Being Well with Forrest Hanson and Dr. Rick Hanson

“All the time I work with dying people, and only a few of them know they are dying.” On this episode of Being Well, Soto Zen teacher Sensei Koshin Paley Ellison joins Forrest and Rick to explore living, dying, and personal practice in the midst of our beautiful, challenging, messy lives.   About our Guest: Sensei Koshin is an author, Zen teacher, Jungian psychotherapist, and co-founder of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. He began his formal Zen training in 1987 and completed six years of training at the Jungian Psychoanalytic Association. His most recent book is Untangled: Walking the Eightfold Path to Clarity, Courage, and Compassion.Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:40: Koshin’s got game3:20: The privilege of witnessing the dying process11:25: Difficult emotions that come up when considering death 16:00: Entanglement vs. spaciousness28:30: Windows of acceptance, and the things we don’t want to accept33:15: Compassionate presence37:55: How Jungian training has influenced Koshin’s contemplative practice42:35: What Koshin is still untangling, and the ground of being48:30: Appreciating being alive51:45: RecapNew Course From Rick! Learn the lessons of a lifetime in the new and improved Foundations of Wellbeing 2.0 program. This yearlong, online program teaches you how to grow the 12 key inner strengths that lead to lasting wellbeing during difficult times. It’s currently 50% off, and you can use the code BeingWell25 to get an additional 25% off the purchase price.Sponsors:Being Well is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re living in an anxious time, and part of the reason we’re anxious is because there are very real challenges we face both individually and collectively. But we’re also affected by the natural tendencies of the brain, which is easily influenced by fear and threat. On this episode of Being Well, Dr. Rick and Forrest Hanson focus on how we can see threats clearly and be the “right amount” of concerned. Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:20: Why is it hard for us to see threats without excessive worry?3:35: Transcending evolutionary influences toward fear6:30: The last time Rick took LSD10:45: Discerning what’s valuable in our anxieties, and leaving the rest15:45: Forrest’s apartment fire story17:35: Disagreements in evaluating a threat between people21:55: Probability of risk25:00: Practical techniques to assess threats with more clarity29:30: Existential acceptance33:30: Help for anxiety about anxiety37:15: RecapNew Course From Rick! Learn the lessons of a lifetime in the new and improved Foundations of Wellbeing 2.0 program. This yearlong, online program teaches you how to grow the 12 key inner strengths that lead to lasting wellbeing during difficult times. Our New Year's sale is running now, and you can use the code BeingWell25 to get an additional 25% off the purchase price.Sponsors:Wondrium helps you learn anything! Right now, Wondrium is offering our listeners 50% OFF their first three months. Sign up today at wondrium.com/beingwell.Being Well is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription. Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

These days couples often shoot for 50/50 in their relationships: an even split of responsibilities in the home or at work. But 50/50 often leads to fights over fairness, and this fixation on fairness can be the death of many relationships.On this episode of Being Well, Forrest and Dr. Rick are joined by Nate and Kaley Klemp to explore how we can build fun, fulfilling, and truly equitable relationships. Topics include Nate and Kaley’s early relationship struggles, different models of relationship, breaking out of old patterns, and how we can manage situations where one partner really is contributing significantly more than the other.About our Guests: Kaley Klemp is an executive coach and expert on small-group dynamics, and Nate Klemp is a bestselling author and founding partner at Mindful, one of the world's largest mindfulness media and training companies. Together, they’re the co-authors of The 80/80 Marriage: A New Model for a Happier, Stronger Relationship. Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:45: Nate and Kaley’s personal relationship as a basis for their work5:30: Three different models of relationship9:30: Two pillars to 80/80 - mindset and structure12:20: How a 50/50 dynamic caused problems for Nate and Kaley 19:20: The conscious or unconscious division of roles21:30: Gratitude and generosity25:40: Parenting, shared success, and being on a team32:15: Getting your partner’s buy-in, reveal and request39:50: Underlying beliefs and power imbalances44:20: Creating structure (and data) to have difficult conversations49:30: Distinguishing a reluctant partner from an unwilling partner52:05: Key skills that distinguish successful couples56:10: RecapNew Course From Rick! Learn the lessons of a lifetime in the new and improved Foundations of Wellbeing 2.0 program. This yearlong, online program teaches you how to grow the 12 key inner strengths that lead to lasting wellbeing during difficult times. Our New Year's sale is running now, and you can use the code BeingWell25 to get an additional 25% off the purchase price.Sponsors:Wondrium helps you learn anything! Right now, Wondrium is offering our listeners 50% OFF their first three months. Sign up today at wondrium.com/beingwell.Being Well is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription. Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore the impact of roles we play in relationships, setting boundaries, and avoiding unhealthy systems. Learn about the hazards of one-sided friendships, enacting familiar roles, and navigating role dynamics. Understand the concepts of triangulation, splitting, and narcissism in relationships. Discover practical tips for establishing boundaries and deep listening in interactions.

