The ManFlu | Exploring Gender Dynamics, Partnerships & Raising Boys Who Care artwork

Relationships · Lucy McAfee

The ManFlu | Exploring Gender Dynamics, Partnerships & Raising Boys Who Care

by Lucy McAfee

You’ve heard of the “ManFlu” — that mysterious illness that somehow hits men way harder than any woman could ever fathom. Well, we’re not handing out tissues. We’re here to talk about the real stuff underneath it: the disconnection, the imbalance, and how we can start to change it. The ManFlu is a metaphor we use to dig into something deeper: the cultural scripts, gender roles, and unspoken rules that keep men sidelined and leave women carrying more than their share of the mental and emotional load. Host Lucy McAfee has spent years studying how gender dynamics play out at home. As a wife and boy mom, she’s still working them out in her own family. Each week, The ManFlu brings together researchers, thinkers, and families themselves to explore emotional labor, modern partnerships, and how we raise more connected boys. Together, we examine why these patterns persist, how they affect families, and the practical shifts that build stronger partnerships today and help break old patterns for the next generation. You’ll leave each episode not just nodding along, but equipped with one small shift you can try at home. Join us to lighten the load and build a future where women and men can both show up as their whole selves. New episodes drop every Wednesday, follow the show so you don’t miss one. And share it with your friends, because no one should have to face the ManFlu epidemic alone. Follow Lucy on Instagram @lucypmcafee for more on gender dynamics, mental and emotional load, and raising boys who care. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Latest episodes

Showing 10 · updated from the feed

The Manosphere and Our Boys: What It's Teaching Them, What We Can Do

The Manosphere doesn't need boys to go looking for it. Researchers who set up TikTok and YouTube accounts posing as teenage boys found it reached their feeds within 26 mi

Sep 16
30 min

You Can't Do It All: Five Years Straight of Breastfeeding and the Reckoning at Home | Victoria Tice

Some women carry the mental load in marriage so quietly that even their own husbands don't see it happening. Host Lucy McAfee sits down with Victoria Tice, a copywriter

Sep 9
41 min

“You’re Just a Housewife”: Recognizing the Value of Making a House a Home | Lori Sugarman-Li

What is a life spent caring for a family worth? Our guest learned an insurer's answer the day it reduced hers to three words: just a housewife. The work of making a house

Sep 2
48 min

"Did I Agree to This Rule?": Ditching Impossible Standards for Working Parents | Jess Weisz

Do you ever get to the end of the day, a day where you genuinely never stopped moving, and still feel like you somehow failed? That feeling usually isn't proof that you f

Aug 26
42 min

That Village Everyone Talks About: How to Actually Build Yours | Jessica Hill

Everyone tells new parents it takes a village. Nobody mentions that making mom friends as an adult is genuinely hard and can feel more like dating: is it weird to ask for

Aug 19
44 min

Before We Lose Their Attention: Raising Boys in a World of Screens | Julie Messer

Connection isn't something boys lack. It's something that gets nurtured, at the dinner table, on the drive home, in all the small moments in between. And right now, scree

Aug 12
48 min

He Googled 'How to Be a Great Husband': Now He's the Expert Your Marriage Needs | Brian Page

Our guest today irons his wife's clothes before putting them away, not because she asked, but because he understands that protecting her time is part of what providing me

Aug 5
44 min

Don't Let Go First: Friendship, Motherhood, and Raising Boys | Sarah Koopmann

There's a specific grief a lot of boy moms feel but isn't often said out loud. It's one Sarah Koopmann and Lucy McAfee both know well, and after years of Lucy turning to

Aug 5
42 min

A Case of the ManFlu: Women Carrying It All, Men Missing Out

When boys grow up in a world where caring isn't expected of them, they become men who don't realize what they're missing. In the first episode of The ManFlu, host Lucy M

Aug 5
17 min

The ManFlu - Trailer

You’ve heard of the “ManFlu” — that mysterious illness that somehow hits men way harder than any woman could ever fathom. Well, we’re not handing out tissues. We’re here

Jul 22
1 min

Chart trend

Position in the Relationships chart (US), last 90 days.

#1
all-time peak
41
days in the top 3 since Aug 2026

Chart positions

Where The ManFlu | Exploring Gender Dynamics, Partnerships & Raising Boys Who Care ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 20, 2026).

#3 ▼ 2 Relationships US
#20 ▼ 5 Society & Culture US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

This show is so relatable and the topics are so needed. Love the host's laid back personality paired with the intelligent commentary and guest's expertise. Such helpful and relevant content for real life.

MandyConroy · Aug 2026

I really appreciate Lucy and her guest’s honest takes on tough topics and practical tips to try at home. Now I’m working on getting my husband to listen :)

Haley2292 · Aug 2026

Such a thoughtful discussion of things so many of us grapple with, discuss and commiserate among friends but with no real resolution. Whether new to parenting, boy mom, girl mom or both, this really resonates. It’s great to have relatable voices paired with research and guests who specialize in these topics to make it make sense and help provide small and big ways we can acknowledge and try to make improvements without judgement or blame! Looking forward to the rest of the season!

Cupcake C C · Aug 2026

Genuinely balanced discussion on a topic that can easily slip into an unproductive realm. Loved the range of perspectives offered and interested to keep listening! Thanks, Lucy!

303Sarah · Aug 2026

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.

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About The ManFlu | Exploring Gender Dynamics, Partnerships & Raising Boys Who Care on Reason.fm

Here you find the Apple Podcasts chart positions of The ManFlu | Exploring Gender Dynamics, Partnerships & Raising Boys Who Care, its latest episodes to listen to directly, and reviews from listeners. Rankings are updated daily for the United States.

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