Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee

CAUTION: Includes themes of an adult nature.

Do you think you have an addiction, or perhaps an unhealthy relationship with a certain behaviour?

Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my weekly podcast for your mind, body, and heart.  Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.

Today’s clip is from episode 222 of the podcast with Dr Anna Lembke, a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine and author of the book Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance In the Age Of Indulgence.

In this clip, Anna explains why we’re living in a world that’s turned us all into addicts and shares some practical tips to help us find the right balance.

Thanks to our sponsor http://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/222

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DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website. 

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Are emotions universal? Do you think people are programmed to feel a certain way in specific situations? Or is there a clear distinction between what makes you feel angry, happy or sad, compared to someone else?

Today’s guest is someone whose work I believe can help all of us to make better connections in a fractured, modern world. Batja Mesquita is a social psychologist, affective scientist, and pioneer of cultural psychology. She’s also a Professor of Psychology at the University of Leuven in Belgium and in her ground-breaking book, Between Us: How Cultures Create Emotions, she suggests emotions don’t live within us, they arise between us. They are made, not innate; they form in response to social interaction and can differ dramatically across societies and cultures.

That’s not, of course, to deny our emotions are authentic – or to say that we don’t feel them deeply. Rather it’s a way to acknowledge that not everyone will see the same situation in the same way. We can probably all think of occasions where someone from another culture has responded unusually to us – or where our own behaviour has been misunderstood by them.

In this conversation, Batja gives examples of how, as a Dutch academic visiting America, she found her colleagues’ culture of compliments uncomfortable and overfamiliar. She explains that it’s not about our language, although the words we choose to describe our feelings can be significant. Instead, says Batja, our culture, heritage, gender, socioeconomic group or even age influences how we interpret the world – and so what our emotional norms are in a given situation.

We cover so many thought-provoking topics, including:

I absolutely loved Batja’s book and I think her work is really important. The more we are able to connect with our fellow humans instead of judging them, the happier and more harmonious the world is going to be. I hope you enjoy listening.

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Thanks to our sponsors:

https://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemore

https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/344

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We often turn to our inner voice for guidance, ideas and wisdom. But sometimes this voice can lead us down a rabbit hole of negative self-talk.

Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my weekly podcast for your mind, body, and heart.  Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.

Today’s clip is from episode 173 of the podcast with award-winning psychologist, Dr Ethan Kross.

It’s our inner voice that makes us unique as humans. In this clip Ethan explains why, instead of silencing the chatter, we can learn how to harness it.

Thanks to our sponsor http://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/173

Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee

Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee

Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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CAUTION: This podcast discusses fasting, and its advice may not be suitable for anyone with an eating disorder. If you have an existing health condition or are taking medication, always consult your healthcare practitioner before going for prolonged periods without eating.

Today’s podcast could transform the lives of many women – but it’s a conversation that is just as relevant for men. My guest is Dr Mindy Pelz, a nutrition expert, an author and a pioneer on the subject of women’s health, hormones and fasting.

Fasting itself is a topic we’ve spoken about before on this podcast, but when we talk about fasting and health in general, we often presume that men and women are going to respond in the same way. As Mindy explains, men and women are fundamentally different biologically and hormonally, which means they may need to adopt different approaches.

Mindy’s new book Fast Like A Girl explains that distinction and goes on to provide the protocols women can use, so fasting works in their favour. It’s billed as a women’s guide to using fasting to burn fat, boost energy and balance hormones. But I’d argue that it gives us a whole lot more than that.

Mindy sets out the key hormonal differences between men and women. With men governed primarily by testosterone, released at regular intervals and doses throughout the day. Women are led by a symphony of oestrogen, testosterone and progesterone in amounts that vary across an average 28-day menstrual cycle.

Mindy talks us through what exactly is going on hormonally during the four phases of a woman’s cycle and how this makes women feel physically, cognitively and emotionally. She explains how women can tailor everything from their working habits to their workouts, their social life to their diet, to better match their hormone profile at each stage of the cycle - this approach can help women feel more in control. We discuss the benefits for conditions like polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), infertility and irregular cycles.