It’s one thing to feel good about what we do, and another to feel truly worthy from the inside out. When we increase our self-worth it allows us to take our needs more seriously, get on our own side, and change our lives for the better. On this episode of Being Well, Rick and Forrest explore how we can develop a more durable sense of self-worth. They talk about self-worth vs. self-esteem, what causes people to lack self-worth, Rick’s personal story of developing a true sense of worthiness, and why more self-worth probably won’t turn you into a narcissistic a**hole.Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:00: The value of self-worth2:50: Will improving my self-worth turn me into a narcissist?5:45: What makes people more likely to struggle with self-worth?6:50: Distinguishing self-worth from self-esteem9:30: Rick’s own journey to a better sense of self-worth14:55: Inner attacker, inner nurturer, and the beleaguered self.19:15: The process of building up your nurturing parts27:20: Investigating negative stories we tell ourselves30:55: Mutual rapport and being loving33:40: Social aspects of developing self worth, and why therapy works36:50: Non-social aspects38:20: Relating to yourself from a less ego-oriented perspective44:40: Vulnerability and tenderness in our interactions with others46:05: RecapNew Course From Rick! Learn the lessons of a lifetime in the new and improved Foundations of Wellbeing 2.0 program. This yearlong, online program teaches you how to grow the 12 key inner strengths that lead to lasting wellbeing during difficult times. Our New Year's sale is running now, and you can use the code BeingWell25 to get an additional 25% off the purchase price.Sponsors:Wondrium helps you learn anything! Right now, Wondrium is offering our listeners 50% OFF their first three months. Sign up today at wondrium.com/beingwell.Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Diego Perez, aka Yung Pueblo, discusses overcoming barriers to growth, Vipassana meditation insights, separating from the self, healthy detachment in relationships, benefits of a pen name, social media impact, and personal evolution in long-term relationships.

