High On Healthy

In this interview on High on Healthy, host Richard Zwicky and futurist Daniel Burrus examine the dual-edged impact of artificial intelligence on mental health, behavior prediction, and society.

They discuss the risks of over-relying on AI for personal counsel instead of human relationships, the challenges of disinformation, and the necessity of rigorous fact-checking and critical thinking.

Emphasizing a "human-first" philosophy, Burrus argues that AI should serve as a powerful tool to augment—rather than replace—human judgment, wisdom, and authentic trust.

In this episode of High on Healthy, host Richard Zwicky speaks with Gloria Mark, professor of informatics at UC Irvine, about how digital technology and AI impact human attention spans, critical thinking, and social well-being.

Mark explains that while our fundamental capacity for focus remains intact, modern environments foster constant interruptions—both external and self-induced—that fragment our focus and drive up stress.

She stresses the importance of reclaiming our agency, establishing organizational guardrails, and viewing AI as a guiding tool rather than a replacement for human thought.

Dr. Samantha DeCaro, Director of Clinical Outreach and Education at The Renfrew Center, sits down with host Richard Zwicky to explore the fine line between healthy self-improvement and destructive perfectionism. They go into how cultural messaging and social media often weaponize our insecurities—particularly around body image and wellness—leading many toward eating disorders and the "arrival fallacy."

Dr. DeCaro emphasizes that true healing requires moving away from external validation and consumer-driven standards, grounding ourselves instead in mindful awareness, self-compassion, authentic community, and values-driven living.

In this episode of High on Healthy, host Richard Zwicky sits down with licensed therapist and holistic mental health practitioner Shale Maulana to explore how trauma, implicit memory, and the nervous system interact. Comparing conscious awareness to a "flashlight in a warehouse,"

Maulana explains how unprocessed emotional material lives in the body and subconscious mind, manifesting as anxiety, triggers, or recurring nightmares. They also touch on using modalities like EMDR and clinical hypnosis, differentiating normal stress from stuck trauma responses, and understanding nervous system regulation not as constant calmness, but as flexible recovery and resilience in the face of life's challenges.

Richard Zwicky speaks with board-certified psychotherapist and physician Dr. Hans Watson about the intersection of psychedelic-assisted therapy, attachment styles, and intimate relationship dynamics.

Dr. Watson dicusses how substances like MDMA and ketamine lower emotional defenses, enabling couples to experience genuine empathy and break through entrenched behavioral patterns within a safe, structured environment.

He also emphasizes that while psychedelics can reopen neural pathways and foster immediate breakthroughs, long-term therapeutic success depends on careful preparation, individual integration, and developing sustainable communication and conflict-resolution skills to build lasting relationship safety.

In this episode of High on Healthy, host Richard Zwicky sits down with Myriam Barthes, co-founder and CEO of Journey Clinical, to explore how integrating psychedelic medicine with structured psychotherapy creates scalable, meaningful mental health treatment.

Barthes discusses the critical role of medical oversight, preparation, and integration windows in fostering neuroplasticity, helping patients sit with discomfort, and guiding them back to their authentic, creative lives.

Richard Zwicky speaks with Dr. Amy Bucher, the Chief Behavioral Officer at Lirio. They explore how the psychological mechanisms often utilized by social media to capture attention can instead be applied to improve healthcare outcomes, such as encouraging medication adherence, vaccinations, and cancer screenings.

Dr. Bucher outlines how Lirio leverages behavioral science and multi-agent AI systems to deliver personalized communication (or "nudges") via text messages and emails that address individual barriers to care, such as fear or forgetfulness. 

In this episode of High on Healthy, host Richard Zwicky interviews Dr. Theresa B. Skaar, a social psychologist and mindfulness-based stress reduction instructor, to explore the psychological toll of relentless accomplishment. The conversation focuses on how high achievers often tie their identity entirely to milestones, leading to burnout, imposter syndrome, and a deep disconnect from their true selves.

Dr. Skaar discusses the "power of the pause" and using mindfulness to transition from a performance-evaluated life to one focused on inner experience. To break cycles of perfectionism and prepare for major life shifts like retirement, she advocates for cultivating "organic gratitude" and building a curious, non-judgmental relationship with oneself.

In this episode of High and Healthy, host Richard Zwicky joins licensed professional counselors Beth Valdez and Helene Zupanc—co-authors of Sticky Note Mantras—to explore why high-achievers often struggle to enjoy their successes and feel trapped in a cycle of constant striving.

They delve into the neuroscience behind our "predictive" brains, which are wired for survival rather than fulfillment, leading many to believe satisfaction is always just one more milestone away.

Valdez and Zupanc offer actionable strategies for cultivating psychological flexibility, such as using mindfulness, grounding techniques, and "sticky note mantras" to rewire negative neural pathways and shift from a pattern of achievement-driven anxiety to a life defined by authentic values and present-moment appreciation.

Richard Zwicky interviews Dr. Joshua Pritikin, a quantitative psychologist and talk therapy practitioner, to discuss finding meaning in life through spiritual experiences.

Dr. Pritikin introduces a progressive framework utilizing Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy, which allows individuals to understand their inner "subpersonalities" and practice "unblending" from reactive emotions to achieve inner harmony.

He details a modified meditation technique designed to build internal trust and prevent spiritual bypassing by addressing distracting thoughts directly.