Live Happy Now

What the Circus Can Teach Us About Mental Health With Dr. Sherry Walling

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and this episode’s guest has found a unique way to help clients process such difficult emotions and grief, anxiety, and depression. Dr. Sherry Walling is a clinical psychologist, best-selling author, and mental health advocate who began using movement — particularly the circus arts — to manage loss and grief in her own life. She soon discovered what an effective outlet it provided for releasing trapped emotions and began offering workshops to help others learn these same techniques.   In this episode, you’ll learn: How movement improves your mental health. How loss in her own life led Sherry to discover the circus arts. Why it’s important to make mental health a priority.

Navigating the Parenting Map With Dr. Shefali

In just a few days we’ll celebrate Mother’s Day, which makes it the perfect time to talk to Dr. Shefali, a New York Times best-selling author and an expert in family dynamics. She has developed a highly acclaimed approach to parenting that she calls conscious parenting, and in this episode, she explains why much of what we think about parenting is wrong and how we all can become more conscious — not just as parents but in all our relationships.  In this episode, you’ll learn: Why it’s so important for parents to recognize their patterns. How addressing childhood wounds helps make us better parents. Why it’s never too late to become a more conscious parent. 

Practicing Digital Wellness With Amy Blankson

Our digital lifestyles often don’t seem to support our well-being, and that’s a great reason to observe Digital Wellness Day on May 5. This week’s guest, best-selling author and speaker Amy Blankson, offers tips on how to become more present in an increasingly distracted world — whether we’re at work, home, or school. As CEO and Co-Founder of the Digital Wellness Institute, Amy has made it her mission to cultivate happiness and well-being in the digital era. She’s here to share tips about how to create boundaries and find balance in our digital lives. In this episode, you’ll learn: What it means to practice digital wellness (and how to do it). Why it’s important to create boundaries with digital tools. How to observe Digital Wellness Day on May 5. 

Why Finland Is So Happy With Heli Mende

When the World Happiness Report was released on March 20, Finland was named the World’s Happiest Country for the sixth year in a row. This week, Heli Mende of Visit Finland joins host Paula Felps to talk about why the country has earned that designation so frequently and explain how it inspired the country to offer a Masterclass of Happiness that will be held in June. Heli talks about happiness, Finland-style, how they developed the masterclass, and shares some of the things we all can do to enjoy that same kind of well-being no matter what country we’re in. In this episode, you’ll learn: How being named the World’s Happiest Country has affected Finland. The value of connecting with nature and how that influences Finland’s happiness. The surprising role that saunas play in the country’s overall well-being. 

Finding Comfort Through Music With Jan Stanley

Death is inevitable, but as with many things in life, music can change how people experience the journey. That’s the idea behind Threshold Choirs — an international movement in which a trio sings healing and comforting songs for people who are nearing the end of life. In this episode, Jan Stanley, a long-time Threshold Choir member, explains how sharing songs at this uncertain time not only brings comfort to the dying and their family members, but can be transformational for the singers as well. In this episode, you’ll learn: What a Threshold Choir is and how they began. How music provides such comfort to those who are ill and dying. How being part of a Threshold Choir can impact members. 

Rediscover Your Sense of Wonder With Monica Parker

As children every new discovery filled us with wonder and awe. But somewhere along the way, most of us lost that — and this week’s guest is helping people rediscover it. Monica Parker is a renowned speaker and writer who has spent the past decade helping people discover their meaning and purpose at work. Her new book, The Power of Wonder: The Extraordinary Emotion That Will Change the Way You Live, Learn, and Lead, explains why we lose our sense of wonder and how we can reclaim it. In this episode, you’ll learn: The power of slow thought and how to develop it. What a wonderbringer is and how to find them in our lives. Practices to build more wonder in your daily life. 

Exploring Your Senses with Gretchen Rubin

Every day we’re surrounded by sights, sounds, and smells — but we often take them for granted. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by New York Times bestselling author Gretchen Rubin, to talk about how tuning into our five senses can make us happier and healthier. Her new book, Life in Five Senses: How exploring the senses got me out of my head and into the world, takes a deep dive into what each of our senses has to teach us and explains how we can explore them to improve our well-being.  In this episode, you’ll learn: How dialing into our senses can reduce anxiety, boost productivity, and spark creativity. The connection between our senses and memories. Using our senses to stay grounded and live in the present moment.

Exploring Nature to Improve Mental Health With Mya-Rose Craig

We know that getting out in nature is good for us, but this week’s guest understands it better than most. Mya-Rose Craig is a 20-year-old bird watcher, environmentalist and diversity activist who was raised in a home that revered nature. At the age of 14, she formed the Black2Nature organization to encourage other teenagers of color to engage with nature. Bristol University awarded her an honorary doctorate for her pioneering work in this area and now her memoir, Birdgirl: Looking to the Skies in Search of a Better Future, looks at the power of nature and birds, and the important role they have played in dealing with her mother’s mental illness. In this episode, you’ll learn: What nature has taught Mya-Rose about well-being and why she’s so passionate about it. Why access to nature is so important for mental health. How her family has used birdwatching to cope with mental health challenges. 

What We Learned from the World Happiness Report with Deborah K. Heisz

Every year on March 20 — the International Day of Happiness — the Sustainable Development Solutions Network releases its World Happiness Report. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Live Happy co-founder and CEO Deborah Heisz to talk about how we’re faring when it comes to happiness, what we learned from this year’s report and why it appears that our happiness is improving.  In this episode, you’ll learn: What kind of “happiness” the report is talking about and how we gauge it.  Why the U.S. is improving in happiness and what is holding us back.   How the past few years have encouraged us to become more altruistic. 

How Pets Improve Your Brain Health as You Age with Brittany Derrenbacher

We know that pets and happiness go hand-in-hand (or maybe hand-in-paw), but did you know that your pet could also improve your brain health as you age? This week, Brittany Derrenbacher, a therapist and founder of The Healing Collective KY in Louisville, explains how pets can change how we age and help keep our brains and bodies healthy throughout our lifetime. In this episode, you’ll learn: The different ways that pets help keep us mentally sharp. What the latest research says about pet ownership and aging. How we can use our pets to create happiness for the older people in our lives.