Live Happy Now

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

When acclaimed jazz vocalist Allegra Levy became a parent, she began noticing that the lyrics of classic children’s songs didn’t fit in today’s world of equity and inclusion. As a mother, she was concerned about what messages children were getting from the music and as a musician, she didn’t want to raise her child with songs that had been musically “dumbed down.” So she began writing her own jazz-tinged children’s music with a positive spin on mental well-being. The result is a new album, Songs for You and Me, and in this episode she talks about the importance of experiencing music as a family.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How the pandemic inspired her to rethink children’s music.

Burnout is a common problem for women today, but it’s also something that isn’t openly discussed. This week’s guest, Dr. Mary Sanders, is on a mission to empower women over 40 to bounce back physically, emotionally and energetically from the stresses of balancing work and life. She’s here to talk about what burnout is, why it’s so prevalent today and how an integrative approach can help you overcome it.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Some of the warning signs that you’re experiencing burnout.

This week, we are celebrating International Women’s Day, which is a time to acknowledge the diversity and achievement of women. As part of that celebration, we’re talking to Texas businesswoman Linda Allen, who has made it her mission to make women feel seen by supporting them both in their careers and their personal achievements. In this episode, she explains why it’s so important for us to lift up the women around us and how it can change them — and the world they live in. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why a single simple interaction can be so impactful.

As we begin the month of March, Live Happy is celebrating with an entire month of #HappyActs. Throughout this month, we celebrate happiness with special acts each day, and on March 20, we observe the International Day of Happiness. In this episode, host Paula Felps sits down with Live Happy CEO and Founder Deborah Heisz, E-commerce Marketing Manager Casey Johnson and Marketing Manager Laura Coppedge to talk about why we are so excited about this month – and how you can be a part of it.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why we celebrate #HappyActs throughout the month of March.