We also discuss the different stages of women’s lives – reproductive, perimenopausal and post-menopausal – and how different types and lengths of fasting can be optimised in each stage.

This is not just an empowering listen for women, it is for all of us – partners, brothers, fathers, sons, and friends. I hope you enjoy listening.

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Thanks to our sponsors:

https://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemore

https://www.boncharge.com/livemore

https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/342

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

By harnessing the power of our attention, we can better meet life’s demands. Our ability to focus and pay attention plays a crucial role in every aspect of our life - at work, at leisure and in our relationships. 

Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my weekly podcast for your mind, body, and heart.  Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.

Today’s clip is from episode 218 of the podcast with Dr Amishi Jha - a neuroscientist and a professor of psychology at the University of Miami.

Research shows that most of us are missing up to 50% of our lives through distraction and, in this clip, she explains how we can train our attention to improve our lives.

Thanks to our sponsor http://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/218

Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee

Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee

Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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When was the last time you felt awe? Perhaps it’s an emotion you notice often, evoked by the trees, clouds, or people around you. Or maybe it’s something you associate with more dramatic, less frequent experiences.

Dr Dacher Keltner, has written a sublime book on the subject of awe. It’s called Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life and in it he proposes that awe is an emotion that’s all around us, waiting to be discovered – and in doing so, we can transform our health and lives for the better.

Dacher is one of the world’s foremost emotion scientists and Professor of Psychology at the University of California. He’s also Director of the Greater Good Science Center, which studies the psychology, sociology, and neuroscience of happiness and wellbeing. He has spent decades studying the science of happiness and believes that across the world, we are collectively having a moment of reflection and looking for more meaning.

In this conversation, Dacher defines awe as our response to powerful things that are obscure, vast, and mysterious. They’re beyond our frame of reference, making us feel small and filling us with wonder. But you don’t have to go to the Grand Canyon or see the Northern Lights to find them. Having studied people’s understanding and experience of awe in 26 different countries, he’s found eight types that are common and easily available to us all.

They include nature, music, moral beauty (noticing others’ kindness), birth and death, and my favourite ‘collective effervescence’. This is that feeling of coming together with others, moving as one, and sharing the same consciousness – you may have experienced it in a sports stadium, at a music concert, on a dancefloor, in worship, in a choir, or even at parkrun.

We spoke in depth about how birth and death are strong triggers for awe, sharing our own painful yet precious experiences of watching close relatives die. We also considered how awe reduces the ego and makes you humble. And how having a regular practice of contemplation, like meditation or breathwork, can open us up to easily noticing and benefitting from everyday awe.

I truly believe that Dacher’s work can help all of us find greater meaning and greater health. He’s done a fantastic job of finding the science to support his words, but I think we also know intuitively that what he says makes perfect sense. This was a wonderful and deeply profound conversation that contains science, storytelling, raw emotion and so much more.

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Thanks to our sponsors:

https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

https://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemore

Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/340

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

CAUTION: This podcast contains swearing 

Our mindset is so important for living a happier, healthier life. We can all learn from unwelcome challenges and, more often than not, become better as a result of them. 

Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my weekly podcast for your mind, body, and heart.  Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.

Today’s clip is from episode 224 of the podcast with TV presenter and fellow podcast host Jake Humphrey.

Jake went from failing his A level exams to becoming one of the UK’s best known TV presenters.

In this clip, he explains why happiness comes from the stories we tell ourselves and why failure is an important part of the journey to success.

Thanks to our sponsor http://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/224

Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee

Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee

Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

My guest today is someone who has been leading a global health revolution around using food as medicine to support longevity, energy, mental clarity and happiness. Dr Mark Hyman has been a practicing medical doctor for several decades, he is the Head of Strategy and Innovation at the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine and the author of an incredible 18 books. His latest one, Young Forever: The Secrets To Living Your Longest, Healthiest Life, challenges us to reimagine our biology and the entire process of ageing. 

