“We want to inform everyone. We, we want to give them the most information that we can so people will want to come forward.”

In honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we’re breaking down what actually happens if someone considers reporting sexual assault — and the support available at every step.

In this episode, we’re joined by Kathleen Baer, Assistant Commissioner for the NYPD’s new Gender Based Violence Policy and Planning Unit.

Together, we unpack:

🔹 What an investigation really looks like

🔹 What a forensic exam involves

🔹 Options like delaying a report, and why that choice matters

This conversation centers one thing: survivors deserve agency, clarity, and support.

Whether you’re looking for information, resources, or just want to better understand the options — this episode is here for you.

🎧 Stay tuned for Part 2.

⚠️ Activation Warning: This episode discusses sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and trauma. Please take care while listening. NYU students can reach out to the Wellness Exchange at 212-443-9999 or via the Wellness Exchange app.

Resources:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233
• National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673
• NYC HOPE Hotline (people who have experienced sexual assault, intimate partner violence, domestic violence, trafficking, etc): 1-800-621-HOPE (4673)

For more resources on this topic please check out our website ⁠⁠Good Sex @NYU⁠⁠

Thanks for listening!

What does it really take to balance athletics, academics, and life beyond sports?

In the final part of this three-part series, the conversation continues to shift as they talk about the realities of managing life as a student-athlete, both during competition and after the final season ends.

From traveling for games and managing demanding schedules to maintaining a social life and preparing for life after sport, student-athletes often juggle far more than what happens on the field or court.

In this episode, the group explores:

• How student-athletes manage demanding academic schedules alongside practices and travel• The role of discipline, time management, and team support in balancing responsibilities• Why developing identities outside of athletics can be critical for long-term wellbeing• The emotional transition athletes experience when injury, graduation, or retirement ends a season or career• How the lessons learned through sports like resilience, coping with failure, and teamwork carry into life beyond athletics• The resources available to support student-athletes’ wellbeing, academics, and career development

The conversation highlights both the challenges and the lifelong strengths that come from competing at a high level and how the lessons learned in sports can shape the way athletes navigate life long after the game ends.

Athletes practice failure every day and through it, they learn how to succeed.

For more resources check out our website at ⁠⁠Good Sex @NYU

Listen now!

Need mental health support? Call NYU’s Wellness Exchange at (212) 443-9999, available 24/7.

What happens when athletic performance is constantly visible — not just on the scoreboard, but across social media?

In Part 2 of this three-part series, Danielle Elleman continues the conversation with NYU athletics leader, former athletes, and current NCAA champion about how visibility and social media shape the student-athlete experience.

Today’s athletes compete in an environment where performances, statistics, and commentary are often publicly visible, and widely shared. We explore how that visibility can amplify pressure, fuel perfectionism, and sometimes make it harder for athletes to ask for help.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The “push through it” mindset that is common in sports culture

• The growing role of mental performance coaching in athletics

• How teammates and staff help shape team cultures that support mental health

• How athletes navigate expectations while protecting their wellbeing

For more resources check out our website at ⁠Good Sex @NYU

What does it really mean to be a student-athlete?

Balancing academics and competition can bring incredible growth, but also real pressure.

In Part 1 of this three-part series, Danielle Elleman sits down with NYU Assistant Athletic Director (and former NYU soccer coach and Seton Hall soccer player) Michele Canning, mental health counseling intern and former NYU soccer player Maddie Schier, and current NCAA Division III national champion Serenity McNair to talk about the realities of student-athlete life.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• How sports create an instant community and support network at a large university

• Why athletics is often described as a “microcosm of life”

• The perfectionism and stigma athletes can face around asking for help

• The unique pressure of maintaining a 75+ game winning streak

• How coaches shape team culture and support mental health

• Why many coaches emphasize process over outcome, even when the world focuses on winning

• How the transfer portal is changing team dynamics and recruitment

• How success can bring both exhilaration and a new level of visibility for athletes

This episode explores the space where performance, identity, and growth collide, and what student-athletes learn about resilience, pressure, and teamwork along the way.

For more resources check out our website at Good Sex @NYU

In Part 2 of Good Anxiety, neuroscientist Dr. Wendy Suzuki explores how to work with anxiety and train your brain for joy.

