Papaya Talk

About Papaya Talk

Chatting about the world of women’s health from one generation to the next. Brought to you by mom and daughter duo Dr. Alyssa-Herrera-Set and Nadia Herrera-Set. Get even more juice at www.papaya.health

Publisher

Papaya Talk

Category

health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

18 Mar 2022

Latest episode

1 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

127 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   1 Oct 2026

   Catching Up on Nadia's Last Semester

   Alyssa and Nadia are back after a long break, and Nadia is officially in her last semester at Northeastern. Most of her high school friends have already graduated, her roommate included, and she's still on campus with four classes left. It feels a little weird, but she's trying to hold on to the routine while she has it. Nadia opens up about postponing her MCAT after studying all summer and hitting a wall. Now she's aiming for January with a new study schedule and a better mindset. Alyssa shares a friend's comment that the delays might mean Nadia doesn't want to be a doctor, and Nadia explains why that isn't true. They talk about Nadia's final public health classes and her projects on maternal nutrition and food insecurity. Alyssa asks whether Nadia's interest in women's health is her own or shaped by social media. They wrap up with ways to work in women's health without being an OB/GYN, a local women's health symposium Tanya helped organize, and an idea for this season about hearing people's good, okay, and bad experiences with healthcare. Takeaways Watching your friends graduate while you're still in school can feel strange even when you saw it coming Postponing the MCAT is really common and says nothing about how much someone wants to be a doctor Having no hard deadline gives you room to take a test when you're actually ready Burnout is real, and a few days to reset can change how you see the whole thing Writing gets easier the more you do it, even when it's not your favorite Getting to choose your own project topics can show you what you actually care about There are a lot of ways to focus on women's health in medicine beyond OB/GYN, including family medicine and endocrinology Not loving going to the doctor yourself can be a pretty good reason to want to make it better for other people Chapters 0:10 – 1:50 Back after a long break and Nadia's final semester at Northeastern 1:50 – 3:50 Still in school while high school friends and her roommate have graduated 3:50 – 8:12 Working at Vuori, postponing the MCAT, and coming back from burnout 8:12 – 14:50 Alyssa's friend questions whether Nadia really wants to be a doctor 14:50 – 20:54 Last semester classes and choosing topics on maternal nutrition and food insecurity 20:54 – 23:00 How past co-ops and projects kept pointing her in the same direction 23:00 – 26:29 The gymnastics gym assistant and whether women's health is a natural interest or a trend 26:29 – 30:04 Family medicine, endocrinology, and Tanya's local women's health symposium 30:04 – 33:18 Planning this season and why good and bad healthcare experiences are worth talking about 650.701.7686 (o) 650.332.2739 (f) 510.673.8712 (m) Sports & Dance Rehab|Pilates| Group Classes On the Move Physical Therapy 501-D Old County Rd. Belmont, CA 94002 web - http://www.onthemovephysio.com email - alyssa@onthemovephysio.com IG - https://www.instagram.com/onthemovephysio

2. 

   30 Jun 2026

   When Being Seen Isn't the Same as Being Heard

   This week Alyssa and Nadia get into something personal, what it actually feels like to navigate the healthcare system when you're not sure you'll be taken seriously. It starts with an Instagram post about a woman who showed up to her appointment in heels and still got dismissed. A neurosurgeon decided her back pain couldn't be that bad if she was wearing them. The medical student in the room started wondering if she'd dressed up just to be believed. From there Alyssa shares a story Nadia was actually part of. A contact lens appointment when Nadia was nine that went sideways fast, and how a healthcare provider can make a patient and their family feel small. Alyssa talks through the moment she caught herself trying to prove her own credibility to a stranger, mentioning skiing and snowboarding to signal that she was the kind of mom worth listening to. She's still a little embarrassed thinking about it. Nadia brings in what she's been learning in her public health classes about unconscious bias, cultural competency, and why one size fits all thinking in medicine causes real harm. They get into pain scales, Spanish speaking patients, what it means to truly listen, and why in-person translators matter more than most people realize. There's also a funny detour involving Eric and a misheard medical diagnosis in Colombia, which ends up making a pretty solid point about how easily misunderstandings can happen when language gets in the way. Takeaways The way a patient dresses can say more about what they've had to survive in the system than what they're actually feeling that day Unconscious bias shows up in healthcare whether providers are aware of it or not, and awareness is only the first step Trying to perform credibility for a healthcare provider is exhausting, and it shouldn't be necessary A nine year old putting in contact lenses for the first time just needs someone patient, not someone with a point to prove Pain is personal and cultural, a 10 out of 10 doesn't mean the same thing for everyone The best providers use whatever time they have to actually listen Speaking a patient's language, literally or figuratively, changes the quality of care you can give In-person translators aren't a luxury, they're part of decent care Chapters 0:10 – 6:08 Ambulances, city noise, and growing up in a quiet suburb versus Boston 6:08 – 10:21 The Instagram post about a woman in heels, a dismissive surgeon, and what dressing up at the doctor might really mean 10:21 – 19:24 Alyssa's contact lens story where a cold fitter left them both feeling small and how she caught herself trying to prove she was worth listening to 19:24 – 24:18 What Nadia's public health classes have taught her about bias, cultural competency, and the gaps in how providers are trained 24:18 – 29:59 Pain scales, Spanish-speaking patients, and what it looks like when someone just needs to be heard 29:59 – 34:07 Colombia, Eric's misdiagnosis, and the case for in-person translators 34:07 – 37:23 Which languages would actually help, and finding your footing as a new provider when you can speak someone's language 650.701.7686 (o) 650.332.2739 (f) 510.673.8712 (m) Sports & Dance Rehab | Pilates | Group Classes On the Move Physical Therapy 501-D Old County Rd. Belmont, CA 94002 web - http://www.onthemovephysio.com email - alyssa@onthemovephysio.com IG - https://www.instagram.com/onthemovephysio

