What She Does Podcast

What She Does Podcast

by Annie Sinzinger & Liane Starr
Careers
Season 1

Naming the Unknown: Forensic Genetic Genealogist Christine Burke on DNA & Identity

What does a forensic genetic genealogist do? Christine Burke uses DNA and family trees to name unidentified remains, solve cold cases, and give families answers. A former undercover officer, police detective, and the first female sergeant in her department, Christine discovered through a 2017 DNA test that she wasn't who she thought she was. It took her years to find her own answers. Now she helps police and courts find theirs. This episode covers: • What forensic genetic genealogy is, and how DNA works like a neighborhood canvas • Going undercover in a high school (and getting invited to prom) • Women in law enforcement: refusing an order to push women out of her department • Why she believes genetic genealogy belongs inside police departments, not for-profit labs • The 15,000+ unidentified remains cases still open in the U.S. • How to become a forensic genetic genealogist: skills, education, and career paths
S1 · E42
Oct 6, 2026
49:18

Start With The Dishes: Certified Sex Therapist Abby Neuberg on Desire and Midlife

Explicit
What does it really take to become a certified sex therapist? Abby Neuberg joins Liane and Annie to talk about her path from trauma work to sex therapy, the training behind the title, and the skills the job demands. This episode covers: How Abby went from trauma therapy to sex therapy What it takes to become a certified sex therapist Why sex addiction is often better understood as compulsivity Spontaneous vs. responsive desire, explained with a sink full of dishes How perimenopause can reshape identity and relationships in midlife The skills this work requires, and the business side no one mentions Content note: this episode includes frank conversation about sex and sexuality.
S1 · E41
Sep 29, 2026
49:02

Link by Link: Chainmail Jewelry Designer Vanessa Walilko on Patience, Tenacity, and the Work

Chainmail jewelry designer Vanessa Walilko has made armor for Broadway, WWE's Cody Rhodes, and a very niche art-fair crowd. In this episode, she shares how one cold DM led to five WrestleManias, why tenacity — not patience — is the real skill behind the work, and what two decades of hand-linking rings has done to her wrists. In this episode: • How a college metal-smithing class became an 18-year chainmail career • The cold DM that led to designing wrestling gear for Cody Rhodes • Why she works in aluminum instead of steel • The physical toll of building pieces by hand, ring by ring • Her advice to her younger, burned-out self
S1 · E40
Sep 22, 2026
42:05

Beyond the Bowl: Animal Nutritionist Dr. Angie Boyer on Human-Grade Pet Food

Dr. Angie Boyer is a multi-species animal nutritionist and founder of Grain & Grace Consulting. She breaks down what actually goes into the food we feed pets and livestock, why “complete and balanced” matters more than the format, and the real story behind the push for human-grade pet food. In this episode: • What an animal nutritionist actually does, across pets and livestock • Why “complete and balanced” matters more than kibble vs. fresh vs. raw • The real difference between human-grade and animal-grade food — and what's at stake • What it's like to raise livestock, and making peace with where that relationship ends • How to break into animal nutrition, with or without a PhD
S1 · E39
Sep 15, 2026
38:04

Rewiring Trauma: Psychotherapist Alexa Servodidio on EMDR & Healing

Licensed clinical social worker Alexa Servodidio opens up about trauma therapy, EMDR, and helping clients rebuild their sense of self. In this episode: • How a single field placement redirected her from law school to social work • What EMDR is and how bilateral stimulation reprocesses stuck trauma • The realities of crisis intervention, safety contracts, and staying safe as a therapist • A career-defining case that shows what long-term trauma recovery really looks like • Why demand for mental health care is outpacing the therapists who can meet it
S1 · E38
Sep 8, 2026
43:34

Best of Season One: 10 Career Conversations Worth Revisiting

We're taking a week off from new interviews to look back and catch you up if you're new here. This compilation pulls moments from 10 conversations across Season One: from Labor & Delivery Nurse Julia Parker, calm in the highest-stakes moments, to Wealth Advisor Heidi Foster, helping women rewrite their money mindset, to Daycare Owner Britt Riley, who built the childcare village she couldn't find anywhere else. Some of these are our most-downloaded episodes ever; others are recent conversations already climbing fast. Consider this your starting point — or your reminder of why you started listening in the first place.
S1 · E37
Sep 2, 2026
12:22

It's All About Chemistry: Pediatric Pharmacist Kitty Sum on Landing in Pediatrics

Kitty Sum is a pharmacist who chose medicine without the blood, needles, and procedures, and found her chemistry with pediatrics almost by accident. Kitty joins Liane and Annie to talk about why she chose the science and study of treatment over hands-on procedures, and how getting every dose exactly right is its own kind of chemistry, plus how landing in pediatrics almost by chance changed the way she parents her own child. This episode covers: ● How Kitty chose pharmacy over medical school and why avoiding needles led to her calling ● What a hospital clinical pharmacist actually does, versus a retail pharmacist ● Why every dose for a child is calculated by body weight, not a standard adult amount ● The hardest and most rewarding parts of working in the pediatric ICU ● How the job has changed the way she parents her own child ● Her advice for anyone considering pharmacy school Subscribe to our newsletter for more on the careers and stories behind the women we talk to.
S1 · E36
Aug 25, 2026
35:09

Laughing on Purpose: Laughter Yoga Teacher Cathy Nesbitt on the Science of Joy

Can your body tell real laughter from fake laughter? Laughter Yoga Teacher Cathy Nesbitt says it can't, and that's exactly the point behind laughing on purpose. She also shares how a 24-year worm-composting business led her to Laughter Yoga, and why she believes managing our own joy is one of the most underused tools we have. In this episode: • What Laughter Yoga actually is (and the myths it isn't) • Cathy's path from a 24-year worm-composting business to becoming a certified Laughter Ambassador • The real science behind why the body can't tell real laughter from fake • Where laughter yoga shows up: senior care, corporate wellness, cancer treatment, dating, and exam stress • What it takes to become a certified laughter yoga leader or teacher Subscribe to our newsletter for more on the careers and stories behind the women we talk to.
S1 · E35
Aug 18, 2026
35:08

The Business of 'Yes': Marriage Proposal Planner Ash Fox on the Art of the Perfect Proposal

Marriage proposal planner Ash Fox has orchestrated 3,000+ engagements in 15 years — and never once heard a "no." As founder of Ash Fox Proposals, she's helped orchestrate everything from private rooftop reveals with skyline views to a proposal staged inside a designer sample sale — and along the way, coached hundreds of men through one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. In this episode: • How Ash accidentally launched a job that didn't exist yet • Why New York City's chaos makes it one of the best (and hardest) places to propose • The psychology of letting him take the lead • What it actually takes to break into proposal planning • The secret to keeping a surprise secret for weeks Subscribe to our newsletter for more on the careers and stories behind the women we talk to.
S1 · E34
Aug 11, 2026
40:27

From Systems Engineer to Fashion Entrepreneur: Founder Steffy Simms on Designing Guava & Co.

Steffy Simms is a systems engineer and the founder of Guava & Co, a sustainable, Hawaiʻi-based resort wear brand — built out of late-night doodles during maternity leave. Also an Oʻahu physics teacher and robotics coordinator, Steffy joins Liane and Annie to talk about pivoting from engineering into entrepreneurship, why her son's eczema shaped Guava & Co's non-toxic materials, and how growing up immersed in Hawaiʻi's culture of environmental stewardship drives every design decision she makes. This episode covers: ● How a systems engineering background shapes running a sustainability-driven fashion brand ● Why AI is reshaping supply chain careers — and what that means for engineers today ● The real cost (and creative workarounds) of running a business from Hawaiʻi ● Building an inclusive, non-toxic, size-flexible resort wear line rooted in Pacific culture ● Balancing founder life, motherhood, and the shift from solo "doer" to CEO
S1 · E33
Aug 4, 2026
34:06
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