On The Couch

Dr Giselle Woodley and Dr Sarah Vrankovich join Maddy and Winnie for a thoughtful and nuanced conversation exploring how young people learn about sex, relationships and consent in an increasingly digital world. 

Dr Giselle and Dr Sarah are researchers working at the intersection of sexuality education, digital cultures and sexual violence prevention. As dedicated advocates at Bloom-Ed, they bring their passion and academic depth to...

Sit down with Mai Nugyen (she/her), as she opens up with Maddy to share her personal experience and the importance of understanding compassion and empathy when approaching conversations about transness and cultural identity.  

As a Vietnamese trans woman working in the trans healthcare space, Mai draws on her deep understanding of the communities she serves and the belief that inclusive healthcare relies on building bridges between...

Listen as co-hosts Winnie and Maddy unpack the On The Couch podcast and vodcast series and reflect on season 4’s themes and guests. 

This episode was recorded in November 2025   

Read transcript here               Check out our webpage for more information      Follow us on Instagram and Facebook     

References   

On The Couch full episode list

Young People’s Digital Cultures & Sexual Health with Professor Kath Albury 

S...

With World AIDS Day around the corner, Maddy and Josef sit down to chat about what it really looks like to support a loved one diagnosed with HIV. You’ll hear powerful stories from family members, partners, and allies about connection, compassion, and reducing stigma and discrimination through everyday actions. 

This episode reminds us that listening to people’s stories and educating ourselves is one of the most powerful ways to re...

“Sexual well-being should be the baseline we are aiming for when we are talking about Comprehensive Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE), and sexual violence prevention is supplementary to that.”  

Join Maddy as she chats with author and researcher Katrina Marson to unpack the power of sex education. Katrina reflects on her work as a criminal lawyer specialising in sexual offenses and shares how her research on the implement...

Join Winnie as she chats with Kyla Lawson, to find out more about the invisible population Kyla works with as a Health Promotion Officer with Women Partners.  

Women Partners is a NSW based service that offers individual counselling, support groups and Sexual Health information for all women whose male partner is having sex with men or has come out as gay or bisexual.  

This passionate and inclusive discussion breaks down stigmas a...

What does it actually mean to create real cultural change? 

In this eye-opening and honest conversation, Winnie sits down with journalist and podcast creator Soaliha Iqbal to explore the intersections of politics, feminism, media trends, and anti-capitalism in a colonial world. 

Soaliha shares how her lived experience as a Muslim women in Australian has defined her voice within the Australian media landscape, using her platform to ...

“It's super powerful to go into a space, a group of people who don't know anything about you, and you have that connection and that community.” Drag is more than just a performance of heightened gender expression; it’s a safe and affirming space for exploration.  

This honest and nuanced conversation explores the intersection of drag and the LGBTQIA+ community. It’s not drag 101, it’s a deep and vulnerable conversation about the ro...

Join us as we host Tom (he/him) and Adie (she/her) to discuss sex, relationships and consent and their work in answering young people’s sticky questions.   

Tom and Adie talk about their experiences working at Sexual Assault Support Service (SASS) and the inspirations that drove the production of the Sticky Q’s podcast as an educational tool. Sticky Q’s is a podcast where they answer anonymous questions, written on sticky notes fro...

Join Naomi as she chats with Jennifer Power, a Principal Fellow at the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society at La Trobe University.  

Jennifer explores her research focused on sexuality, sexual health and HIV with Naomi, discussing her work on the Secondary Students and Sexual Health Survey and other studies relating to LGBTQIA+ wellbeing, young people and sexual health, and digital sexual health literacy.   

This ...

Join Maddy as she sits down with Kath Albury to explore the digital cultures and sexual health of young people in Australia. 

Kath, an Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellow and Associate Investigator in the Swinburne Node for ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADMS), shares her Fellowship research which explores the impacts of digital transformation, ranging from enterprise technologies to...

“Awareness doesn't come about by silence”. Naomi is joined by Naomi Hoffman, a clinical sexual health nurse and HIV positive speakers Tasha and Mel. Listen as they discuss testing and treatment options available in Australia and the importance of raising awareness of women and HIV. 

Naomi shares her clinical experience working with and supporting women living with HIV in the Illawarra Shoalhaven Sexual Health Clinic. As a proud Kam...

Join Naomi as she chats with Rachel Wotton and Mohammed Samrah about the importance of people with disability’s access to sexual and reproductive health services. Rachel, a sex worker and academic in the field and Mohammed, a man of lived experience have a dynamic and eye-opening conversation about sex as a human right. 

Rachel shares parts of her PhD research and elaborates on the role the NDIS plays in the disability communities'...

In this special edition mini-episode, Maddy and Winnie sit down with Public Health Placement Student Jade Scott at the University of Wollongong recording studio. Listen as they reflect on Jade’s project that explored podcast production and how it can be better used as an innovative tool for sexual health education and promotion.  

This episode was recorded in October 2024 

Read transcript here 

Check out our webpage for more inf...

Join Winnie as she sits down with Tessa Opie and Kerrin Bradfield in a nuanced discussion on consent, sex education and porn literacy education for young people. Tessa and Kerrin are dedicated and passionate in empowering others to develop healthy attitudes toward relationships, consent and sex. Listen as they share their dynamic collaboration in creating the Respect Collective: Relationships and Sex Education for the Real World. R...

"Young people are experts in their own experiences." Maddy chats with Laura Crozier a victim survivor, passionate youth advocate, Affirmative Consent Project Officer, a podcast co-host and ice hockey enthusiast. Laura shares how our life experiences shape not only who we are, but how we can help others. In this episode we are reminded the importance of centering young people in our work and ensuring their voices are heard and respe...

People are not the problem, the problem is the problem. Maddy sits with mental health social worker Danyelle Mei Kaplan and massage therapist Egan Magee. They spend time sharing their coordinates of belonging and explore autonomy and dignity over their own fields of existence. A powerful conversation collating thoughts on collective holding, mutual aid and healing centered approaches. Working within the LGBTQ2IA+ community, they dr...

Have you ever wanted to know more about sexological bodywork? Together, Naomi and Stella Topaz from Abundant Body talk through the wheel of consent and the somatic therapy approach of sexological bodywork and how it varies from other types of therapy and sexology. Stella reveals the inside of a sexological bodywork session and walks us through how she works with compassion and gratitude.  

This episode was recorded in March 2024 

Spend some time and listen to an honest and open conversation about medical consent, consent culture, TransHealth, queer and disability healthcare with Axel Nathaniel Rose. Axel shares with Naomi his lived experience as a queer, transgender, and disabled man, reflecting on the life-long impacts of when medical consent is not given. An empowering episode challenging necessary system change and inspiring individual advocacy. 

This ep...