5SR - December 1, 2023

Hitha on infertility, lead pipes, and teddy bears

Author

Hitha Palepu
December 01, 2023

Today’s curator is the founder of #5SmartReads, Hitha Palepu. She’s a consummate multihyphenate - CEO of Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals, author of WE’RE SPEAKING: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris and How to Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip, and professional speaker. Hitha is an unabashed fan of Taco Bell, Philadelphia sports teams & F1, romance novels, and is a mediocre crafter. She lives in NYC with her husband and two sons.

My friend Nisha is truly the brightest light, and her books are the ones I perpetually re-read - her characters feel like close friends, and she has a way of cultivating immense empathy and love and support in her books that the real world needs so much more of.

That she took the time to write these reflections on her infertility journey - and had the courage to hit publish and share it with the world…

I’m in awe of her. And while I can’t speak for Nisha, I know I have found it healing to share my own health journey (my hysterectomy, my bipolar diagnosis) shortly after going through them.

Nisha - I’m sending you all my love.

“A few social commentators saw teddy bears as ominous: They feared that some girls’ preference for soft animals over humanlike dolls would become all-consuming, replacing the female urge to nurture babies—and eventually lead to childless marriages. In 1907, the Rev. Michael G. Esper of Michigan warned his congregation that “the fad for supplanting the good old dolls of our childhood with the horrible monstrosity known as the teddy bear” would lead to falling birthrates.”

Other than knowing that the teddy bear got its name from the first President Roosevelt and via a hunting story that’s become legend, I didn’t know these cuddly toys were regarded as destructive forces against the “traditional” American family - back in the early 1900s!

I suppose it’s all just a bit of history repeating - just with a different icon.

Anyone else a sucker for a GRWM video?

They’re surprisingly labor-intensive to create (at least for me), but I really enjoy them and I’m apparently not alone.

“In a report released in August, YouTube said there were more than 6 billion views of videos titled with variations of “grwm” at that point in the year. On TikTok, videos with the hashtag “grwm” have been viewed more than 157 billion times.

Celebrities and “it girls” have hopped on the bandwagon, often to promote their brands or as part of Vogue’s “Beauty Secrets” series, which draws from the trend. In April, model Sofia Richie Grainge joined TikTok and posted a series of Get Ready with Me videos to offer fans an inside look into her wedding.”

I’m impressed with those who are able to create these videos with consistency and keep them engaging - I’ve found it difficult the few times I’ve tried, but I do really love the way we can blend the mundane with the personal and insightful.

This is a big deal.

There are still an estimated 9.2 million lead pipes still transporting water in the United States, which causes significant health issues for those drinking that water.

That a plan is in place to replace them all - in a comparatively short timeframe (though I wish it could be shorter) - is impactful and will make a significant difference in our country’s public health.

Had I miscarried today and lived in Texas, I truly feel that my life woud’ve been at risk:

I’m lucky. The women in Texas who face pregnancy complications or heartbreaking losses are not as lucky, due to Texas’ punitive abortion ban and bounty laws.

That’s one of the biggest issues with abortion bans, in my view. Miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, and pregnancy complication care fall under abortion services and the law’s language doesn’t discern between the two (and to craft language that does is challenging and restrictive in itself).

I firmly believe that the government has no role in this decision between a pregnant person and their provider. When I think about my own miscarriage, I am so heartened that I was able to get the two abortions I needed (the first to clear the products of conception, the second to correct the first) immediately and accessibly.

Every pregnant person should have the same experience. And it breaks my heart that they don’t.

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