Donating money can induce anxiety if you’re not sure how to afford it or feel pressured into doing so by the people around you. Host Cristina Quinn talks to Washington Post personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary about how to give back, whether it’s through money or time. Singletary reminds us that there’s always a way to give. She explains how to think through where you want to give, how to afford it and how to commit to giving year-round. Michelle Singletary also shares her personal exp...
Dec 08, 2025•22 min•Season 10Ep. 2
What’s really going on inside the brain of an altruist? Why do altruists care so much more for a stranger who needs help? Why are they so willing to give away a kidney? In this episode, host Cristina Quinn explores what it means to be an altruist with Abigail Marsh, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Georgetown University. Together, they break down how altruists view their own actions and how others can become more altruistic too. Marsh offers insight into what scientists know about a...
Dec 01, 2025•20 min•Season 10Ep. 1
Now that we’ve learned that chronic stress ages the brain, let’s put what we learned into practice. Join “Try This” host Cristina Quinn as she leads a 5-minute box breathing exercise. For more on ways to reduce your risk of dementia, check out some of The Post’s reporting: How to calm your mind with breathing, according to science How to use your voice to reduce your stress and feel calmer 5-minute breathing exercises can improve your mood and reduce anxiety Subscribe to The Washington Post or c...
Nov 06, 2025•6 min•Season 9Ep. 4
When we’re in constant stress, our brains become less resilient. Chronic stress can lead to inflammation of the brain — increasing our risk of cognitive decline. Breathing exercises hold a lot of power for calming the body and brain. Host Cristina Quinn talks to Washington Post Brain Matters columnist Richard Sima , as well as neuroscientist and psychiatrist Helen Lavretsky from UCLA, about steps we can take to reduce stress and improve our brain health. Sima unpacks what inflammation does to ou...
Nov 06, 2025•16 min•Season 9Ep. 3
As we age, we can develop a higher risk for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. It may even run in our families for some of us. But hope is not lost: About half of dementia cases are potentially preventable. Host Cristina Quinn walks us through the U.S. POINTER study led by Laura Baker , professor of gerontology and geriatrics at Wake Forest School of Medicine. This study is considered the largest clinical trial examining how simple lifestyle changes like eating healthier, staying socially engaged...
Oct 30, 2025•19 min•Season 9Ep. 2
Your brain does a lot of work. It’s processing and adapting to changing environments and routines throughout our lives. In this episode, host Cristina Quinn talks with The Washington Post’s “Brain Matters” columnist, Richard Sima , about our aging brains, what a healthy one looks like, and why we don’t necessarily have to worry about forgetting where we put our keys. For more on brain health and aging, check out some of The Post’s reporting: How does the brain age across the lifespan? New studie...
Oct 23, 2025•18 min•Season 9Ep. 1
Just the thought of going to the gym or lifting a dumbbell can feel intimidating. Good news — you don’t need either of these to strength-train! In this episode of “Try This,” host Cristina Quinn chats with Washington Post health columnist Gretchen Reynolds about what strength training is and how to do it anywhere – and no matter your fitness level. Gretchen shares why building and maintaining muscle is so important as we age, and how just one hour of strength training per week can go a long way....
Sep 11, 2025•34 min
If you look at social media these days, there’s any number of fashion influencers and brands telling you what clothes to buy and how to wear them. In this episode of “Try This,” host Cristina Quinn gets real with The Washington Post’s fashion critic, Rachel Tashjian, and Style Memo newsletter writer Shane O’Neill about moving beyond trends and finding the outfits that match your identity – inside and out. You’ll sashay away with tips on how to think about your clothes, how to experiment with dif...
Jul 23, 2025•25 min
From unpredictable flight prices to record-breaking heat waves and ever-changing rules about passports and Real IDs, travel today is more complicated than ever. This week on “Try This,” host Cristina Quinn sits down with Washington Post travel reporter Natalie Compton, who shares her best tips for navigating it all without losing your patience (or your luggage). Natalie breaks down exactly when and how to book flights for the best deals and why compression bags and eye masks might be your secret...
Jul 15, 2025•33 min
The “Try This” podcast has a new companion – the “Try This: Gut Check" newsletter . It’s a five-part newsletter series that breaks down what science actually says about how to support gut health without stress, supplements, or confusing trends. In the newsletter, host Cristina Quinn explores questions like: What’s the deal with probiotics? Do fermented foods really help? How do you actually eat more fiber without overhauling your life? Each edition is practical, easy to digest (pun intended), an...