In our conversation, Mark walks us through the 10 hallmarks of ageing, and explains what we can all practically do to influence them. He talks about the difference between our chronological age and our biological age and wants to reframe the idea that growing older means becoming frail, weak and less independent. In fact, Mark believes that as a society we have normalised what he calls ‘abnormal ageing’.

We talk in detail about food and how our daily choices influence the speed at which we will age. Mark explains how all the chronic diseases of modern life – heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and dementia – are in some way related to disturbances in how we regulate blood sugar. And he details the ‘wildfire of downstream effects’ this can lead to - things like inflammation, increased belly fat and an increase in stress hormones.

Mark also shares powerful research showing that we can reverse our biological age by up to three years in just eight weeks. We also cover the controversial topic of protein, the crucial need for resistance training as we get older, and what exactly Mark learned from visiting the Blue Zones – places around the world where the population naturally thrives into old age. Their default culture, he says, is a diet rich in whole foods and phyto-chemicals, a naturally active lifestyle, being socially connected and a strong sense of meaning.

People who live well into old age, it seems, live close to the earth and each other. How’s that for a health goal worth aspiring to?

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore or https://fblm.supercast.com.

Thanks to our sponsors:

https://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemore

https://www.calm.com/livemore

https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/338

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Learning to harness the power of your breath can be life changing. It’s free, it’s easy, it doesn’t require much of your time and the results can be instantaneous. 

Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my weekly podcast for your mind, body, and heart.  Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.

Today’s clip is from episode 197 of the podcast with journalist and author James Nestor.

Breathing is information, and in this clip, James explains why the way we breathe is so important for the health of our body and our mind.

Thanks to our sponsor http://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore. For other podcast platforms go to https://fblm.supercast.com.

Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/197

Follow me on instagram.com/drchatterjee

Follow me on facebook.com/DrChatterjee

Follow me on twitter.com/drchatterjeeuk

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

CAUTION: This conversation contains themes of an adult nature and references to sexual assault.

My guest today is someone who I’ve been wanting to speak to for a very long time. Dr Bessel van der Kolk is a professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine and President of the Trauma Research Foundation in Massachusetts. He’s also the author of the wildly popular book, The Body Keeps the Score, a book about trauma, published in 38 languages and read by millions of people worldwide.

The central philosophy behind Bessel’s work is that traumatic, psychological experiences in life leave a physical imprint within us, which can result in physical and mental health problems. We begin by talking about what exactly trauma is, how it differs from stress, and why it is important for all of us to have compassion and empathy for those affected. He explains the factors that lead to some people becoming traumatised by an experience while others aren’t. And we talk about the importance of family, support, and community when it comes to emotional resilience.

We discuss the variety of different medical conditions and symptoms that may have their root in trauma, from misunderstood illnesses like fibromyalgia to mental health disorders and autoimmune disease. Often, these are the conditions where western medicine really struggles to help.

Bessel has carried out years of research into trauma and studied the many modalities that can help us finally heal. Because our bodies quite literally keep the score and store the trauma, it’s often body-oriented therapies that may prove most helpful. We discuss why yoga (the union of body and mind), dancing or singing can be powerful ways to do this. Movement, he says, is the opposite of being ‘stuck’ in trauma. It’s a somatic pleasure response, an expression of life, and can put vulnerable, traumatised people back in touch with their bodies.

Bessel also shares some fascinating evidence on the power of EMDR (eye movement desensitisation reprogramming), neurofeedback, and talks about his involvement in psychedelic therapy. Such is the prevalence of trauma in society that whether we have experienced it ourselves or we know people who have, it’s vital that we all learn about it and the various ways we can heal.

This is a powerful and insightful conversation with one of the world’s leading authorities on trauma. I hope you enjoy listening.

Support the podcast and enjoy Ad-Free episodes. Apple Podcasts https://apple.co/feelbetterlivemore or https://fblm.supercast.com.

Thanks to our sponsors:

https://www.vivobarefoot.com/livemore

https://www.boncharge.com/livemore

https://www.athleticgreens.com/livemore

Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/336

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices