This week, host Paula Felps chats with Scott Crabtree, chief happiness officer at Happy Brain Science, about the surprising science behind music festivals. In this energizing episode, you’ll discover how live music fires up your brain with feel-good chemicals, why dancing helps bust stress and boost memory, and how festivals foster powerful connections that fight loneliness. Whether you're a seasoned festivalgoer or thinking about jumping back in, this episode makes the case for putting live mus...
Jul 08, 2025•28 min•Season 10Ep. 48
This week on Live Happy Now, host Paula Felps sits down with Emely Rumble — licensed clinical social worker, bibliopsychotherapist, and author of Bibliotherapy in the Bronx — to explore the healing power of stories. Emely shares how fiction, poetry, and even children’s books can help us reflect, process emotions, and build empathy in ways traditional self-help books can’t. With summer reading season in full swing, she explains how to create your own “book prescription” for better mental health a...
Jul 01, 2025•31 min•Season 10Ep. 47
Dreams aren’t just fleeting images; they’re powerful tools for transformation. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Bonnie Buckner, PhD, founder of the International Institute for Dreaming and Imagery®, to explore how dreams can unlock creativity, solve life’s toughest challenges, and help us live with greater purpose. As an expert in creative dreamwork, Buckner blends insights from cognitive psychology, neurobiology, and leadership coaching to reveal how an ancient dreaming method can res...
Jun 24, 2025•28 min•Season 10Ep. 46
Summer officially begins on June 20, and that’s the perfect time to bring back Live Happy’s Summer of Fun! We’ve teamed up with organizational psychologist Mike Rucker, PhD, to offer a free eight-week email course based on the principles of his book, The Fun Habit: How the Pursuit of Joy and Wonder Can Change Your Life. In this episode, he explains how this course will help you learn to program your life for fun this summer — and beyond. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why making a commitment to ...
Jun 17, 2025•24 min•Season 10Ep. 45
When we talk about becoming strong women, we’re often not talking about something physical. But this week’s guest explains how reclaiming our physical power can also build our inner strength. Anne Marie Chaker is a veteran journalist and professional bodybuilder who discovered the connection between strength training and inner transformation. In her debut book, LIFT: How Women Can Reclaim Their Physical Power and Transform Their Lives, she shares her personal story and the research showing how s...
Jun 10, 2025•25 min•Season 10Ep. 44
In a time of deep division and unease, overcoming our loneliness and uncertainty is a massive challenge. This week, award-winning author, educator, lawyer, scientist, and meditation teacher Anu Gupta sits down with host Paula Felps to explain how — and where — we can start. His best-selling book, Breaking Bias: Where Stereotypes and Prejudices Come From and the Science-Backed Method to Unravel Them, is a rich toolkit to help each of us understand how to cultivate the wisdom and compassion we nee...
Jun 03, 2025•33 min•Season 10Ep. 43
As we wrap up mental health awareness month, it’s a great time to talk with someone who is literally changing how we talk about mental health. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Dominic Lawson, an accomplished, award-winning podcaster whose new show, Mental Health Rewritten, is tackling stigmatized mental health topics head-on. By taking on issues surrounding addiction and recovery, he is changing the way we talk about such things as sex, suicide, and cultural identity — and is teaching al...
May 27, 2025•27 min•Season 10Ep. 42
Our brains are incredibly powerful, and the trick is to learn how to make them work for us, not against us. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Dr. Kyra Bobinet, a physician, public health leader, and behavior change designer whose work focuses on how to build optimal health for a more fulfilling life. Her new book, Unstoppable Brain: The New Neuroscience That Frees Us From Failure, Eases Our Stress, and Creates Lasting Change explores a relatively new area of study that changes what we k...
May 20, 2025•31 min•Season 10Ep. 41
By now, we’ve all heard how important friendships and connections are for our well-being, but sometimes we’re unsure where to find those connections. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Dr. Lori Whatley, a clinical psychologist and author who specializes in the effects of digital usage on our relationships. Her new book, Happier Together: How to Find Your People and Make Friends That Last, walks us through how we can create new connections, deepen existing ones, and discover what we need ...
May 13, 2025•23 min•Season 10Ep. 40
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, which makes it a great time to remind ourselves of some of the best practices to improve our well-being. Join host Paula Felps as she talks with Live Happy CEO and co-founder Deborah Heisz about some of the new research around happiness, why our mental health is at risk these days, and what we can do about it. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why our happiness is declining and how the lack of civil discourse is exacerbating it. The dangers of toxic positivity....