Jul 10, 2025•3 min•Season 8Ep. 4
Gut health advice can be overwhelming. But science suggests that supporting the gut doesn’t have to be complicated. In this episode, Trisha Pasricha and Karen Corbin break down what research says about how to care for the gut in everyday life. They explain how to make gut-friendly choices at the grocery store, what to consider before taking a daily probiotic, and why it’s possible to support gut health without stress or strict rules. Their tips focus on what works and what’s less reliable. For m...
Jul 08, 2025•17 min•Season 8Ep. 3
What you eat changes your gut, and your gut affects your metabolism. Host Cristina Quinn talks to researcher Karen Corbin about how your gut and metabolism work together to process certain foods, all while managing your body’s energy. Karen Corbin, a nutrition and metabolism researcher at AdventHealth Translational Research Institute, walks us through her latest research on how our gut and metabolism respond to whole vs. ultraprocessed foods. Foods that optimize this gut-and-metabolism relations...
Jul 01, 2025•14 min•Season 8Ep. 2
What’s really going on inside your gut, and why should you care? In this episode, host Cristina Quinn explores the inner workings of the gut microbiome with Trisha Pasricha, a gastroenterologist and instructor at Harvard Medical School. Together, they break down what the microbiome is, where it lives, and how it influences everything from digestion to disease. Pasricha explains how the gut microbiome acts as a key player in our overall health and why fiber may be one of the most underrated tools...
Jun 24, 2025•12 min•Season 8Ep. 1
Want to be a better conversationalist, listener, and all-around great company? In this special episode, host Cristina Quinn talks with Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist and author Charles Duhigg (" Supercommunicators " and " The Power of Habit ") about the science of effective communication. Duhigg breaks down why some conversations feel effortless while others leave us frustrated — and how simple skills like asking deeper questions, practicing active listening, and matching emotional tones can ...
Apr 30, 2025•31 min
It’s not only about digital boundaries. Washington Post tech columnist Geoffrey Fowler, in conversation with host Cristina Quinn, shares insights on physical and social boundaries we need to put in place to reclaim our focus. He offers tips like setting expectations at work and designating screen-free hours with family. And addiction psychiatrist Anna Lembke reminds us why breaking free from digital distractions isn’t just an individual effort, but a collective one. By the end of this episode, y...
Apr 08, 2025•14 min•Season 7Ep. 4
If you're ready to take back control of your attention, here’s where to start. Host Cristina Quinn chats with Washington Post tech columnist Geoffrey Fowler about self-binding — creating intentional boundaries with your devices to reduce distractions and reclaim your focus. Geoffrey shares his own experiments and practical strategies, such as reorganizing a home screen and resetting algorithms. They also grapple with why traditional time limits on apps often backfire and how something as simple ...
Apr 01, 2025•15 min•Season 7Ep. 3
Many of us are caught in a loop of instant gratification, driven by the brain’s reward system. In this episode, host Cristina Quinn talks with psychiatrist and addiction expert Anna Lembke about how to break free from compulsive digital habits and reset our dopamine levels. Anna explains how our brains become desensitized to pleasure over time, making us crave more and more stimulation. The good news? A 30-day “abstinence trial” can help reset our baseline and bring our dopamine levels back into...
Mar 25, 2025•16 min•Season 7Ep. 2
Ever wonder why you can’t stop scrolling, even when you know you should? It probably comes down to dopamine, a key neurotransmitter that drives pleasure and motivation. In this episode, host Cristina Quinn talks to psychiatrist Anna Lembke, author of “Dopamine Nation,” about the neuroscience behind digital addiction. Anna explains how our devices keep us hooked by triggering dopamine surges — and why, over time, this actually leaves us feeling worse. She breaks down the “plenty paradox,” the ide...
Mar 18, 2025•10 min•Season 7Ep. 1
In the third and final episode of our three-part course on cultivating joy, host Cristina Quinn dives into the connection between spreading kindness and experiencing happiness. Steven Petrow , author of “ The Joy You Make ,” shares compelling research on the “ helper’s high ” and how you can bring joy to others and yourself — whether it’s through volunteering, helping a neighbor or even sharing a simple moment with a stranger. Steven also challenges listeners to reconnect with lost traditions, s...
Dec 23, 2024•12 min•Season 6Ep. 3
In this second class in our course on finding joy, host Cristina Quinn explores practical exercises to help you embrace joy in everyday life. Steven Petrow , author of “ The Joy You Make ” and a contributing columnist for The Post, shares how things like wandering without a destination and rediscovering play can open the door to more joy, even during life’s toughest moments. Steven helps you learn how to cultivate joy through presence and curiosity, the transformative power of “getting lost” to ...
