Chasing Life

Grief is something we all experience at different stages of life, even more so during this pandemic. But what happens when you must mourn the loss of your own child? CNN journalists Andrew Kaczynski and René Marsh received terrible diagnoses within months of each other: their infant children had brain tumors. Yet in the midst of great tragedy, they found strength in chasing a cure for others. So in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Dr. Sanjay Gupta shares the great strides being made in the fight against pediatric cancer through the passionate commitment of parents, doctors and healthcare advocates. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chasing Life returns on September 7, but until then, here's an episode of Hidden Brain. Having a sense of purpose can be a buffer against the challenges we all face at various stages of life. Purpose can also boost our health and longevity. Cornell University psychologist Anthony Burrow explains why purpose isn't something to be found — it's something we can develop from within.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While season 2 of Chasing Life is in production, here's an episode of NPR's Life Kit you'll love. Burnout is common across the globe, and the pandemic has only exacerbated it. In this episode, experts unpack the signs of burnout and how you can gain more control over your work and your life.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For the past year and a half, the pandemic has kept many older adults apart from their loved ones. But now that people are getting vaccinated, many older Americans are finally reuniting with their friends and family. On today’s episode, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta gives CNN's Don Lemon advice about reuniting with his risk-averse mother now that they’re both vaccinated, Dr. Preeti Malani explains how to best support the older adults in our lives through the pandemic and beyond, and gerontologist Karl Pillemer talks about the ways older adults can teach the rest of us about living through difficult times.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The upcoming Tokyo Olympics will be one of the few Games ever to take place during a global pandemic. That means zero fans in the host city, no family or friends allowed and a ban on cheering. What effect will all of this have on the athletes? CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks to two-time Olympic rower Gevvie Stone about this week’s competition and her difficult decision to postpone medical residency an extra year to train. Dr. Gupta also hears from an athlete whose Olympic dreams were crushed by a positive Covid-19 test. And sports psychologists Catherine Sabiston and Kanyali Ilako reflect on how the lack of fans and added Covid stresses could impact athletes’ performances.  To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s been a challenging time to start a family: some had to halt fertility treatments during lockdown, while others re-evaluated whether to have children at all. For today’s episode, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta hands things over to CNN reporter Chloe Melas to talk about the journey of having kids, as well as her own personal story with infertility. Melas speaks with fertility expert Dr. Tia Jackson-Bey about barriers that low-income, minority and LGBTQ patients face when accessing fertility treatments. And demographer Philip Cohen talks about the pandemic’s impact on birth rates.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Scientifically speaking, what is the purpose of laughter? Why is it so important for our brains and well-being? And how might it help us get back to “normal” as we emerge from the pandemic? CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta speaks with Emmy- and Grammy-nominated comedian Tig Notaro about telling cancer jokes after her 2012 breast cancer diagnosis and why she actually laughed a lot during quarantine. We also hear from humor expert and psychologist Janet Gibson, as well as medical clown "Chester Drawers" played by Leo Desilets.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We all know sleep is vital, so why do many of us still find it so difficult to prioritize? CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta speaks with sleep scientist Rebecca Robbins about why we sleep in the first place and how to ensure we get a good night’s rest. And neurologist Ying-Hui Fu explores the latest research surrounding sleep, including what regulates the amount of sleep we actually need and what role genetics might play. We also meet Cliff Luther, a man who only needs about four hours of sleep a night yet wakes just as well rested as the rest of us. What’s his secret?To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Remote work, school closures, and no playdates: there’s no question the pandemic upended family life in ways that were simply unimaginable before. CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta speaks with Amanda Zelechoski, a clinical psychologist and a mom of three, about the pandemic’s effect on families’ mental health and children’s development. Anthropologist Robin Nelson explains how the pandemic has isolated many parents and the importance of communities coming together to care for our kids. And parents and children open up about their greatest challenges and what they are looking forward to most as we begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Covid restrictions are lifting but it’s still unclear what's entirely safe: Should we eat inside a restaurant? Go on that international vacation? Or attend an indoor wedding? CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at risk tolerance and how we can better assess what risks we are and aren’t willing to take. Psychologist Maria Konnikova shares what she’s learned about calculated risk from studying (and playing!) professional poker. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices