Finding the Sweet Spot with Dr. Christine Carter

What is the "highest happiness," and what can we do to achieve it?  This is the second conversation with Dr. Hanson related to his new book Neurodharma: New Science, Ancient Wisdom, and Seven Practices of the Highest Happiness. Today we're focusing on the final four practices in the book: wholeness, nowness, allness, and timelessness.  Neurodharma is now available! Click here if you'd like to learn more. New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 2:00: Why aim for “the heights of human potential” when the here and now already seems so challenging? 7:30: Wholeness, Nowness, Allness, and Timelessness.  11:00: What is an aspect of awakening? 14:20: The front edge of now.  17:00: The value of timelessness for a “normal person.” 23:00: The elements of consciousness.  26:45: The inherent emptiness of things.  32:50: Avoiding the pitfalls of emptiness.  34:30: The apparent self.  38:00: Our relationship to changing the self.  Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

27 Huhti 202048min

Throughout history people have sought the heights of human potential - to become as wise, strong, happy, and loving as any person can ever be. Call these peak experiences, sense of oneness, or enlightenment itself. And now, science is revealing how these remarkable ways of being seem to be based on equally remarkable changes in our own nervous system. What do those individuals have in common, how did they reach that summit, and what can we learn from them? That's the subject of Rick's new book: Neurodharma: New Science, Ancient Wisdom, and Seven Practices of the Highest Happiness.  Neurodharma comes out May 5th, and is now available for pre-order. Click here if you'd like to learn more. New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 2:15: What is the upper bound of human potential, and why should we care? 5:30: Different ways of knowing ourselves 10:00: How can modern science contribute to personal growth? 15:00: How is the brain of an “enlightened” person different from our own? 20:00: The janas, and how they change the brain.  24:00: The seven practices of the highest happiness.  28:00: Experiencing the body as a whole.  35:00: Balancing me and we.  40:00: Egocentric and allocentric.  Sponsor Message: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

20 Huhti 202048min

I want to express the profound gratitude I feel toward everyone who is serving others during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic. In particular, healthcare providers, first responders, and the whole ecosystem of helpers who have come together to support us all. I've received a number of truly humbling requests to offer a guided practice aimed at supporting the inner strengths those providers need so desperately these days. This meditation focuses on cultivating a feeling of both acceptance and calm strength. I hope you find it helpful. From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes New Book: If you're interested in Dr. Hanson's work, you'll love his new book Neurodharma. It explores the new science and ancient wisdom for being as wise and strong, happy and loving, as any person can ever be. It comes out May 5th, follow the link to pre-order.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

17 Huhti 202018min

How can we continue to support others when our own well has run dry? Today we're exploring practices for managing and overcoming both direct traumatic stress and compassion fatigue, or "secondary traumatic stress."  New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 3:00: The anxiety, outrage, and overwhelm of this moment. 7:00: Finding refuge.  12:00: Refuge and purpose in the collective experience.  15:00: Surrendering to the moment as it is. 17:00: Opening to the experience and letting it go.  22:00: Giving yourself permission to feel.  26:00: "Want to" and "have to." 28:00: A message of gratitude.  From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Hardwire lasting change into your mind and heart in just a few minutes a day  with Dr. Rick Hanson's new program: Just One Minute. Use the code BEINGWELL at checkout for 10% off the purchase price! Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

13 Huhti 202032min

Over the last month many people have been stuck at home - occasionally with people they'd rather not be around. Maintaining a healthy relationship can be a struggle under the best of times, let alone during times of stress. On this episode we explore how individuals and families can deal with the interpersonal stress that comes from being stuck together, and the sadness and loss that comes from being separated from things we love. New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 3:00: The costs of sustained stress 4:40: Unique pressures placed on relationships during this time.  8:00: Specific tools for maintaining a healthy relationship 15:00: How we’ve been supported by our circumstances until now. 17:15: Redefining ourselves during this time. 24:00: Seeing your own good purposes.  26:00: Experiencing common humanity. From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Hardwire lasting change into your mind and heart in just a few minutes a day with Dr. Rick Hanson's new program: Just One Minute. Use the code BEINGWELL at checkout for 10% off the purchase price! Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