Dec 19, 2024•9 min•Season 6Ep. 2
Happiness, it turns out, comes down to a science — even though what makes each of us happy can vary pretty widely. Host Cristina Quinn talks to happiness scientist Emiliana Simon-Thomas, science director at UC-Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center , about exactly what makes us happy and how much of our sense of joy is within our control. Drawing from the science of happiness, Emiliana explains that happiness isn’t about chasing fleeting positive emotions, but rather it’s about fostering an over...
Dec 17, 2024•13 min•Season 6Ep. 1
The electoral college has served as the system to elect U.S. presidents since the earliest days of the country. And while it has evolved over the years, Americans still use this complex representative system to choose their country’s leaders. The system, however, is not without its flaws — and many have pushed for alternatives over the years. In the third class about how the electoral college works, host Cristina Quinn talks with historian Alex Keyssar about potential alternatives to the way the...
Oct 17, 2024•12 min•Season 5Ep. 3
In the second class in our series about how the electoral college works, host Cristina Quinn talks to historian Alex Keyssar of the Harvard Kennedy School about the compromises that drove the Founding Fathers to land on a complex, winner-takes-all system rather than a straightforward popular vote. Keyssar walks listeners through the evolution of our voting system in the years following the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, and how things like electoral vote ties, the introduction of politic...
Oct 17, 2024•12 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Remembering all the complex details of how the electoral college works is not exactly easy. And just when you’ve mastered how it all adds up, you probably won’t need to think about it again for another four years — hardly a formula for cementing something in your brain. “Try This” host Cristina Quinn is here to help. The first class in our three-part series on the electoral college explains how the system works, the complicated way electoral votes are assigned and awarded, and what happens betwe...
Oct 17, 2024•14 min•Season 5Ep. 1
The team behind “Try This” is dedicated to helping listeners learn new things, in ways that feel doable. So we're sharing a recent “Post Reports” episode about how polling works. On this episode of The Washington Post’s daily news podcast, “Post Reports,” Martine Powers speaks with The Post’s deputy polling director, Emily Guskin. Emily explains how a poll comes to be, details what to look for when trying to understand whether a poll is trustworthy, and breaks down once and for all what “margin ...
Oct 09, 2024•28 min
Humans have a tendency to interpret information and experiences in ways that support our existing beliefs. Host Cristina Quinn returns to clinical psychologist Natalie Dattilo-Ryan to understand how you can change long-held beliefs by using confirmation bias in your favor. Datillo-Ryan explains how to identify a belief about the type of person you want to be and then figure out steps you can take to support that goal. For more on how to make affirmations work for you, read this from The Post’s A...
Sep 17, 2024•13 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Affirmations help buffer stress and can make you emotionally and mentally stronger. Host Cristina Quinn talks to clinical psychologist Natalie Dattilo-Ryan about what kinds of affirmations are most effective. She lays out an exercise to help get you started with identifying the right kinds of statements to shore up your sense of self. Next, Cristina dives into research on affirmations and stress levels with Carnegie Mellon University psychology and neuroscience professor David Creswell. Creswell...
Sep 10, 2024•15 min•Season 4Ep. 1
In the last class in our course on how to enjoy cooking more, we bring you everything and the kitchen sink. From reliable shortcuts and suggestions for the most essential pantry staples, this class has all the scraps and tasty morsels that could have been left on the cutting-room floor but are too good to miss. For more on the relationship between food, cooking and mental health, read Mary Beth Albright’s book “ Eat and Flourish. ” Find more than 10,000 recipes – sortable by cuisine, course and ...
Jul 18, 2024•11 min•Season 3Ep. 4
In the third class in our course on how to enjoy cooking more, we focus on reframing the way we think about the task. Food writer and finalist on “Food Network Star,” Mary Beth Albright, offers advice on how to understand cooking as less of an item on your to-do list and more of an act for you that can nourish your well-being in ways that are worth recognizing. Mary Beth lays out ways that the process of cooking has benefits for our mental and emotional health through meditative tasks, appreciat...
Jul 11, 2024•10 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In the second class of our course about ways to enjoy the daily task of preparing meals, we make the case for revisiting what you know. Washington Post food and dining editor Joe Yonan, along with recipes editor Becky Krystal and food writer Aaron Hutcherson, explain how building a repertoire can be a useful way to take the drudgery out of cooking, put it on a bit of autopilot and build up your kitchen confidence. Host Cristina Quinn helps listeners identify recipes that resonate, master them th...
Jul 04, 2024•11 min•Season 3Ep. 2
