Harvesting Happiness

Advanced Mental Health and Alternatives to the Medication Merry-Go-Round with Gregory Scott Brown MD & David Feifel MD

A study by the National Institute of Health found an estimated 21 million adults in the United States had at least one major depressive episode in 2020. Beyond the sheer number of people
affected, what makes these findings astounding is the limited number of treatment options available for those who reach out for help. To gain perspective into the issue and discover why many suffering from clinical depression don’t reach out for help, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors experts about advanced mental health and alternatives to the medical merry-go-round. Integrative Psychiatrist Dr. Gregory S. Brown shares the Five Pillars of Self-Care from his book, The Self-Healing Mind: An Essential Five-Step Practice for Overcoming Anxiety and Depression and Revitalizing Your Life. The founding director of the UCSD Adult ADHD program, the UCSD Transcranial
Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) program, and the Center for Advanced Treatment of Mood and Anxiety Disorders, Dr. David
Feifel shares some breakthrough treatments for treating depression.

Mental Immunity: For the Passionately Ignorant and Willfully Disinformed with Andy Norman PhD & Renata Salecl PhD

What is true is not always what some choose to believe. There are some people who subscribe to the ignorance is bliss philosophy and others have difficulty discerning which information is born in conspiracy or in science. To gain a better understanding of those who wish to remain passionately ignorant and willfully disinformed, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors who specialize in the science of the mind. In Andy Norman’s book, Mental Immunity: Infectious Ideas, Mind Parasites, and the Search for a Better Way to Think, he examines what makes some groups more susceptible to mind ‘bugs’ and mental hijacking. His cognitive hygiene concept offers mental immunity to those who prefer to think rationally and want to protect themselves from conspiracy theories. Sociologist Renata Salecl shares the core theme of her book, Passion for Ignorance: What We Choose Not to Know and Why. Her research studies why in this modern age of big data, genetics, and neuroscience people still choose to be ignorant about things that affect them and their health.

Medical Journeys: Kinder Doctors and Resilient Patients with Adam Stern MD & David Richman

A staggering statistic of today’s medical care is that in the average doctor-patient interaction, the doctor interrupts the patient within 18 seconds. This quick interruption offers very little time for a connection to be formed between a doctor and their patient. This transactional approach hinders the clinicians’ ability to provide solutions to patients who may not feel as if they were unable to express their true needs. To discover the steps being taken to raise the bedside manner bar, Positive Psychology
Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors about medical journeys, kinder doctors, and resilient patients. Dr. Adam Stern is a psychiatrist and author of Committed: Dispatches from
a Psychiatrist in Training . He is back on the program to share how he teaches the softer side of medicine to doctors in training and the therapeutic power of listening. David Richman is an author,
public speaker, and endurance athlete who interviewed hundreds of people about their medical journey and the impact of cancer on their lives. His book, Cycle of Lives: 15 People's Stories, 5,000
Miles, and a Journey Through the Emotional Chaos of Cancer shares those stories and offers insights into how caregivers can find relief from the pressure of compassion.

Brain Boosting: The Art of Mental Muscle-Toning with Elaine Fox PhD, Amit Goswami PhD & Valentina R Onisor MD

There are many facets of the human experience we have yet to fully comprehend. While we have mapped out the systems and attributes of our physical bodies, very little is understood about
the intuitive and spiritual aspects of our complex selves. Quantum physics offers us a glimpse into our connection with the universe. To help us navigate the widely uncharted territory of the ethereal, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with
three authors who write about mental agility, mental hygiene, and spiritual practice. Elaine Fox is the Head of the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide, Australia, and the author
of Switch Craft: The Hidden Power of Mental Agility. She describes the concept of Switch Crafting and how to increase longevity and satisfaction in life. Quantum Physicist, Amit Goswami, and Valentina Onisor, a pioneer of quantum integrated medicine discuss the essence of the book they co-authored,
The Quantum Brain: Understand, Rewire, and Optimize Your Brain. They also
explain the role of the chakras and preconscious in determining health and happiness.

The Virtues of Love and Morality with Dr Stephen G. Post & Phil Zuckerman PhD

What navigates your internal moral compass? Do you subscribe to a religion or belief in supernatural power to guide you? Or do you allow innate love, compassion, and empathy to steer you toward a better earthly experience for all? To examine the moral weight of religious obedience, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two professors about their books that address the virtues of love and morality. Prolific author Dr. Stephen G. Post discusses the virtue of love and unpacks the Eight Pathways of Positive Achievement and Goodness from his book,
Give and Live Better. Executive Director of the Humanist Global Charity, Phil Zuckerman explains the virtue of morality and the research behind his book, What it Means to be Moral: Why
Religion is Not Necessary for Living an Ethical Life.