May 06, 2025•24 min•Season 10Ep. 39
We are living in rapidly changing times, and many people feel exhausted by the events that are unfolding. But this week’s guest says that letting go of our attachment to what’s happening could be the best thing for our mental health. Host Paula Felps talks with Dr. Bob Rosen, a bestselling author known for his work on leadership and personal development, about his latest book, Detach: Ditch Your Baggage to Live a More Fulfilling Life. He explains how we sabotage our happiness with unhealthy emot...
Apr 29, 2025•28 min•Season 10Ep. 38
Scott Crabtree founded the company Happy Brain Science to help others discover well-being rooted in positive psychology. And, as a semi-professional musician, he knows firsthand how we can use music as a tool for boosting our mood and regulating our emotions. During difficult times, music can be particularly helpful, and in this episode, Scott sits down with host Paula Felps to talk about why music is so good for your brain, how it can help us find a state of flow, and how songwriting is a great...
Apr 24, 2025•24 min•Ep. 67
What if the only thing standing between you and a more fulfilling life was your mindset? This week, host Paula Felps talks with Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman — a leading cognitive psychologist, professor at Columbia University, director of the Center for Human Potential, and host of The Psychology Podcast — about how today’s culture has helped foster a victim mindset. His latest book, Rise Above: Overcome a Victim Mindset, Empower Yourself & Realize Your Full Potential, explains what is driving a ...
Apr 22, 2025•24 min•Ep. 66
When Sam Simon’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, he used his theatrical experience to chronicle his journey as a caregiver. And when he was diagnosed with cognitive decline in 2022, he turned that into a theatrical experience as well. Today, his one-man play, Dementia Man: An Existential Journey, recounts his journey and reshapes the narrative for families living with dementia and cognitive decline, offering hope and encouragement along the way. In this episode, you’ll learn: How Sam disc...
Apr 15, 2025•18 min•Season 10Ep. 36
We all have birthdays, but maybe we’re not getting as much out of them as we could! This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Tamar Hurwitz-Fleming, a birthday aficionado and author of the book and workbook, How to Have a Happy Birthday: Create Meaning, Fulfillment and Joy on Your Special Day. Tamar offers a new spin on how we approach birthdays and explains how we can use it as a yearly chance to drive lasting growth and change. In this episode, you’ll learn: How Tamar discovered the transformat...
Apr 08, 2025•27 min•Season 10Ep. 35
In tumultuous times, mindset matters more than ever. So this week, host Paula Felps sits down with Michael Pilarczyk, bestselling author of the book Master Your Mindset: Live a Meaningful Life and founder of the Meditation Moments app. Michael shares how we can create a happier life — even in the most challenging times — by changing our mindset. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to let go of negative thinking patterns. Why meditation can be done anywhere — and doesn’t have to take a lot of time...
Apr 01, 2025•28 min•Season 10Ep. 34
The release of the World Happiness Report each year offers insight into our global well-being. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Dr. Felix Cheung, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and a faculty fellow at the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society. He’s also the Canada Research Chair in Population Well-being at the University of Toronto and one of the co-authors of this year’s report. Felix shares what the report tells us about social connections – and whe...
Mar 25, 2025•26 min•Season 10Ep. 33
March 23 is National Puppy Day, which makes it a great time to talk about how and why we celebrate puppies. But before talking about how and why we celebrate that event, host Brittany Derrenbacher sits down with Paula Felps to dive into some new research on petting your dogs that just might change the way you leave the house. Then, Brittany explains what your dog might be thinking while you’re gone. In this episode, you’ll learn: How petting your dog before you leave the house helps ease their a...
Mar 20, 2025•26 min•Ep. 65
Some of our most vital connections are those we make with our romantic partners, but they can also be our most challenging. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Greg Kettner, relationship expert Dr Gloria Lee, a professor of counselling psychology and clinical director at Brentwood Counselling Centre in Vancouver, Canada, and author of the best-selling book, The Connected Couple: 7 Secrets to Transforming Your Relationship. She explains what it takes to truly connect as a couple, how to navi...
