• Motto

This Video Perfectly Captures the Struggle That Is Being Asked ‘Are You Having Kids?’

2 minute read

Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by the question, “Having kids?” Women are asked this at a vexing frequency—and the first episode of a powerful new variety show about mental health tackles this issue.

The series, called “You’re Not Crazy” and produced by VProud, launches today in celebration of Women’s History Month. It features an all-female cast, including many comedians. In each episode, they perform standup and also participate in a roundtable discussion with VProud founder Karen Cahn, among other women.

“We hired comedians that were vocal about mental-health issues in their routines and their standup,” says Cahn. “We basically said to the comedians, ‘Do standup on family, kids, relationship problems, dating, anxiety, depression—and just go. We didn’t guide them at all beyond that. And so what was interesting was the whole notion of, ‘Are you having kids?’ really just bubbled up as a very hot topic.”

Future episodes, which will roll out on a weekly basis, cover topics like sexual anxiety, impostor syndrome, and depression.

“I think shame is a very pervasive and powerful theme that women think about and deal with,” says Cahn. “The idea that a woman may not want kids—it’s been taught to us as such a shameful and unnatural thought, when really there is a growing group of women who just don’t want kids or they may not know if they want kids. … So this idea of shame was sort of the guiding principle throughout all of the shows.”

The above clip is made up of footage shared exclusively with Motto. To view the whole episode, visit vproud.tv or watch it here:

And check back each Wednesday for more “You’re Not Crazy” clips you’ll only see on Motto.

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Write to Robin Hilmantel at robin.hilmantel@time.com