Harvesting Happiness

Listener Favorite Returns: Transforming Suffering to Freedom: Gain Greater Resilience with Dr Elizabeth Stanley & Blake D. Bauer

When we are children, unbeknownst to us, neural pathways are
being wired together in our brains. This neural-biological wiring
colors all our future decisions, how we deal with stress and
trauma, and our level of contentment. If we experienced trauma
as children, shifting how we interact with the world is not always
easy. To discover strategies and concepts that help us heal,
Positive Psychology Podcast Host, Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with
two authors who have their own personal, transformational
journeys. Dr. Elizabeth Stanley studies the neural biological wiring
in our brain as it relates to stress and trauma. She shares
concepts and strategies from her book, Widen the Window. And,
Blake D. Bauer found his way out of addiction through meditation
and mindfulness which he describes in his book, You Were Not
Born to Suffer.

Designing a Life of Meaningful Work at Any Age with Katharine Brooks PhD & Dr. Amber Fossey

For most people, finding happiness and meaning isn’t the first
thing that comes to mind when they think of work. But what if it
was? What if individuals funneled their creativity and a little of
their personal magic into designing a new work-life that was
meaningful and fulfilling? To extract advice about designing a life
of meaningful work, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers
Kamen speaks with two authors who have channeled their
creativity into new careers and serve others through their books.
Dr. Katharine Brooks revamped the famous career guide, What
Color is Your Parachute? for 2021 and wrote two additional books
during the pandemic. And, Forensic Psychiatrist, Dr. Amber Fossey
found herself with a substantial Instagram and Etsy following
when she tapped into her creative inner child. Her sense of
childlike wonder is accompanied by her poetry and illustrations in
the book, Be Wild Be Free.

Redefining Spiritual Practice for Skeptics and Seekers: Contemplating Ethics, Evolution and the Divine with Rabbi Wayne Dosick & Jan Phillips

According to Pew Research, about one-quarter of Americans identify as spiritual, but not religious. It is becoming apparent that communicating with the divine need not be done in a church or a place that identifies with one religion, as many have done in the past. As universal consciousness awakens, how will our relationship with God transform? Will we be able to embrace stillness and quiet moments to allow God, the Divine, Source, or the Universe to speak to us in a way that lights the way toward compassion and love? To seek out guidance on how we can redefine our spiritual practice, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two theologists who have contemplated ethics, evolution, and the divine. Rabbi Wayne Dosick is the host of Spirit Talk Live!, a visiting professor at the University of San Diego, and the author of many books including Radical Loving: One God, One World, and One People, which he discusses during the conversation. Jan Phillips is a speaker and award-winning author. She was excommunicated from the catholic church for her lifestyle choices. Jan recounts her life experiences as a former nun, an activist, a spiritual guide, and a writing coach in her memoir, Still on Fire: Field Notes from a Mystic. She shares stories from the book and the spiritual journey of following her truth.

How to Find Hope in the High Stakes World of Medicine and Healthcare with Dr. Deane Waldman & David Weill

Navigating the bureaucracy of the US healthcare system for
patients and their families can be a trauma over and above the
adverse medical event. Over 100,000 Americans are waiting for
an organ transplant and many of them may not have enough
insurance coverage to cover the cost of the operation and the
required post-op pharmaceuticals during recovery. To determine
what can be done to repair our failing healthcare system and
what it will take to have a nation of healthy people, Positive
Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two
medical doctors who wrote books about their respective fields of
care. Dr. Deane Waldman is on a mission to cure the US
healthcare system. He describes how the system is ill and the key
takeaways from his book, Curing the Cancer in U. S. Healthcare:
StatesCare and Market-Based Medicine. Dr. David Weill details the
stories of the organ transplant process in his book, Exhale: Hope,
Healing, and a Life in Transplant. He shares information about the
donors, the recipients, and the vast network of people involved in
the logistics of organ transplantation.

Winterize Your Health: Preventing and Managing Colds, COVID, and More with Aaron Hartman MD & Neil Schachter MD

‘Tis the season for spending most of the next few months indoors. Many of us will be breathing recycled air while we do our best to avoid COVID, prevent colds, and the flu. But, with the holidays approaching people will be out en masse. So, what can we do to decrease our chance of infection and keep ourselves and the people we care about healthy? To discover a remedy for a possible health crisis, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen asks doctors who promote preventative medicine to their patients. Dr. Aaron Hartman, founder of the Virginia Research Center and is board certified in Integrative and Functional Medicine, shares a plethora of foundational lifestyle basics and supplements to boost the immune system when it is needed the most. And, Dr. Neil Schacther, author of The Doctor’s Guide to Colds and Flu: How to Prevent Strep Throat, Pneumonia, and COVID at Any Age offers tips and tricks that help keep bodily systems running smoothly and help stave off infection.