Why does your brain cling to stress? How can sleep, movement, and social connection improve mood, focus, and emotional regulation?

Dr. Suzuki introduces joy conditioning, a neuroscience-based practice that helps rewire the brain by intentionally strengthening positive memories. She also explains the “garbage truck” brain metaphor and why sleep and recovery are essential for mental clarity and resilience.

Instead of eliminating anxiety, learn how to harness it and build small, realistic habits that support calm, connection, and lasting wellbeing.

✨ Good anxiety shows us what matters.✨ Joy conditioning helps us hold onto it.

Having difficulty managing your anxiety or other mental health concerns? Call NYU’s Wellness Exchange at (212) 443-9999, available 24/7 or 988 nationwide for non-NYU listeners.

For more resources check out Good Sex @NYU website: https://www.nyu.edu/students/wellbeing/wellbeing-initiatives/health-education/sexual-respect-and-healthy-relationships/good-sex-at-nyu.html

In Part 1 of Good Anxiety: Why Your Brain Needs a Bubble Bath, neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki joins Good Sex at NYU to rethink anxiety—not as something to eliminate, but something you can work with.

Dr. Wendy Suzuki isn’t just studying the brain—she’s lived this work. She shares personal moments that shaped her research, from exercise and memory to grief and resilience, bringing neuroscience out of the lab and into real life.

Join Dr. Suzuki—NYU Professor of Neuroscience, Dean of the College of Arts & Science, and author of Healthy Brain, Happy Life and Good Anxiety—as she breaks down:

• the difference between “good” vs. “bad” anxiety

• how stress shows up in the brain and body

• why movement, breath, and presence are some of the most powerful tools for mental wellbeing

🎧 Tune in—and start building a better relationship with anxiety!

What happens when technology is used to cause harm — and how can people protect themselves?

In Part 2 of this conversation, Good Sex at NYU continues its discussion with experts from the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence, focusing on laws, accountability, and real-world steps for safety when it comes to technology-facilitated gender-based violence.

This episode explores:

• How existing New York State laws apply to digital abuse, stalking, harassment, and coercion

• Recent updates to laws addressing non-consensual intimate images, including AI-generated deepfakes

• The federal Take It Down Act and what it means for removing harmful content online

• Why law enforcement responses can vary — and how advocacy and specialized cyber units can help

• What to do if you’re experiencing sextortion, cyberstalking, or image-based abuse

• Practical steps students can take to protect their digital footprint, privacy, and location data

• Why accountability, peer intervention, and education matter in preventing harm

• Resources available for NYU students and the broader community

This episode emphasizes that online harm is real harm — and that support, legal tools, and prevention strategies do exist.

⚠️ Activation Warning: This episode discusses sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and trauma. Please take care while listening. NYU students can reach out to the Wellness Exchange at 212-443-9999 or via the Wellness Exchange app.

Resources:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233

• National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673

• NYC HOPE Hotline (people who have experienced sexual assault, intimate partner violence, domestic violence, trafficking, etc): 1-800-621-HOPE (4673)

  
  

  For more resources on this topic please check out our website ⁠Good Sex @NYU⁠

Technology is woven into nearly every part of modern dating and relationships — but it can also be used to exert power and control.

In Part 1 of this conversation, Good Sex at NYU is joined by experts from the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence to break down what technology-facilitated gender-based violence actually is, why it’s becoming more common, and how it shows up in students’ lives.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What “technology-facilitated gender-based violence” means — and why it’s used as an umbrella term

• How digital abuse can occur both inside and outside of intimate relationships

• Why AI-driven harm like deepfake images and sextortion is increasing

• How cyberstalking happens through social media, apps, and location sharing

• Why everyday tools like phones, delivery apps, and smart devices matter in conversations about safety

This episode lays the foundation for understanding digital harm — before diving deeper into warning signs, protection, and resources in Part 2.

⚠️ Activation Warning: This episode discusses sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and trauma. Please take care while listening. NYU students can reach out to the Wellness Exchange at 212-443-9999 or via the Wellness Exchange app.

Resources:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233

• National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673

• NYC HOPE Hotline (people who have experienced sexual assault, intimate partner violence, domestic violence, trafficking, etc): 1-800-621-HOPE (4673)

  
  

  For more resources on this topic please check out our website Good Sex @NYU