
Call Her Daddy
"If we could go back and you could like be in your sex ed class you're like a professor Kelly like re-teach us like what is something for sex ed that you like wish was enforced or taught pleasure yeah" — Alex Cooper
"My family is really religious. So it's been this kind of don't ask don't tell and something I'm still navigating." — Eileen Kelly
"I felt like this is not helping me I still had access to my phone and I just felt like I was I was living alone and I felt like I could go spend all day in therapy in these group therapy classes and then I would go home and just have to sit with my thoughts and my rumination and I just felt worse" — Eileen Kelly
The episode begins with Alex Cooper introducing Eileen Kelly, highlighting her journey from an online community builder to a podcast host focused on mental health. Kelly shares her childhood experiences, marked by the early loss of her mother, her father's subsequent struggles with alcohol, and a rather sexist household that limited her participation in sports. This early environment, coupled with a lonely adolescence, led her to find solace and connection on the internet, specifically through platforms like Tumblr, where she began offering advice.
The conversation transitions to their shared experiences with sex education, or the lack thereof, particularly within religious and Catholic school settings. They discuss the societal disconnects in teaching about pleasure, consent, and normalizing awkward moments in sexual encounters, contrasting this with the unrealistic portrayals often found in pornography. Kelly candidly shares her experiences with relationships, including her tendency towards "serial dating" and the importance of developing self-sufficiency before entering committed partnerships. The discussion then delves into masturbation, with both hosts addressing common hesitations and offering practical advice for listeners, emphasizing self-exploration and comfort.
A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to mental health. Kelly recounts her brave decision to check herself into McLean Hospital for five months, detailing her debilitating anxiety and the process of seeking professional help. She emphasizes the educational value of the program, the challenges of being without a phone for an extended period, and the profound positive impact it had on her relationship with her father. The episode concludes with a discussion on navigating revenge porn threats and blackmail, underscoring the emotional toll and the importance of seeking support, even though the specific details of the blackmail event are sensitive and omitted from this summary.