Pragmatic Parenting: Managing Digital Delirium and Raising Sane Kids with Dr. Alex Packer & Neil Brown LCSW

Parenting in the digital age is a journey none of our ancestors had
to traverse. And, until now, there were very few guidebooks for
parents who are negotiating this new territory. Questions such as
— How involved should parents be in their young adults’ digital
life? Can a child’s developmental journey be disrupted by excess
social media usage? Or, Do well-known parenting rules of the
past, such as modeling the behavior you want your child to
exhibit, apply to technology? were only recently studied. To reveal
the data, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen
asks two educators to discuss their parental guidebooks and
provide their expert insights on this newly charted subject matter.
Award-winning author, Dr. Alex Packer describes the key
takeaways from his newest book, Slaying Digital Dragons: Tips
and tools for protecting your body, brain, psyche, and thumbs
from the digital dark side. And, therapist Neil Brown LCSW shares
actionable strategies from his work Ending the Parent-Teen
Control Battle: Resolve the Power Struggle and Build Trust,
Responsibility, and Respect

A Better Life Practice: Conscious Solutions to Tough Challenges with Leonard Perlmutter & Dr. Eric Maisel

Many of us are searching for a more simplified approach to life as we tackle everyday living during these complicated times. Some philosophies and religious traditions may seem antiquated when addressing modern conscious thought. To discover a better life practice to help us find conscious solutions and simplify life’s tough challenges, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors who share their contemporary philosophies about how to transform life through consciousness. Leonard Perlmutter shares the practice of parenting our subconscious mind and details practices from his latest book, Your Conscience: The Key to Unlock Limitless Wisdom and Creativity and Solve All of Life's Challenges. Dr. Eric Maisel shares his transformational practices of identifying and creating life purpose choices to create a guide for living the life we desire from his book, Lighting the Way: How Kirism Answers Life’s Toughest Questions.

Philosophically Speaking: Morality and Things that Matter with Allen Buchanan PhD & Simon Critchley PhD

The last few years have been topsy-turvy as far as human moral evolution is concerned. The global pandemic and civil unrest in many countries around the world have given rise to more questions than answers. Society’s moral fabric was torn politically and at the same time mended philosophically as we came to understand our interdependence. In the US, we took to our tribes, during the worst and the best of times. To discover the positives and negatives of our going tribal and how we might gain a better understanding of our place in the world, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two Philosophy professors and authors. Allen Buchanan recounts key chapters from his book, Our Moral Fate: Evolution and the Escape from Tribalism and discusses the shaky ground on which democracy sits. Simon Critchley shares philosophical takeaways from his book, Bald: 35 Philosophical Short Cuts, and what he thinks humans gained and lost during the pandemic, philosophically speaking.

Walking the Path of Purpose and Presence with Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati & Peter Russell

We all have stories we acquire based on what happens to us as we live our lives. Some of us identify as mothers, fathers, artists, hustlers, hard-workers, and the list goes on. But, are those identities who we truly are? When we sit with ourselves in the present moment, is our identity our true essence, or simply an amalgamation of what happened to us in the past? To discern how we can perceive our true nature and commence on a spiritual journey, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors who have studied meditation and philosophy in India. Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati exchanged her Western culture for eastern philosophy. She discusses the transformational journey that came from shedding her identities and embracing forgiveness from her book, Hollywood to the Himalayas: A Journey of Healing and Transformation. Peter Russell reveals the lessons in his book, Letting Go of Nothing: Relax Your Mind and Discover the Wonder of Your True Nature and unpacks the mantra let it go and let it be.

Wondery Presents: Uncommon Ground with Van Jones

Are you concerned about the future? Tired of divisiveness? Join political commentator and changemaker Van Jones on a journey to find unifying solutions to our country’s biggest problems. Each week, Van and his guests explore topics that affect us all—from climate change to prison reform, from voting rights to political polarization. In Uncommon Ground with Van Jones, you’ll hear inspiring, hopeful and unique perspectives on what it takes to create meaningful change in a divided nation.