3. 

   26 Jun 2026

   Trusting the Process When Nothing Feels Certain

   This week Alyssa and Nadia are joined by Lucy Shepherd, a close friend of Nadia's from their Dialogue of Civilizations program in Spain, to talk about growing up in different countries, finding a career path, and figuring out what comes next after graduation. Lucy shares how she spent her childhood moving fromMaryland to Ecuador, then Peru and eventually seven years in Johannesburg, before landing in Boston for college. Along the way, that constant relocation shaped how she thinks about identity, belonging, and what it even means to call somewhere home. At Northeastern, Lucy started out undeclared, trying on economics, environmental science, and communications before finding her way to English and discovering she loved editing. She talks about what drew her to the field, how living abroad shaped her interest in stories that don't usually get told, and why she sees an editor's job as protecting a writer's voice rather than smoothing it away. The conversation feels timely for Nadia, who is heading into her own post grad questions soon. They talk about the job search, staying open instead of locking into one plan, and the side gigs and small steps that can carry someone through an uncertain stretch. They also get into what it's like not really having one fixed home base anymore, since her parents are in Istanbul now and her sister is out in California. And they talk about the places that have actually stuck with her, Peru especially. It's a grounded conversation about identity, ambition, and learning to trust that things will come together even when the path isn't clear yet. Takeaways Growing up abroad complicated Lucy's sense of what it means to be American, and honestly, it's still not fully resolved Being undeclared wasn't a setback, it gave her the room to actually find the right path A good editor protects a writer's voice instead of replacing it Living in so many different countries shaped her interest in stories that usually don't get told Post-grad uncertainty gets a lot easier to sit with when you stay open instead of forcing a decision Once her family scattered across different countries, home stopped being one fixed place Peru is so much more than Machu Picchu Careers tend to start with curiosity, not certainty Chapters 0:11 – 1:43 Meet Lucy and how she and Nadia met on their Dialogue of Civilizations trip in Spain 1:43 – 5:51 Lucy's childhood in Maryland, Ecuador, Peru and seven years in Johannesburg 5:51 – 8:54 Why Northeastern, choosing Boston over Santa Cruz and a co-op program she didn't even understand yet 8:54 – 11:46 Does Lucy feel American? Identity and belonging after growing up outside the US 11:46 – 16:00 From undeclared to English major, how Lucy found editing 16:00 – 19:21 What an editor actually does and why that matters in the age of AI 19:21 – 21:03 Amplifying voices that don't get heard, AAPI Month and using privilege well 21:03 – 24:22 Life after graduation, job hunting, side gigs and staying open 24:22 – 27:21 Where even is home now, parents in Istanbul, sister in Berkeley, lease ending in August 27:21 – 29:46 Lucy's favorite place she's lived, the case for Peru 29:46 – 30:50 Dream publications and wrapping up the interview 650.701.7686 (o) 650.332.2739 (f) 510.673.8712 (m) Sports & Dance Rehab | Pilates | Group Classes On the Move Physical Therapy 501-D Old County Rd. Belmont, CA 94002 web - http://www.onthemovephysio.com email - alyssa@onthemovephysio.com IG - https://www.instagram.com/onthemovephysio

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 66 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

90

Social presence

90

YouTube

0

Engagement

60

Contact Papaya Talk

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.