We all make mistakes in life. When we do it's important to take appropriate responsibility, feel the "wince," and make amends as we can. But after we've done that...then what? Many people find it easier to forgive others than they do to truly forgive themselves, and it's not uncommon to be burdened by excessive shame and guilt that has outlived its expiration date.On this episode Dr. Rick and Forrest explore forgiveness, including how we can forgive ourselves. This includes common myths and misunderstandings about forgiveness, the difference between healthy and unhealthy forms of shame and remorse, coming to terms with what we've done, and a roadmap to achieving (self-)forgiveness. Key Topics:0:00: Introduction2:05: Assumptions, approval, and what forgiveness is and is not7:45: What does healthy remorse look like?10:00: Forrest exploring a dream about appropriate remorse13:00: Our internalized justice system17:00: More on dreams and internal parts24:25: Aspects of unhealthy remorse27:30: How to move through a recurring cycle of shame and unhealthy remorse32:30: Proportionality, defensiveness, intention, and owning your mistakes41:00: Clean pain and dirty pain46:55: Some concrete practices51:40: RecapSupport the Podcast: We're on Patreon! For just the cost of a cup of coffee a month you can support the show, and receive a variety of bonuses in return.Sponsors:Listen to Season 2 of Turning Points from Boston Globe Media wherever you get your podcasts!Access over 30 at-home lab tests from Everlywell, and head to everlywell.com/beingwell for twenty percent off your next test.Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode of Being Well, Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, the author of The Body Keeps the Score, joins Rick and Forrest to explore how trauma keeps us stuck, and how we can use imagination, self-expression, and creativity to break away from those old patterns. Along the way they talk about using somatic and non-cognitive interventions, internalized abuse, the value of a developmental perspective, using psychedelics for complex trauma, some of the problems with modern psychiatry, and how we can cultivate an equitable, flexible, and compassionate approach to treatment.About Our Guest: Bessel van der Kolk is a professor of Psychiatry at the Boston University School of Medicine and president of the Trauma Research Foundation in Brookline, Massachusetts. He’s also the bestselling author of The Body Keeps the Score, which is one of the most influential modern books in the field. Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:15: Imagination and aspirational thinking in healing trauma4:55: Creativity and cultural context6:10: Where a sense of agency begins8:40: Why people internalize abuse16:30: The many practices for redefining past traumas  22:10: The state of psychedelic research and the importance of patient care29:15: The need for new approaches to diagnosis and treatment34:00: Issues with the DSM-5 and the need to integrate interpersonal processes38:50: What counts as trauma? Collective trauma?42:25: The need for cooperative strategies confronting trauma in pro-social movements45:15: What helps people resource themselves to create change?51:45: RecapNew Course From Rick! Learn the lessons of a lifetime in the new and improved Foundations of Wellbeing 2.0 program. This yearlong, online program teaches you how to grow the 12 key inner strengths that lead to lasting wellbeing during difficult times. Our New Year's sale is running now, and you can use the code BeingWell25 to get an additional 25% off the purchase price.Sponsors:Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Being Well, Rick and Forrest answer questions from listeners. They explore what they’re still working on in their relationship, how we can disengage from obsessive thoughts and old patterns, Rick’s thoughts on psychedelics and how they can be used with discernment, their views on whether human nature is innately cooperative or competitive, and much more.If you’d like to ask a question to be answered on the show, send us an email at contact@beingwellpodcast.com or support us on Patreon.Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.Key Topics:0:00: Introduction1:10: What do Rick and Forrest still find challenging in their relationship?8:40: What to do with obsessive thoughts17:00: What to do when old patterns creep up26:35: Rick’s thoughts on taking psychedelics with intention outside of therapy35:05: Respect for indigenous tradition around psychedelic plant use37:00: Interpretation, discernment, and drugs as telescopes42:45: Compassionate justice vs. holding and controlling47:50: How do we get the ideas we have about the world?53:25: RecapSponsors:Green Chef makes eating well easy with plans to fit every lifestyle. Order organic, environmentally conscious meal kits at GreenChef.com/beingwell135 and use code beingwell135 to get $135 off across five boxes - and your first box ships free!Access over 30 at-home lab tests from Everlywell, and head to everlywell.com/beingwell for twenty percent off your next test.Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!Want to sleep better? Try the Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription.MDbio is a plant-based medicine company with natural products that address sleep, anxiety, pain, and immunity. Get your FREE 10-count sample pack by going to mdbiowellness.com and entering the promo code BEINGWELL at checkout!Connect with the show: Subscribe on iTunes Follow Forrest on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Follow Forrest on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Visit Forrest's website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Democratic rising star Jason Kander discusses his journey recovering from PTSD, the impact of serving in Afghanistan, imposter syndrome, and the importance of supporting veterans' mental health. Highlights include overcoming anxiety, hypervigilance, therapy techniques for PTSD, and advocating for mental health services for homeless veterans.