Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee

The Healing Power of Compassion with Dr Julian Abel #138

73 snips

Dec 9, 2020

Dr. Julian Abel, a recently retired palliative care consultant and co-leader of the Frome Project, discusses the profound impact of compassion on health and longevity. He shares evidence showing that strong social connections often surpass traditional medical interventions. Julian recounts inspiring stories from his experiences, highlighting how community initiatives in Frome reduced loneliness and improved health outcomes. He emphasizes that compassion is not just a soft approach but a powerful tool that can transform lives and healthcare.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Compassion Over Medication

Compassion and social relationships are more powerful than medication.
Prioritizing these connections significantly impacts health and well-being.

ANECDOTE

The 6:30 AM Club

Dr. Chatterjee found connection with baristas and coffee shop regulars.
These small, positive interactions improved his day and reduced stress.

INSIGHT

The Impact of Social Relationships

Social relationships have a greater impact on mortality than interventions like quitting smoking or managing blood pressure with medication.
Strong social connections can even naturally lower blood pressure.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

Today's conversation is about one of my favourite topics – compassion. Compassion doesn’t just make us feel good but it can have powerful effects on our health and longevity. That’s something today’s guest has proved to great effect. Dr Julian Abel is a recently retired consultant in palliative (end of life) care and joint leader of the Frome Project, which aimed to end loneliness and improve health in a town in Somerset, by building community connections. In providing compassionate alternatives to medical intervention, Frome saw emergency hospital admissions drop by 30 per cent along with improved quality of life scores, health outcomes and costs.

In this conversation Julian shares the evidence behind using compassion as a therapeutic tool, explaining that good social relationships are more powerful than pretty much any other intervention we have, including giving up smoking, drinking, diet, or exercise in helping us live longer. Compassion is far from the soft approach, it is in fact more powerful than many of the medicines we have.

Julian also talks about his own experience as a palliative care doctor and the lessons he learned from people at the end of their lives. He shares many uplifting and empowering stories that will convince even the biggest skeptic that compassion and connection should be at the centre of everything we do – after all, it is what makes us uniquely human.

Show notes available at https://drchatterjee.com/138

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.