Be Well Sis: The Podcast

Feeling drained, overextended, or like something in your life needs to shift? In this solo episode, Dr. Cassandre Dunbar gets radically honest about burnout, intentional living, and what it really means to outgrow a season of your life.
Dr. Cassandre explores why ignoring what you already know costs more than acting on it, how to protect your time, energy, attention, creativity, and peace as true non-negotiables, and why meaningful change doesn't require a full life overhaul.
In this episode:
Recognizing the exhaustion that comes from overextending yourself
Outgrowing rhythms, relationships, and routines that no longer serve you
Protecting your energy and attention as a wellness practice
Starting small: identifying what doesn't feel good and working from there
Embracing stillness, silence, and rest without guilt
Moving into a season that feels more aligned, even when it's uncomfortable

Connect with Be Well, Sis:
Instagram – @bewellsis_podcast
Substack – bewellsis.substack.com
Follow, rate, and share this episode!

We’re supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Head over to www.stjude.org/bewellsis right now and sign up to be a monthly donor. Together, we can make a real impact.

Want to get in touch? Maybe you want to hear from a certain guest or have a recommendation for On My Radar? Get in touch at [email protected] with Be Well Sis in the subject line! Have your own Not Well, Sis rant to contribute? Click here to send it into the show!

Be Well, Sis is hosted by Dr Cassandre Dunbar. The show is edited, mixed and produced by Megan Hayward. Our Production Manager is Kathleen Speckert.
Be Well, Sis is an editaudio collaboration.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

You've been more critical of your body lately. The timeline isn't helping. And somehow it feels like the progress we made around body acceptance just... evaporated. In this solo episode, Dr. Cassandre Dunbar names exactly what's happening and delivers the big-sister conversation she always wished she'd had, from body image and hormonal changes to mood, skin, and the relationships that literally extend your life.
Drawing from personal experience, therapy, and women's health research, Dr. Cassandre gets honest about her own complicated history with her body and the lessons that took decades to learn, so you don't have to wait as long.
In this episode:
Why diet culture is surging again and what history tells us about why women are being pushed to get smaller
Why your body deserves reverence, not punishment, and how to start practicing that
The truth about movement: why exercising as punishment is neither healthy nor sustainable
Creative hobbies, flow states, and the parasympathetic nervous system connection your mental health needs
Why building a sisterhood isn't just a nice-to-have, it's linked to women's longer life expectancy
The 13-year-old and 83-year-old framework for making decisions you won't regret
This episode is for you if:
You've been more critical of your body lately and can't quite pinpoint why
You grew up exercising or restricting food as punishment and are still unlearning it
You want practical, science-backed ways to support your mood without overhauling your life
You're craving the kind of honest conversation an older sister would have with you

Connect with Be Well, Sis:
Instagram – @bewellsis_podcast
Substack – bewellsis.substack.com
Follow, rate, and share this episode!

We’re supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Head over to www.stjude.org/bewellsis right now and sign up to be a monthly donor. Together, we can make a real impact.

Want to get in touch? Maybe you want to hear from a certain guest or have a recommendation for On My Radar? Get in touch at [email protected] with Be Well Sis in the subject line! Have your own Not Well, Sis rant to contribute? Click here to send it into the show!
Be Well, Sis is hosted by Dr Cassandre Dunbar. The show is edited, mixed and produced by Megan Hayward. Our Production Manager is Kathleen Speckert.
Be Well, Sis is an editaudio collaboration.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Black women enter perimenopause earlier, experience more severe symptoms, and are significantly less likely to receive adequate treatment. Dr. Cassandre breaks down the research, names what so many women have been living through without language, and gives you the tools to advocate for yourself in any medical setting.
What we cover:
Why perimenopause can start in your 30s — not just your 50s
The symptoms most commonly misdiagnosed as stress, anxiety, or depression
What the data says about Black women — earlier onset, more severe symptoms, and a significant treatment gap
The connection between chronic stress, structural racism, and accelerated reproductive aging
Fibroids, heavy bleeds, and the generational pattern nobody talks about
What to say to your doctor and exactly which tests to ask for by name
Why normal lab results do not rule out perimenopause

This episode is for the woman who has been dismissed. For the woman whose mother and aunties suffered through things they never had a name for. And for every Black woman who deserves to walk into a medical appointment prepared and impossible to ignore.
Episodes mentioned:
Dr Kameelah Phillips: https://youtu.be/dnwlrgtI3d0?si=L6uP1R6lH6UaCi8P
Brain Fog: https://youtu.be/uzuYgxlRJs0?si=g4zPijo3k5M42C6B
Check out https://thebewellsis.com/ for more resources!

