of 2
Your favorite coping mechanisms — wine, edibles, even your go-to SSRI — might suddenly betray you in midlife.
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Sarah de la Torre, Elena Brower, and Dr. Somi Javaid to dig into why alcohol hits harder after 40, antidepressants become less reliable, and the things that used to take the edge off start creating new problems
Work, Relationships & Finding Your Power: Your Brain on Hormones Part 2 of 2
Why does perimenopause feel like you're losing your edge?
This is part two of the conversation on your brain during hormonal transitions. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, Dr. Somi Javaid, and Elena Brower get into what's actually happening in your brain and nervous system as estrogen shifts — and what you can do to feel like yourself again, including one of the most underreported findings i
Rage, Brain Fog, and Midlife Neuroscience: Your Brain on Hormones Part 1 of 1
You're capable. You're high-functioning. And then something shifts. You can't remember words, you're snapping at everyone, you're lying awake at 3am soaked in sweat, or you're so flattened by anhedonia that nothing feels worth doing.
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Sarah de la Torre, Dr. Somi Javaid, and Elena Brower to get personal and then scientif
Red Light, Testosterone & Pelvic Health: WTF Is Happening to My Lady Parts? Part 2 of 2
Most women are handed lube and told the changes are normal. This episode goes considerably further than that.
This is part two of the conversation on sexual health in midlife. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, and Dr. Sarah de la Torre go through the full toolkit for vaginal health, pelvic floor strength, and sexual function.
From red light therapy and testosterone delivery methods to why most w
Libido, GSM & Vaginal Health: WTF Is Happening to My Lady Parts? Part 1 of 2
When estrogen starts to decline, the vagina is one of the first places you feel it, and one of the last things women talk about. In this episode, we're going there.
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Somi Javaid and Dr. Sarah de la Torre — two OB-GYNs who specialize in women's sexual health — plus Elena Brower, who brings the honest, personal perspectiv
Thyroid, Testing & Medical Dismissal: The Risks No One Told You About Part 2 of 2
Women are medically dismissed every single day, and knowing that doesn't help you unless you know what to do about it.
This is part two of the conversation on what's changing inside your body. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, and Dr. Sarah de la Torre break down the thyroid-hormone connection that conventional medicine consistently underestimates.
Because brain fog, fatigue, hair changes, and we
Your Heart on Hormones: The Risks No One Told You About Part 1 of 2
Heart disease is the number one killer of women in the US, more than all cancers combined, and yet the cardiovascular changes happening during perimenopause are still widely misunderstood, undertested, and dismissed.
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Somi Javaid and Dr. Sarah de la Torre to get into what's actually happening to your heart as estrogen d
Metabolic Protocols, GLP-1s & Habit Stacking: WTF Is Happening Inside Me? Part 3 of 3
Hormone therapy, GLP-1 medications, vitamin D, creatine, vibration plates, cold plunging, butter coffee. The list of things women in midlife are being told to try keeps growing.
This is part three of the conversation on what's happening structurally in your body. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, and Dr. Sarah de la Torre get into what the science actually supports for metabolic health, muscle pre
Bone Loss, DEXA Scans and Estrogen: WTF is Happening Inside Me? Part 2 of 3
Think osteoporosis is an old woman's disease? Most women start losing critical bone mass in their thirties and forties, long before menopause, and most won't know it until a fracture happens.
This is part two of the conversation on what's happening structurally in your body. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower get into the bone health conversation that should
Muscle Loss, Joint Pain & the Menopot: WTF Is Happening Inside Me? Part 1 of 3
Aches, pains, and that mysterious menopause pooch. Is it just aging, or is something else happening in your body?
In this episode of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower to get into what's actually happening musculoskeletally during perimenopause and menopause — muscle loss, joint pain, shifting metabolism, and why the wo
Protein, HRT, and Finding Care: Perimenopause Explained Part 2 of 2
Perimenopause can arrive as sudden rage, body composition shifts, sleep disruption, brain fog, and emotional swings that don't match the circumstances.
This is part two of the conversation on perimenopause. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower share personal stories alongside evidence-based lifestyle tools that move the needle whether or not you're on hormone t
Missed, Dismissed & Misdiagnosed: Perimenopause Explained Part 1 of 2
Most women don't recognize perimenopause until they're already deep in it, and their doctors often miss it too.
In this episode, Schuyler Grant sits down with Dr. Somi Javaid, founder of HerMD and women's sexual health expert; Dr. Sarah de la Torre, OB-GYN and functional medicine physician; and Elena Brower, bestselling author and teacher, to talk about what's actually happening hormonally during
Botox, Fillers & What Actually Works: WTF Is Happening to My Face? Part 3 of 3
Botox. Fillers. Lasers. Red light masks. Geranium oil and gua sha.
If you've wondered about any of these — what they actually do, whether they're worth it, and what two menopause-focused OB-GYNs and a Zen teacher actually do themselves — this is that conversation.
In part three of their conversation on the visible changes of midlife, Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and E
Hormones, Skin & Hair: WTF Is Happening to My Face? Part 2 of 3
You look in the mirror and something's different. Your skin, your hair. And nobody really warned you that this was coming, or that it was hormonal.
