'The C Word with Catharine Redden'
START HERE → BLOODY HORRENDOUS
If you’re new and wondering where to begin, scroll nearly to the bottom and find Bloody Horrendous.
It was my second episode, and it’s still the one people land on.
It’s about first periods.
Not the neat version. The real one.
• What it was actually like
• What we weren’t told
• What’s changed (thank god)
• What hasn’t (of course)
It’s funny in parts, uncomfortable in others, and very recognisable if you’ve ever had a body that does things without asking your permission.
THE C-WORD WITH CATHARINE REDDEN
A podcast for difficult women.
Inside:
• Bodies that don’t behave
• Anxiety that doesn’t respond to medication tested predominantly on men, while being told to just meditate
• Ageing without apology
• Small, everyday moments where sexism just… hums in the background
No self-improvement arc.
No neat conclusions.
Just the ongoing, slightly absurd experience of being a woman paying attention.
This is what it sounds like from inside one life.
Not polished.
Not resolved.
Just said out loud.
Welcome to the party of women’s direct experience.
'The C Word with Catharine Redden'
Bloody Horrendous
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
This episode is dedicated to Irene. The strength you showed as a little girl foretold the remarkable human you would become. Thank you for trusting me, and my listeners, with your story.
Episode 2: Bloody Horrendous ~ First Periods, Shame, and Sisterhood
Fun fact: over a lifetime, the average woman will menstruate for about seven years ~ end on end.
And yet we still whisper about it.
In this episode of The C-Word with Catharine Redden, Catharine talks about first periods. The confusing ones. The painful ones. The ones that arrived with a pad but no instructions. It’s about euphemisms like “the curse,” blue liquid in tampon ads, and the quiet expectation that girls should endure discomfort without complaint.
Alongside Catharine’s own story, women from across generations share what their first periods were really like. Awkward, frightening, funny, and often bloody horrendous. It’s also about the small, practical ways women have always looked after each other, even when no one else did.
Periods are not a failure of the body.
They’re evidence of endurance.
🎙️👀 What worked? What dragged? What made you mutter “Jesus Christ, Catharine”? Tell me.
Content Note
This podcast gets into bodies, panic attacks, trauma, sexism, mental health, and the occasional emotional sinkhole. Please look after yourself only listen when you feel safe to engage with potentially triggering material.
Also, I swear.
Support
These aren’t here as a formality. I’ve used some of these myself.
Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7)
Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (ages 5–25)
1800RESPECT 1800 737 732
Emergency 000
Outside Australia, local crisis services are available.
The Socials (I'd love a follow)
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/catharine.redden/
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/catharine-redden/
Support The Pod
Substack (where I write stuff)
https://catharineredden.substack.com
Buy Me a Coffee (where you can financially support the pod, and me!)
https://buymeacoffee.com/CatharineRedden
Credits
Recorded on the lands of the Ramindjeri and Ngarrindjeri peoples.
Sovereignty never ceded.
Recorded & edited at Ridley Farm Studio by Luke Ridley
https://ridleyfarmstudio.com.au...