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The Shadow Sessions

The Shadow Sessions

Every 7 Seconds this Happens To A Girl

Sep 24, 2026 · 1 hr 15 min · 14 segments

What happens when the people who love you believe that harming you is an act of protection? In this episode of *The Shadow Sessions*, Hiba Balfaqih speaks with Hoda, who was seven years old when her…

What happens when the people who love you believe that harming you is an act of protection? In this episode of *The Shadow Sessions*, Hiba Balfaqih speaks with Hoda, who was seven years old when her family celebrated what she believed was a special occasion. Instead, she was subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM)—a practice that would leave lifelong physical and psychological consequences. This conversation goes beyond the procedure itself. It explores the complex reality of generational trauma, where mothers and grandmothers who endured the same experience continue the practice, believing they are protecting their daughters and preserving tradition. Hoda shares the lasting impact FGM has had on her health, relationships, fertility, and sense of self, while reflecting on what it means to reconcile love with profound harm. Together, Hiba and Hoda examine how cultural beliefs can normalize violence, why these cycles persist, and what it takes to challenge them. This episode is about tradition, trauma, resilience, and the courage to break a cycle that has shaped generations of women.

What happens when the people who love you believe that harming you is an act of protection? In this episode of *The Shadow Sessions*, Hiba Balfaqih speaks with Hoda, who was seven years old when her…

Speakers: HodaGuestHiba BalfaqihHost

Show signals: SuitabilitySensitiveBiasNot politicalAudience≈24k followers

Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube Amazon Music Website

Top entities: Female genital mutilation×60 Djibouti×6 Somalia×8 Mogadishu×6 Somaliland×4

The Scale of the FGM Crisis31:15 – 33:36

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:15

You are the cycle breaker.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:17

Yeah.

H

HodaGuest

31:17

Absolutely.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:18

And your sister is as well, for her children as well.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:23

But you guys came into this trauma cycle and you put a stop to it.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:27

And I think a lot of what you do today is helping other people break that cycle as well.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:31

When we're having this conversation, somebody around the world is listening to it, getting informed about this, because it's not talked about as much as it should be, as if it does not exist.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:42

But we know about 230 million girls and women have gone through this.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:47

That's a big number.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:48

Absolutely.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:48

And it's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:50

And it's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:50

It's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:51

And that is the data we have.

H

HodaGuest

31:53

We don't have the right data.

H

HodaGuest

31:55

When you look at each country, the data, like in England, in the UK, they will say 167,000 women has gone through.

H

HodaGuest

32:03

And I'm like, no.

H

HodaGuest

32:04

If you look at each community...

H

HodaGuest

32:06

It is more women who are survivors than the number you are giving us.

H

HodaGuest

32:11

So the number is going up and also there are about 30 million women and girls at risk every year around the world.

H

HodaGuest

32:18

So this is a pandemic that people don't want to talk about.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:21

Especially when things are related to tradition and culture, our brain is not ready to process this as anything other than good.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:30

You know, it's our culture.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:31

It's how we do things.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:32

We've always done things this way.

Female genital mutilationEntity
98%60 mentions
DjiboutiCountryCountry in East Africa
95%6 mentions
SomaliaCountryCountry in East Africa
92%8 mentions
MogadishuCityCapital of Somalia
89%6 mentions
SomalilandCountryState
86%4 mentions
United KingdomCountryCountry in Europe
83%4 mentions
ItalyCountryCountry in Europe
80%4 mentions
GodEntitySupreme being
77%6 mentions
menopauseEntity
73%1 mention
AudibleCompanyCompany
69%3 mentions
Robert A. JohnsonPersonAmerican author
69%3 mentions
in vitro fertilizationEntity
64%4 mentions
LondonCityCapital of England
61%6 mentions
EnglandCountryUK constituent country
58%3 mentions
United StatesCountryCountry in North America
55%5 mentions
ItalianLanguageSpoken language
52%2 mentions
EnglishEntitySpoken language
48%3 mentions
BuddhismEntityReligion
45%1 mention
MilanCityCity in Italy
42%3 mentions
ChristmasEntityFestival
39%1 mention
AfricaContinentContinent
36%2 mentions
ArabicLanguageSpoken language
33%1 mention
EuropeContinentContinent
30%1 mention
ColombiaCountryCountry in South America
27%1 mention
BarbadosCountryCountry in the Caribbean
23%1 mention
YouTubeWebsiteVideo sharing company
20%1 mention
Roe v. WadeEventCourt case
17%1 mention
Middle EastAdministrative AreaRegion
14%1 mention
New YorkCityCity in New York State
11%1 mention
KenyaCountryCountry in East Africa
8%1 mention
United NationsOrganizationIntergovernmental organization
5%1 mention
WhatsAppSoftware ApplicationWeb site
2%1 mention

Society
Childhood TraumaPsychology > Trauma
Female Genital MutilationEducation > Public Awareness > Health Education
Cultural SensitivityEducation > Public Awareness > Health Education > Female Genital Mutilation
Female Genital MutilationPolitics > Human Rights > Women's Rights > Legislation
Female Genital MutilationPsychology > Trauma > Childhood Trauma
Coping MechanismsPsychology > Trauma > Childhood Trauma > Female Genital Mutilation
CultureSociety
TraumaPsychology
Women's RightsPolitics > Human Rights
LegislationPolitics > Human Rights > Women's Rights
Female Genital MutilationSociety > Culture > Gender Issues > Women's Rights
Human RightsPolitics
Reproductive HealthHealth > Women's Health
Public AwarenessEducation
Psychological ImpactHealth > Women's Health > Reproductive Health > Female Genital Mutilation
Female Genital MutilationHealth > Women's Health > Reproductive Health
Gender IssuesSociety > Culture
Women's HealthHealth
Women's RightsSociety > Culture > Gender Issues
Health EducationEducation > Public Awareness
Politics
Health
Education
Psychology

The Scale of the FGM Crisis31:15 – 33:36

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:15

You are the cycle breaker.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:17

Yeah.

H

HodaGuest

31:17

Absolutely.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:18

And your sister is as well, for her children as well.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:23

But you guys came into this trauma cycle and you put a stop to it.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:27

And I think a lot of what you do today is helping other people break that cycle as well.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:31

When we're having this conversation, somebody around the world is listening to it, getting informed about this, because it's not talked about as much as it should be, as if it does not exist.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:42

But we know about 230 million girls and women have gone through this.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:47

That's a big number.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:48

Absolutely.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

31:48

And it's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:50

And it's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:50

It's going up.

H

HodaGuest

31:51

And that is the data we have.

H

HodaGuest

31:53

We don't have the right data.

H

HodaGuest

31:55

When you look at each country, the data, like in England, in the UK, they will say 167,000 women has gone through.

H

HodaGuest

32:03

And I'm like, no.

H

HodaGuest

32:04

If you look at each community...

H

HodaGuest

32:06

It is more women who are survivors than the number you are giving us.

H

HodaGuest

32:11

So the number is going up and also there are about 30 million women and girls at risk every year around the world.

H

HodaGuest

32:18

So this is a pandemic that people don't want to talk about.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:21

Especially when things are related to tradition and culture, our brain is not ready to process this as anything other than good.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:30

You know, it's our culture.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:31

It's how we do things.

H

Hiba BalfaqihHost

32:32

We've always done things this way.

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