Our Field of Dreams: Reimagining the Future with Karen Cerulo, Janet Ruane & Michael Clinton

From the famous ‘I have a dream’ speech by Martin Luther King to referring to America as the land of dreams, society often guides us toward creating a dream, or aspiration, to attain. Studies show that those dreams may change over time due to age, race, gender, and societal factors. To get the low down on higher intentions, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with three authors about what we dream of and why we have longer to acquire our aspirations. Co-authors Karen Cerulo and Janet Ruane share the findings from their book, Dreams of a Lifetime: How We Imagine Our Future and discuss how dreams differ based on a person’s lot in life. Former president and publishing director of Hearst Magazines, Michael Clinton shares statistics gleaned from his research while writing his inspirational book, Roar: into the second half of your life (before it's too late). Micheal contends that life after 50 is the perfect time to expand our horizons and nurture and develop what is important to us.

The Secrets of Good-Enoughness and The Good Life with Professors Andreas Elpidoru & Avram Alpert

There is a wide gap between feeling not enough and good enough. The secret to feeling good enough is using boredom and frustration to propel us forward toward achieving our goals. We become frustrated when we face obstacles to getting things we care about and it forces us to try another way of something new. By embracing our imperfections, and relinquishing our need to be right, we can all lead a good-enough life. To discover how to use our emotions in a way that creates a greater good for ourselves and our community, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two professors and authors about how to live a good life. The author of Propelled: How Boredom, Frustration, and Anticipation Lead Us to the Good Life, Professor Andreas Elpidorou describes how boredom and frustration are often misinterpreted and can be real opportunities for improving life experiences. And, the author of The Good-Enough Life, Professor Avram Alpert shares his secrets for good-enoughness and how being a part of the social construct offers a greater good for all.

Traumatic Legacies: Reconciling Our Emotional Baggage with Galit Atlas PhD & Elizabeth Rosner

Even though humans grasp the double-helix-shaped chain of our DNA strands, very little is understood about the information that is passed down from generation to generation. Physical attributes can be decisively attributed to the traits of our ancestors but what
about the memories, and traumas that make up our emotional inheritance? To discover the ways emotional inheritance can nurture us, and cause grief, secrets, and confusion, Positive
Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two female authors about their findings about the legacy of trauma. Galit Atlas is a psychoanalyst whose book, Emotional Inheritance:
A Therapist, Her Patients, and the Legacy of Trauma, explores how multigenerational trauma is held in our minds and body. Author of the bestselling, Survivor Cafe: The Legacy of Trauma and the Labyrinth of Memory, Elizabeth Rosner reveals the importance of unearthing the path, and atrocities of our ancestors so we may move into the healing phase.

Urban Alchemy: Restoring Joy in Our Cities with Majora Carter & Molly Rose Kauffman

With many US cities falling into disrepair following the pandemic,
business downturns, and brain drains, the term ‘Hometown Proud’ has become almost non-existent. Young talent looks elsewhere for opportunities to make their mark leaving once vibrant towns
uncared for. What will it take to empower inhabitants to restore our beautiful cities and rekindle once thriving communities? To merge architecture, positive psychology, and what it means to create a better and just life for all, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two women who invest their home and work life into their communities. Majora Carter is a real estate developer, urban revitalization strategist, and author who strives to inject joy back into the South Bronx and other established communities like it. She shares key concepts from her book, Reclaiming Your Community: You Don’t Have to Move Out of
Your Neighborhood to Live in a Better One, and her strategies for getting residents to reinvest in their communities. Molly Rose Kauffman is the co-founder of the University of Orange, a free people’s university centered in Orange, New Jersey. She describes the major strides the university is taking to reignite people’s passion for enlivening public spaces and further enriching the existing culture.

Meaning-Making: Loss, Love, and Life Lessons with Susan Lax & Barbara Becker

Most people in our society celebrate life once a year with lavish birthday parties, happy songs, and sweet gatherings. But, when it comes to bereavement, grief, death, and loss we tend to tiptoe around the subjects. If we followed the philosophy of our ancestors we would appreciate life more by having meaningful conversations about our mortality. To traverse the normally taboo territory of loss, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors who have written about life, death and loss in their newest books. In her book, A Heart's Landscape: An Invitation to the Garden of Moments, Susan Lax shares a collection of her morning inspirations. She explores how we all experience grief differently and how being a greater part of a loved one's death offers us a greater life experience. Barbara Becker studied with Zen monks to learn more about life, death, and dying. During the publishing of her book, Heartwood, in which she shares stories from her time as a hospice volunteer, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.