Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine

Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine

Join Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin McElroy for a tour of all the dumb, bad, gross, weird and wrong ways we've tried to fix people.

Episodes

April 22, 2025 41 mins

The Medical Freedom or the Health Freedom Movement is not new, but it is currently gaining more traction and attention under RFK, Jr. On its face, it is a political movement that distrusts pharmaceutical companies and government regulations for supplements. But Dr. Sydnee talks about its history and roots in strange conspiracies and biases from the 1950s – and what the movement means for us today.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers...

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TikTok has become enthralled with the idea of Thalassotherapy... which is basically going to the ocean to feel better. Dr. Sydnee talks about the history of this "sea cure" and Dr. Richard Russell, the man who popularized it in the second half of the eighteenth century.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

National Immigration Project: https://nipnlg.org/about/who-we-are 

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Justin has gathered all the strangest listeners (questions) to quiz Dr. Sydnee with all of your weird and fun medical questions! Is Gatorade actually salty and NOT sweet? Are people with cat allergies allergic to big cats? Can you fart and spread norovirus? Can a fetus taste? And the most important question of all: who are Justin and Dr. Sydnee's favorite fictional doctors?

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandc...

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March 25, 2025 35 mins

What medical drama does a doctor on a cruise ship get involved in? Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about Dr. Odyssey: Shark Attack!, and the follow-up,  Dr. Odyssey: Shark Attack! Part 2: Orca. It's a wild ride, but some of the medical beats are surprisingly accurate.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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March 18, 2025 40 mins

Dr. Sydnee brings a little levity as she talks about a new medical show, The Pitt. Following fictional doctors in real-time(ish), Dr. Sydnee discusses how it compares to working in an actual ER, as well as it how it compares to the 1990s show ER.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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It’s not MaxFunDrive without a wild kickoff spectacular! Former real-life VJ and host of MTV's Spring Break 1999, Dave Holmes, takes your favorite MaxFun hosts through some wacky ‘90s- and Spring Break-themed mini games!! 

Featuring: Dave Holmes, Jeremy Bent, Oscar Montoya, Dimitry Pompée, Tom Lum, Ellen Weatherford, Alex Schmidt, Brenda Snell, Drea Clark, Alonso Duralde, Dan McCoy, Jordan Morris, Manolo Moreno, Ella Hubber, Carolin...

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March 11, 2025 35 mins

How dangerous is jousting? Just look into the example of King Henry VIII of England. The Tudor king is infamous for his six wives, but Dr. Sydnee explains how a jousting injury may have changed his behavior – and changed the course of history.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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March 4, 2025 38 mins

Kleptomania is defined by an undeniable compulsion to steal, so it has wavered between legitimate diagnosis and flimsy criminal defense to somewhere in between since its inception. This week on Sawbones, Dr. Sydnee unpacks the facts from fiction while Justin tries to steal the show.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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February 25, 2025 42 mins

The recent semi-fictionalized Netflix series Apple Cider Vinegar explores the world of wellness following bloggers Belle Gibson and Milla Blake. Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about what factors in the world and in peoples' lives could lead to fame and success in the pseudo-scientific alternative medicine world.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org/

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February 11, 2025 42 mins

It's been bitterly cold in our region lately and that's got Dr. Sydnee thinking about frostbite. This week, we'll gain a better understanding of this malady and even stage a brief theatrical selection about it.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org/

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February 4, 2025 41 mins

There has been a lot going on in the United States in the last few days that might affect what's going on with health, medicine, and other sciences. Dr. Sydnee talks about the implications of all of these now and in the immediate future, and what we can do about it.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org/

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January 28, 2025 36 mins

Depending on where you live, you might be hearing a lot lately about Pertussis or Whooping Cough, even in Dr. Sydnee and Justin’s home county. Dr. Sydnee talks about the long history of this disease, its symptoms, and how the vaccine eventually came about.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Palestine Children's Relief Fund: https://www.pcrf.net/

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January 21, 2025 35 mins

Imagine if your doctor could go on strike in the middle of a treatment. That’s the most popular argument against physicians’ unions, but there’s a lot more to the issue. Dr. Sydnee talks about the process of training doctors in the United States, why doctors would want to unionize, and what a doctors’ union might look like.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Palestine Children's Relief Fund: https://w...

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January 14, 2025 34 mins

It's a real medical (with a lower-case m) mystery, as Dr. Sydnee tries to find the source of a trick on TikTok that reportedly helps alleviate constipation. Join Sydnee on her surprisingly difficult journey to find what exactly this "trick" is to determine whether or not it does anything at all.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Palestine Children's Relief Fund: https://www.pcrf.net/

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January 8, 2025 41 mins

Dr. Sydnee and Justin are easing back into the swing of things after the holidays by discussing what they’ve been reading, both apart and together. So cozy up with some tea to hear some good book recommendations from your favorite health professional and clown husband.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Palestine Children's Relief Fund: https://www.pcrf.net/

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Happy Candlenights! We've got for you a double-feature of the original A Medicine Called Christmas 1 and 2.

Medicine Called Christmas: Live from Candlenights 2018, we're so proud to present a staged reading of the new Hallmark Christmas movie written by Justin and Sydnee McElroy: A Medicine Called Christmas. Music: Adam Sakiyama CAST:   Narrator: Rachel McElroy Daniel: Tommy Smirl Tabitha: Sydnee McElroy Phil: Griffin McElroy Chris:...

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December 17, 2024 36 mins

As a gift to the audience, we have another Sawbones Q and A, answering strange questions submitted by listeners! How does a menstrual disk work? How should we ACTUALLY clean our ears? Are cat biscuits bad for pregnancy? And why does Justin have the old man cough?

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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December 10, 2024 39 mins

It’s nearly winter, which means the return of mycoplasma or “Walking Pneumonia” on this hemisphere. This week Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about how this infection was discovered, the questionable way it was researched and how it differs from “typical” pneumonia.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/

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November 26, 2024 41 mins

Somehow the Tesla medical bed, or Tesla Biohealing Wellness Hotel and Resort is not related to Elon Musk. It is also not really related to actual medical care. Dr. Sydnee and Justin talk about another wellness product and what this harnesser of biphoton energy is supposed to do.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

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November 19, 2024 41 mins

Needless to say it’s going to be a long four years for the United States. This week’s episode of Sawbones offers some guidance on what we might expect for medicine and health care going forward and what pro-active steps you may want to consider.

Music: "Medicines" by The Taxpayers https://taxpayers.bandcamp.com/

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