Solutions Manual Podcast

Being adopted does not automatically mean unresolved issues. Yet, familiar narratives can influence how adoptees interpret their experiences and how support is sought or given. Rather than leaving someone feeling defined by a label, support starts with understanding as an individual.

Drawing on Sara’s lived experience and Maciej’s parental and clinical perspectives, they explore the adoption triad, the complexities of reunion, the subjectivity of trauma and personal challenges, and the risks of imposing explanations and labels. They also discuss how having curiosity and trusted help to shed old baggage past is life changing for anyone who is ready to move forward.

Links:

Attachment Theory

Quick Tips Series - Trauma

UK PAC Adoption Report

Life doesn’t come with an instruction manual. So we made one! The Solutions Manual Podcast is where Drs Sara Farwell and Maciej Zatonski explore the solutions to living a healthier, more fulfilling life. Join us to discover where science and medicine meet real life as we talk through the tough, the taboo, and the transformative topics for your personal growth and development. More episodes here.

Rob Stephenson is a wellbeing practitioner, keynote speaker and… a working DJ. He works with founders, leaders and organisations on sustainable performance, bringing together science, storytelling and music.

In this very special episode, we talk about how music and sound can be used intentionally to change our mood, improve our productivity and decision-making, and enjoyment of the present.

Rob guides us through a bespoke piece to show how we can help our brain go from overstimulated and busy to grounded and calm, ready for the next task or endeavour.

His new book, Music Is the Answer: Practical Ways to Manage Stress, Sleep Better, and Live Brighter, argues that intentional listening is one of the most powerful and accessible wellbeing tools we have. Alongside the book, Rob creates Guided Listening sessions, which use original music and voice to help people move from one state to another, such as from overstimulated to grounded.

Rob is also the founder of Wellbeing Foundations, a practical framework that helps individuals and teams build small, high-impact habits into their working lives. He is a TEDx speaker and speaks openly about his own mental health and describes himself as thriving not because life is optimised, but because it is intentionally supported.

Thank you Rob for sharing this space and hope for the future.

Connect with Rob:

Rob Stephenson - LinkedIn

Rob Stephenson - Instagram

Music is the Answer (website)

Rob Stephenson (website)

Choose Your Three (website)

In this episode we talk about the importance of our personal energy flow and why we should care (a lot) about our own individual energy drains and ways of recharging all of our energy tanks.

We know how much money we have.

One hour for us is the same as one hour for you.

Energy is one of our personal resources that we can truly manage – if we build the self-awareness and intentionality around it.

Instead of trying to “manage” your time, take an audit of your energy. What drains you? What fills you up? You can do our free Cognitive Capacity Test.

You’ll learn why managing energy matters for your physical and mental health, decisions, professional career, relationships, and future.

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Life doesn’t come with an instruction manual. So we made one! The Solutions Manual Podcast is where Drs Sara Farwell and Maciej Zatonski explore the solutions to living a healthier, more fulfilling life. Join us to discover where science and medicine meet real life as we talk through topics like leadership, emotions, decision-making, longevity, resilience, self-improvement, and much more. More episodes here.

This one is all about indexing. What it is, how to do it, and why it matters.

When we have a lot on our plates, the instinct is usually to add more input: more information, more advice, better diet, more time in the gym, another meeting, more vacation, more time with friends...

This episode makes the opposite case. We explore what we call “indexing” - deliberately creating periods of low input so the brain can process experience, reduce mental clutter and turn emotion into practical data, rather than reactive behaviour and distress.

We discuss how to easily and rapidly improve mental strength, emotional regulation and spiritual capacity, and how all of those can improve tolerance of uncertainty, criticism, frustration and status threats.

We discuss why non-reactivity is a prerequisite for good judgement and how time without input can rapidly improve your attention, memory, self-awareness and decision-making.

Once put into practice, it will change your life. It’s as simple as that.

Decision-making is a trainable skill. Break overthinking, emotional reasoning, or analysis paralysis and start optimising your resources for when you need to make decisions that really matter.

In part 1, we bring you a helpful mantra, a few rules, and some tips for when we think and feel our way in (or out) of making decisions.

Join our twice monthly free decision-making Zoom room, The Deciding Factor. Message us here or to [email protected] for the link.

Read On:

Verdict Before the Trial

A Surgeon’s Guide to Overthinking

Quick Tips on Avoidance

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Yi Song, practitioner of “regenerative healing”.

Dr. Song was raised in Beijing in a 17-generation medical family and trained in Pathology at Brown University. She has run a holistic clinic" in Boston since 2004 and founded the Zenerchi Retreat in Colombia in 2018 where she trials not yet approved therapies. Integrating stem cells, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and anti-aging treatments, Dr. Song aims to help people live longer, healthier lives.

This episode is a blend of science, traditional approaches to medicine, and the basics of human health and happiness that have been known for centuries.

Join us for this conversation on:

· The clinical use and the limitations of stem-cell therapies

· Early prevention versus symptom-focused healthcare

· The role of inflammation in ageing and tissue repair

· Why there is no single “magic bullet” for health and longevity

· Self-awareness, personal strengths, and understanding your own biology

· And More!

Gifts & Connect with Dr Song

Free Gift from dr Song for your listeners

The Regeneration Effect Book - direct link

Dr Yi on Instagram

You’ve probably heard before that “growth happens outside the comfort zone”. And this is true – at work, at home, and in life.

But how often do we actually step out of that comfort zone?