6 Huhti 202037min

It's often easier to be a good friend to others than to ourselves. Today we're exploring how to balance constructive and harmful self-criticism, move away from our "act," embrace change, manage feelings of worthlessness, and ultimately be a good friend to ourselves. New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 3:15: A few ways to be kind to yourself. 8:15: Finding your key resources. 12:50: Useful vs. harmful self-criticism.  15:00: Putting your past in perspective.  20:15: Moving away from the “act.” 23:00: Finding optimal distance. 28:00: Ways to tune into your own goodness. 34:00: What to do when you don’t feel like a good person. 43:00: Narcissism vs. authentic feelings of goodness.  46:00: Relating to the self as something that can change.  50:00: Ego ideal From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Hardwire lasting change into your mind and heart in just a few minutes a day  with Dr. Rick Hanson's new program: Just One Minute. Use the code BEINGWELL at checkout for 10% off the purchase price! Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

30 Maalis 202054min

How can we use mindfulness practically during our everyday lives, and how can "presence" be a particularly valuable tool for women? About Our Guest: Caroline Welch is the CEO and co-founder of the Mindsight Institute. Mindsight, a term coined by Dr. Dan Siegel, is our human capacity to perceive the mind of the self and others. It’s essentially a kind of focused attention that help us observe the working of our own mind, and helps get us off of the autopilot of ingrained behaviors and habitual responses. Caroline's new book, The Gift of Presence: A Mindfulness Guide for Women, offers a scientifically inspired approach to a simple question: Is there a way for women to live with more calm amid the chaos?  From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Hardwire lasting change into your mind and heart in just a few minutes a day  with Dr. Rick Hanson's new program: Just One Minute. Use the code BEINGWELL at checkout for 10% off the purchase price! Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Key Topics: 4:00: Aspects of mindfulness that may be particularly important for women. 10:00: Pivoting, and why mindfulness can be a valuable aid to making good choices.  15:30: Do men and women experience presence differently?  18:30: The importance of representation.  21:45: Stories from the book that particularly stuck with Caroline.  24:15: Multitasking and being “in the moment.” 27:00: Pace, and the right to slow down. 29:00: Regrets of the dying.  32:00: A message to your younger self.  Connect with the show: Visit us on the web Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

23 Maalis 202035min

We haven’t generally done episodes related to current events, but these events are challenging to ignore. The coronavirus pandemic has already placed a heavy toll on society – over a hundred thousand people have already been sick, thousands are dead, businesses, schools, and recreational events have closed, and there's been substantial economic turmoil. Today we’re exploring how to cope with the natural fears that arise during challenging times, the difference between useful and harmful anxiety, and how we can grow the inner strengths we need to thrive when things get tough. New Sponsor: Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Key Topics: 4:50: Rick’s approach to this moment. 6:00: Claiming your agency. 10:40: Useful anxiety vs. harmful anxiety. 13:45: What makes something uniquely scary. 18:15: Finding, sometimes not particularly useful, ways to express agency. 22:30: How to start determining which form of anxiety you’re experiencing. 25:00: Three ways to work with excessive negative rumination. 28:30: Tools for managing needless anxiety. 33:00: Recognizing privilege while working through survivor’s guilt.  36:30: Anger and the sadness underneath it. From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Hardwire lasting change into your mind and heart in just a few minutes a day  with Dr. Rick Hanson's new program: Just One Minute. Use the code BEINGWELL at checkout for 10% off the purchase price! Support the Podcast: We're now on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Connect with the show: Follow us on Instagram Follow Rick on Facebook Follow Forrest on Facebook Subscribe on iTunes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

16 Maalis 202047min