Overview
Named 2025 Ambies© Podcast of the Year, Hysterical investigates a mysterious illness that spreads among a group of high school girls in upstate New York. What is causing their sudden, often violent symptoms? Is there something in the water or inside the school? Or is it “all in their head?” The series examines the outbreak in LeRoy, NY, believed by some to be the most severe case of mass hysteria since the Salem Witch Trials. In his search for answers, Dan Taberski (9/12, Missing Richard Simmons, Running from Cops) explores other seemingly inexplicable events of the last few years – CIA officers being crippled with nausea and vertigo; cops OD'ing from exposure to fentanyl – and discovers they’re far more connected than we realize.
From Wondery and Pineapple Street Studios, this 7-part series forces us to grapple with the mysteries of our own minds, and reckon with a contagion that we thought was long dead, but may be the defining disorder of our time.
Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of Hysterical ad-free right now. Join Audible today by downloading the Audible app.
11 Episodes
Is what’s happening on OnlyFans real? Or is it only a fantasy?In this provocative investigation into OnlyFans—the adult platform where subscribers around the world spent more than $7 billion in 2024—journalist Leon Neyfakh teams up with comedian and OnlyFans creator Gracie Canaan for a one-of-a-kind exploration into the current state of human connection. Throughout, they discover that the site originally built for spicy adult content has quietly and surprisingly become something more complicated— an emotional marketplace where desire, performance, care, fantasy, and vulnerability seemingly blur together.As Neyfakh and Canaan navigate timely questions about autonomy, performance, and profit, a question emerges: is connection mediated by a screen still authentic? To find the answer, they meet creators building lucrative businesses, subscribers who believe they’ve found something real, professional “chatters” who are paid to simulate affection, and pioneers who have helped engineer intimacy at scale.Captivating and tender, OnlyFantasy is ultimately about the cost of loneliness, the seductive power of desire, and how the rules of human intimacy are being rewritten online.Listen to OnlyFantasy wherever you get your podcasts. Or binge all episodes of OnlyFantasy ad-free right now on Audible. Start your Audible subscription in the Audible App or on Apple Podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 21 May 2026
Have you ever wondered exactly how your favorite movie or book –– or podcast, TV series, documentary, or article –– got made? Origin Stories has you covered. Each week, veteran journalist Matthew Shaer talks to a different writer or director about the creation of a work close to their own hearts (and ours). Nothing is off the table: not the frustrations and the joys, not the setbacks and the successes. Intimate and incisive, instructive and eye-opening, Origin Stories is the ultimate podcast for anyone curious about the workings of the creative mind. Among the early guests are Noah Hawley, creator of the new Alien show on FX; John Hoffman, co-creator of Only Murders in the Building, and memoirist Stephanie Foo. Hosted by Matthew Shaer, co-founder of Campside Media.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 11 September 2025
On Hysterical, you heard how the mind has the power to cause physical symptoms in the body, opening the door to terrifying possibilities. But what happens when the body revolts first? Dive into the unknown mysteries of the body with MrBallen. MrBallen’s Medical Mysteries delivers horror stories that are clinically proven to get under your skin. From bizarre, unheard-of diseases and miraculous recoveries to strange medical mishaps and unexplainable deaths, your blood is sure to run cold in this unique collaboration between MrBallen and Wondery.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 27 August 2024
In the series finale, a mysterious doctor travels to LeRoy with a new, controversial diagnosis. But is it the right one? As the girls improve and the chaos of the outbreak fades away, we hear from the people impacted and find out that while something truly scary happened in LeRoy, it was also truly remarkable.Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting https://wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 26 August 2024
The investigation widens to explore two more recent outbreaks. What does a mass-poisoning across girls’ schools in Iran, and a national epidemic of fentanyl overdoses amongst American law enforcement have in common? The answer reveals deeper truths about the outbreak in LeRoy.Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting https://wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 19 August 2024
The mystery illness in LeRoy has a new victim: a boy. Across the world, curiously similar patterns emerge in a more recent outbreak affecting hundreds of CIA officers and diplomats. Could the cases be more connected than they appear?Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting https://wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 12 August 2024
An anonymous tipster slides an envelope under a parent’s door with a shocking revelation: a toxic train derailment from the 1970s may be contaminating the water in LeRoy. Environmental activist Erin Brockovich sends her team to investigate.Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 29 July 2024
The illness spreads from high schoolers to a 36-year-old nurse and mother. Meanwhile, a teen girl gets a diagnosis in front of a live studio audience… from a former contestant of the Bachelor.Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 25 July 2024
With more than a dozen girls now afflicted with the mystery illness in LeRoy, parents are scared and demanding answers. Chaos erupts when state health officials hold a town meeting, but won’t reveal their findings. When a parent lets the diagnosis slip, it will leave the whole town doubting their doctors, neighbors, and even their own minds.Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 22 July 2024
In the fall of 2011, a high school girl in LeRoy, New York falls ill: spasms, outbursts, and uncontrollably violent movements. As the mysterious illness spreads throughout the school, a young doctor attempts to connect the dots. Is there an external pathogen? Or is what’s happening in LeRoy something far more mysterious?Listen to Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/hysterical/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 22 July 2024
Hysterical investigates a mysterious illness that spreads among a group of high school girls in upstate New York. What is causing their sudden, often violent symptoms? Is there something in the water or inside the school? Or is it “all in their head?” The series examines the outbreak in LeRoy, NY, believed by some to be the most severe case of mass hysteria since the Salem Witch Trials. In his search for answers, Dan Taberski (9/12, Missing Richard Simmons, Running from Cops) explores other seemingly inexplicable events of the last few years – CIA officers being crippled with nausea and vertigo; cops OD'ing from exposure to fentanyl – and discovers they’re far more connected than we realize. From Wondery and Pineapple Street Studios, this 7-part series forces us to grapple with the mysteries of our own minds, and reckon with a contagion that we thought was long dead, but may be the defining disorder of our time. Follow Hysterical on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of Hysterical early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribed - Published: 26 June 2024
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Audible | Pineapple Street Studios, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.