We teach and watch our kids and animals fall, learn, and get back up again. Occasionally we might have coaches who might get an extra rep or journal entry out of us.

But what happened to those everyday moments of struggle that teach us the lessons we really need?

In this episode, we speak about:

· What training dogs teaches us about our own comfort zones

· The world mental health crisis and leadership

· The relationship between fear, growth and learning

· The hallmarks of what a safe space really is

· The true cost of avoiding discomfort

· Small steps

· & more

Subscribe and share this episode with someone you care about

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Life doesn’t come with a solutions manual – so we made one! The Solutions Manual Podcast is where Drs Sara Farwell and Maciej Zatonski talk about the challenges and solutions to a healthy mind, body, relationships, and career. Featuring super guests with personal stories, the science behind human behaviour change and transformation, and everyday tips for living fully.

What can samyal (Tamil for “cooking”) and cricket teach us about life’s universal challenges?

As Sasi Krishnan puts it – well, everything. In our next episode, we speak with Sasi, a cookery teacher, speaker, and recently published author on how lessons learned in the kitchen can transform how we approach the uncertainties and stresses of life. She speaks about her own lived experience, how we can approach food with a fresh mindset (to match the ingredients), and what happens when we stop chasing perfection.

This episode is best paired with your favourite coffee or chai.

Meet and Connect with Sasi:

Sasi Krishnan is a UK-based cookery teacher, speaker, and author of Silent Innings. Her work centres around authentic Indian home cooking, rooted in everyday practice rather than restaurant-style food.

Through her teaching and speaking, she explores the role of food beyond recipes and how it connects to mindset, routine, and overall wellbeing. With subtle Ayurvedic influences, her approach focuses on balance, simplicity, and cooking in a way that fits real life, not perfection.

Alongside her work in food, her book Silent Innings reflects on life through the lens of cricket, offering a quiet perspective on resilience, timing, and the phases we all move through.

At the heart of her work is a simple connection – the way we cook, the way we live, and the way we show up, are not separate.

Sasi Krishnan | LinkedIn

Sasi | Online Indian Cookery Classes (@sasisamyal) • Instagram photos and videos

Life doesn’t come with a solutions manual – so we made one! The Solutions Manual Podcast is where Drs Sara Farwell and Maciej Zatonski talk about the challenges and solutions to a healthy mind, body, relationships, and career. Featuring super guests with personal stories, the science behind human behaviour change and transformation, and everyday tips for living fully.

Join us as we explore the deep connections between physical performance, cognitive resilience, and emotion regulation. Drawing from Sara’s lifelong background in sport and physical performance coaching, our discussion examines how athletic principles apply not only to elite performance, but also to everyday health, longevity, and mental wellbeing.

This episode is packed!

* How sport shapes resilience, discipline, and teamwork

* The psychological side of training and competition

* What you should expect from your personal trainer, physio, and coach

* Emotion regulation in high pressure sports and work

* Why physical performance is “90% mental”

* The relationship between mindset, self-talk, and injury risk

* Overtraining vs undertraining in modern life

* Why most people need more movement, not more optimisation

* Consistency and habit formation in exercise

* The dangers of social media fitness culture and misinformation

* The role of sleep, nutrition, recovery, and balance

* Genetics, body composition, and realistic expectations

* How movement supports brain health and cognitive performance

* & more!

Life doesn’t come with a solutions manual – so we made one! The Solutions Manual Podcast is where Drs Sara Farwell and Maciej Zatonski talk about the challenges and solutions to a healthy mind, body, relationships, and career. Featuring super guests with personal stories, the science behind human behaviour change and transformation, and everyday tips for living fully.

Imagine how different our personal and professional lives will be when menopause is addressed for the people first?

Our next conversation is with Vicky Mose, founder of Imagine How and one of the UK’s leading trainers and advocates for menopause support for the workforce. We talk about how menopause is a people risk first and a business-critical issue. With the recent UK legislation change, menopause reporting and support needs to go beyond “nice to have wellbeing add-ons” which means a major shift in leadership and business.

This episode is a step towards that mindset shift.

Join us as we discuss

* The 10% Quit Club and the human, financial, and business costs that continue to increase

* What the changes are in legislation, and what companies can do to support women

* What interventions don’t work based on past failures from mental health initiatives

* Personal insights into recognising and managing the menopause “monkey”

* And more!

Meet and Connect with Vicky

Imagine How

Vicky Mose | LinkedIn

With three decades of expertise, Vicky has established herself as a transformative leader across health, education, and workplace wellbeing. From leading innovation within major charities to shaping professional standards in the fitness and education sectors, her impact is both strategic and far-reaching.

Today, as the Founder of Imagine How, Vicky is at the forefront of workplace menopause strategy. She works with organisations to move beyond awareness and into action, helping them understand their menopause demographic, mitigate risk, and implement meaningful, measurable support. Her approach positions menopause not just as a wellbeing topic, but as a critical workforce, retention, and governance issue.

A menopause mentor and trainer, Vicky combines her background in psychology, health and fitness, and awarding organisation leadership with lived experience to help organisations move from awareness to action. She is known for translating complex legal, cultural, and organisational expectations into clear, practical steps that support both people and performance.

Her work has gained growing recognition. In 2026, Vicky was shortlisted for the London UK StartUp Awards in the Education and Training category, reflecting the impact and momentum of Imagine How as a business and movement.

Imagine How is not just a platform, it is a call to action. Through her work, Vicky is helping organisations create menopause-ready workplaces where people can thrive, and where support is not left to chance.