Connect with Be Well, Sis:
Instagram – @bewellsis_podcast
Substack – bewellsis.substack.com
Follow, rate, and share this episode!

We’re supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Head over to www.stjude.org/bewellsis right now and sign up to be a monthly donor. Together, we can make a real impact.

Want to get in touch? Maybe you want to hear from a certain guest or have a recommendation for On My Radar? Get in touch at [email protected] with Be Well Sis in the subject line! Have your own Not Well, Sis rant to contribute? Click here to send it into the show!

Be Well, Sis is hosted by Dr Cassandre Dunbar. The show is edited, mixed and produced by Megan Hayward. Our Production Manager is Kathleen Speckert.
Be Well, Sis is an editaudio collaboration.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Spring reading season is here and Dr. Cassandre has your wellness reading list covered.
Five book recommendations across five categories: romance, memoirs, self-help, historical fiction, and smut. Something on this list will meet you exactly where you are.
BOOKS IN THIS EPISODE:
Romance: You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi
Memoirs: The Soul Instinct by Beatrice Dixon and Worthy by Jada Pinkett Smith
Self-Help Stack: The Black Joy Playbook by Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts, Less is Liberation by Christine Platt, and The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
Historical Fiction: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi and Some People, Some Other Place by J. California Cooper
Smut: Restore Me by J.L. Seegers

Shop every book from this episode in one place at the Be Well, Sis Bookshop storefront.
Screenshot this episode and tag @bewellsis_ podcast on Instagram with what you're reading first!
More on each book over on Substack
Connect with Be Well, Sis:
Instagram – @bewellsis_podcast
Substack – bewellsis.substack.com
Follow, rate, and share this episode!

We’re supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Head over to www.stjude.org/bewellsis right now and sign up to be a monthly donor. Together, we can make a real impact.

Want to get in touch? Maybe you want to hear from a certain guest or have a recommendation for On My Radar? Get in touch at [email protected] with Be Well Sis in the subject line! Have your own Not Well, Sis rant to contribute? Click here to send it into the show!

Be Well, Sis is hosted by Dr Cassandre Dunbar. The show is edited, mixed and produced by Megan Hayward. Our Production Manager is Kathleen Speckert.
Be Well, Sis is an editaudio collaboration.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you are navigating perimenopause and scrolling to decompress, there are two things happening at once that nobody is talking about together. This episode connects those dots WITH the research to back it up.
Dr Cassandre Dunbar dives into the impact social media is having on our brains, what that means for those of us experiencing perimenopause, and how to reverse the effects!

In this episode, we discuss:
What short-form content actually does to your dopamine system and why it is not a willpower problem
The neuroscience of the scroll: theta brainwaves, the prefrontal cortex, and measurable attention decline
Why the perimenopausal brain and the algorithm create a compounding problem
Supplements with real research behind them for brain health during the transition
The specific labs to ask your doctor for because "your results look normal" is only as useful as what was actually ordered

CLICK HERE to get your free Brain Health Resource Guide with all the products and studies mentioned in this episode!
CLICK HERE to shop the supplements that I use to support my brain (and overall) wellbeing.

Connect with Be Well, Sis:
Instagram – @bewellsis_podcast
Substack – bewellsis.substack.com
Follow, rate, and share this episode!
We’re supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Head over to www.stjude.org/bewellsis right now and sign up to be a monthly donor. Together, we can make a real impact.

Want to get in touch? Maybe you want to hear from a certain guest or have a recommendation for On My Radar? Get in touch at [email protected] with Be Well Sis in the subject line! Have your own Not Well, Sis rant to contribute? Click here to send it into the show!

Be Well, Sis is hosted by Dr Cassandre Dunbar. The show is edited, mixed and produced by Megan Hayward. Our Production Manager is Kathleen Speckert.
Be Well, Sis is an editaudio collaboration.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.