A Collective Call For
Radical Honesty
Celebrities, influencers, and regular folks discuss the taboo topics they’re radically honest about in their own lives.
June 12, 2024
People lie about all sorts of things. Their age, their weight, their wealth, whether they’ve gotten lip filler, and who really pays their rent. We’re hesitant to talk about living with herpes, getting scammed by a scheme, or struggling with substance abuse. But shame thrives in silence, and sometimes, sharing just one truth can lead to the creation of a community.
For our first-ever special issue, PS is making a case for radical honesty around all types of taboo topics. While it might be scary to tell the truth, it ultimately shatters stigmas and stereotypes — and will help all of us feel a little better in the end.
At PS, we are committed to breaking down taboos, and we’re calling on all of you to help. We spoke to celebrities, experts, influencers, and each other about the things we wish everyone would start getting real about. So read on, fess up, and we promise to do the same.
A Collective Call For
Radical
Honesty
Honesty
Celebrities, influencers, and regular folks discuss the taboo topics they’re radically honest about in their own lives.
June 12, 2024
People lie about all sorts of things. Their age, their weight, their wealth, whether they’ve gotten lip filler, and who really pays their rent. We’re hesitant to talk about living with herpes, getting scammed by a scheme, or struggling with substance abuse. But shame thrives in silence, and sometimes, sharing just one truth can lead to the creation of a community.
For our first-ever special issue, PS is making a case for radical honesty around all types of taboo topics. While it might be scary to tell the truth, it ultimately shatters stigmas and stereotypes — and will help all of us feel a little better in the end.
At PS, we are committed to breaking down taboos, and we’re calling on all of you to help. We spoke to celebrities, experts, influencers, and each other about the things we wish everyone would start getting real about. So read on, fess up, and we promise to do the same.
Sex, Love,
& Dating
& Dating
From dating with herpes to feeling pressure to get married, relationships are complicated. These stories dive into the complexities.
Dating With an STI
“I had started dating again and I was tired of all the emotional labor of bringing it up in sexual and dating situations. There was a lot of relief for me in sharing it openly.”
Keep reading Ray’s story >PS on polyamory: The growing chorus of folks coming out proves that monogamy isn’t working for a lot of us.
Dating Only Within Your Race
“If you want a genuine, authentic relationship, I don’t think there’s a problem in wanting to be with someone who culturally matches you.”
Keep reading Alexis’s story >PS on catfishing: In our era of online dating, getting duped is basically a rite of passage — but the stories never get old, so keep telling ’em.
Aly Raisman on Being Single at 30
“It’s wonderful if you’ve found your soulmate by the age of 30, but why shouldn’t it be just as celebrated and hopeful to be single?”
Keep reading Aly’s story >Staying With an Abusive Partner
“There is an awful lot of shame surrounding this. It’s the reason so many people who have been abused are resistant to the healing work that comes with taking back our power. But that’s the reason I continue to tell my story.”
Keep reading Sarah’s story >Back to Top
Parenting
& Family
& Family
Blood may be thicker than water, but family dynamics are still only whispered about. Explore stories about surrogacy, estrangement, and more.
Hailey Orion on Dealing With Addiction in the Family
“I was like, ‘Why would you risk our safety for something like that?’ That was very confusing. But that’s also when I started understanding his journey.”
Keep reading Hailey’s story >PS on pregnancy loss: It’s hard enough to deal with the grief; we shouldn’t be discouraged from discussing it, too.
Chlöe on Overcoming Depression
“To have someone who saw what I was going through before I even saw it myself — that really helped pull me out of it. You have to get out of that stage of denial first.”
Keep reading Chlöe’s story >
Francesca Farago and Jesse Sullivan on IVF
“A queer couple doing IVF and being so public about it — I’ve never seen someone do that. I think it’s important for awareness and acceptance.”
Keep reading their story >Being a Surrogate
“We want to do this. Just because surrogates get paid, it doesn’t take away from what we are doing for the families.”
Keep reading Yessenia’s story >PS on the realities of parenting: Sharing your challenges or, gasp, regrets around having children doesn’t make you evil. It makes you human.
Back to Top
Money
& Career
& Career
We’re all told not to talk about money. These stories — about debt, working as a sugar baby, and more — flip the script.
Struggling to Overcome Student Debt
“I graduated with a bachelor’s degree from New York University in 2015. As it stands, I have $74,236 remaining in private loans and $21,525 in federal loans.”
Keep reading Kelsey’s story >Being a Sugar Baby
“I kind of just wanted the stuff I couldn’t afford: the shoes, the clothes.”
Keep reading Chanel’s story >PS on pyramid schemes: Anyone can fall for one. Talk about it so the next person doesn’t.
Mikayla Nogueira on Being Addicted to Work
“My OCPD is an obsession with perfectionism, and one of the biggest things that comes with that is an obsession with work.”
Keep reading Mikayla’s story >PS on trust funds: You don’t choose the money you’re born into, but what you do with it matters.
Back to Top
Health & Body Image
Weight-loss drugs, chronic pain, body shaming — they’re all conversation starters. But these stories make them personal.
PS on chronic illness: No more suffering silently. It’s OK to share, complain, scream, or cry about it — as much and as often as we need to.
Margaret Cho on Going Through Menopause
“I love menopause. I think it’s really the best thing and the best-kept secret. There’s so much mystery around it, and there’s not a sense of people wanting to embrace this time of life as being really vital and fruitful and exciting and alive.”
Keep reading Margaret’s story >PS on IBS: It isn’t TMI.
Being on Ozempic For Weight Loss
“I think there’s something to be said for being proud of how you handle your healthcare or your beauty or yourself as a human being. You don’t need to find any shame in that.”
Keep reading Shanda’s story >PS on plastic surgery: It’s your body and your mind. You’re free to change both anytime you want to.
Emma Brooks on Taking Meds For Mental Health
“It is very vulnerable to share my own journey, and sometimes I get kind of insecure after the fact. But I also try to remind myself that it is something that’s way more common than people talk about.”
Keep reading Emma’s story >
Jordan Chiles on Dealing With Body Shaming
“When I was younger, I didn’t really know I was getting body shamed. . . . But now that I look back, that’s trauma.”
Keep reading Jordan’s story >
Ilana Glazer on Dealing With Chronic Pain
“I was on a long and winding road to find my way to health, which included experiences with medical misogyny and being misdiagnosed and being told it was my fault for having sex when I was an older teenager.”
Keep reading Ilana’s story >Back to Top
Vices
There’s still a lot of shame around addiction. These stories prove that talking about it can only help.
Getting Sober in Your 20s
“I think people expected something like this to happen to me. So instead of letting people talk about, ‘Oh, she’s been to jail, she’s been to rehab,’ I talked about it.”
Keep reading Kenzie’s story >Using Cannabis While Working
“I would never give cannabis credit for my creative process, but it is a brilliant amplifier for me.”
Keep reading Kim’s story >PS on cigarettes: There’s no shame in smoking — but there’s also no shame in asking your doctor, friends, and family to help you kick the habit.
Overcoming a Gambling Addiction
“I knew I needed women’s support; I knew there were other women who had gone through this, because I remember sitting there at the machine, looking to either side, and I was surrounded by women.”
Keep reading Christina’s story >Back to Top
Credits
Editors
Lena Felton, Nancy Einhart, Yerin Kim
Copy Editor
Bryan Brandom
Editorial Production
Karen Snyder Duke, Whitney Moore, Allison Ingrum
Illustrator
Kim Salt
Creative Director
Jae Payne
Art Director
Patricia O’Connor