This is part two of the conversation on the visible changes of midlife. Schuyler Grant, Dr. Somi Javaid, Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and Elena Brower get into the biology behind what's actually happening to skin and hair as estrogen, progesterone, and test
Aging, Identity & Autonomy: WTF Is Happening to My Face? Part 1 of 3
Nobody warned you that midlife would feel like this.
Right as you're starting to see yourself more clearly, the world starts looking at you differently.
In the Season 2 premiere of the Luminescence Podcast, Schuyler Grant sits down with OB-GYNs Dr. Somi Javaid and Dr. Sarah de la Torre, and writer and teacher Elena Brower, to open a conversation that's been a long time coming: what actually hap
Reignite Pleasure, Intimacy, and Connection at Every Age
Sex therapist and legendary podcast host Dr. Emily Morse joins Schuyler Grant at Luminescence Los Angeles for an open, honest conversation about why so many women feel disconnected from their pleasure — and what to do about it.
Together, they explore how shame, stress, trauma, and cultural messaging impact sexual health; why communication is the ultimate lubrication; and practical strategies to
In the Mood (Or Not): What Every Woman Should Know About Libido
In this empowering and refreshingly honest talk from Luminescence Los Angeles, Dr. Jolene Brighten reveals why low libido isn’t "just part of being a woman" — and how hormones, stress, metabolism, relationships, and even body image all intersect to influence sexual health.
You’ll learn how estrogen, testosterone, insulin, and cortisol impact desire, why prioritizing your pleasure is essential fo
Not the Sex You See in Movies
Pleasure Beyond Penetration, Kink, Communication & Chronic Pain
It’s time to dismantle the outdated script that defines intimacy as penetration with orgasm as the goal. From queer sex to neurodivergent pleasure to the realities of long-term relationships, this conversation invites you to rethink what connection and satisfaction truly mean.
We talk intimacy beyond heteronormative norms, why conn
Big T: Testosterone for Women
Testosterone for Women: Libido, Muscle, Mood, Brain Fog & HRT Truths
Testosterone is not just a “guy thing;” it’s the most abundant biologically active hormone in a woman’s body, and it powers far more than libido.
This conversation gets real about how modern life depletes testosterone and why women are often shut out of treatment options.
We unpack what happens when testosterone declines fro
Stress, Survival, and Sex
Nothing will tank your libido faster than stress, which cranks up your cortisol and puts your body in survival mode.
Learn what’s really happening in your brain when you feel anxious, numb, or disconnected, and how you can reset your stress hormones and get your mojo back.
We talk about how chronic stress can disrupt sleep, metabolism, mood, and connection, and why desire is not “broken,” it i
The Pill Paradox
It’s one of the most revolutionary – and controversial – medical inventions in history: the birth control pill. The pill gave women control over their bodies and their futures, but came with a price few of us were ever told about. This episode explains how the pill actually works, what it does to your natural hormonal rhythm, and why it’s frequently overprescribed.
What you’ll learn:
• How the
Desire, Redefined
So many of us feel anxious or disconnected from our bodies because we don't understand why our sexual desire fluctuates.
This episode breaks down the hormonal dance that drives (and sometimes derails) your sex drive, explaining what happens to your metabolism, mood, and libido through midlife.
We get crystal clear on desire vs arousal vs orgasm, why estrogen is a major driver of fantasy a
Vagina Conspiracies
Ever been turned on but dry as the Sahara?
Vaginal lubrication doesn't always match desire, and in this episode, Schuyler Grant and her expert panel (Dr. Jolene Brighten, Dr. Marisa Snyder, and Rosie Acosta) explain what our culture – and our doctors – fail to teach us.
We break down vaginal health, pH balance, and what is really going on in your body during arousal.
You'll Learn:
• Arousal n
Sex Between Your Ears
Ever wonder why your sex drive vanishes, your brain turns to mush, or you want to rage-quit your entire life for no reason? Blame your hormones, or, more specifically, how estrogen and progesterone run your brain. In this episode, Schuyler Grant and her expert panel (Dr. Jolene Brighten, Dr. Marisa Snyder, and Rosie Acosta) break down why it can feel like your brain is actively betraying you, part
The Orgasm Gap
The clitoral conspiracy is real.
This episode explains why women orgasm way less than men in heterosexual relationships (just 65% compared to 95%) and what you can do about it.
Schuyler Grant and her expert panel (Dr. Jolene Brighten, Dr. Marisa Snyder, and Rosie Acosta) get real about female anatomy, sexual pleasure, and the cultural myths keeping women from experiencing orgasm.
What you'll
Trailer: Sex, Hormones & Intimacy
Host Schuyler Grant and a roundtable of women's health experts cut through the shame and get real about sex hormones and intimacy.
From the orgasm gap to hormonal birth control, from stress and cortisol to testosterone therapy, Season 1 tackles the questions women have been asking in whispers—with science, honesty, and zero judgment.
This season, host Schuyler Grant joins forces with Dr. Jolene
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