Mar 18, 2025•33 min•Season 10Ep. 32
As we continue exploring the importance of connections, we can’t ignore the growing problem of loneliness in the workplace. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Greg Kettner, a speaker and workplace happiness expert who founded the Work Happy movement. Greg has studied how loneliness at work affects us all, and in this episode, he shares what he’s learned and what we all can do to become more connected and happier in our jobs. In this episode, you’ll learn: Some of the factors driving loneli...
Mar 11, 2025•27 min•Ep. 64
As part of Happiness Month, we’re exploring the theme of Connections, so this week, host Paula Felps is joined by Dr. Nichole Argo, founder and executive director of the TogetherUp Institute, which has launched a national movement of Americans who want to connect and collaborate across our differences. Nichole also co-hosts the Reimagining Us podcast, which looks at how to heal division in our communities and create a sense of belonging. In this episode, she shares how we can learn to make conne...
Mar 04, 2025•31 min•Season 10Ep. 30
This week, as we move toward our Happiness Month, we’re bringing you what you might call a happiness double header. In this episode, host Paula Felps is joined by two influencers of the global happiness movement: Deborah Heisz, co-founder of Live Happy, and Karen Guggenheim, founder of the World Happiness Summit (WOHASU). Tune in to find out how connections and community are taking center stage in this year’s celebrations how you can be part of it! In this episode, you’ll learn: What to expect f...
Feb 25, 2025•30 min•Season 10Ep. 29
We’ve all seen service dogs in action, but most of us don’t know just what heroes they are. Today’s guest is here to tell us all about the secret lives of service dogs. Shannon Walker is the CEO & Founder of Northwest Battle Buddies, a nonprofit providing service dogs to combat veterans with PTSD. Inspired by her father, who was a veteran, she also founded Man’s Best Friend Dog Training and has worked tirelessly to not only train service dogs but to educate the public about what they do and ...
Feb 20, 2025•36 min
From childhood, we’re taught that helping others is the right thing to do. But what happens when it goes too far? This week, host Paula Felps sits down with author and podcast host Amy Wilson to talk about her entertaining new book, Happy to Help: Adventures of a People Pleaser, to learn more about what turns us into people pleasers, when to know it’s a problem, and what to do about it. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why women are more likely to become “helpers” throughout their lives. What dema...
Feb 18, 2025•28 min•Season 10Ep. 28
This is a time of year when we celebrate love, but we sometimes take for granted the special love that our friendships offer. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with professor and research psychologist Dr. Kimberly Horn to learn more about just how important friendships are for our health and happiness — and what we can do to make them stronger and more fulfilling. In this episode, you’ll learn: What’s driving the loneliness epidemic and what effect that has on us. The concept of “dynamic fri...
Feb 11, 2025•35 min•Ep. 27
The cold, gray days of winter can have a direct effect on our mental health, so this week, host Paula Felps sits down with clinical psychologist Dr. Michele Leno to learn more about how we can make the next few weeks a little brighter — regardless of what’s going on outside our window. Michele offers insight into how seasonal changes affect our brains and what we can do for ourselves and those around us. In this episode, you’ll learn: What causes physiological changes during winter months and ho...
Feb 04, 2025•29 min•Season 10Ep. 26
It's a common belief that achieving our goals and reaching success equates to peace and happiness. But what happens when it doesn’t? This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Tom Rosshirt, a former Capitol Hill press secretary and White House speechwriter who reached the pinnacle of his career only to find himself battling anxiety, depression, and illness. In his new book, Chasing Peace: A Story of Breakdowns, Breakthroughs, and the Spiritual Power of Neuroscience, Tom reveals how his relentless ...
Jan 28, 2025•29 min•Season 10Ep. 25
As we grapple with the challenges of living in a polarized society, psychologist Kurt Gray returns to talk about how we can find common ground. In the second part of this two-part episode, Kurt, author of the new book, Outraged: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics and How to Find Common Ground, guides us through the steps to foster more civil dialogue. He also delves into the role that empathy plays in overcoming our outrage and explains why we need people who don’t think like we do. In thi...
Jan 21, 2025•25 min•Season 10Ep. 24
We have entered a time of unprecedented polarization that’s creating division among friends, family members, and co-workers. Understanding what’s driving our outrage is the first step in discovering what we can do about it, and in this first of two episodes, host Paula Felps sits down with Kurt Gray, author of the new book, Outrage: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics and How to Find Common Ground. This week Kurt – a professor in psychology and neuroscience at the University of North Caroli...
Jan 14, 2025•27 min•Ep. 63
This is the perfect time to think about what we’d like to accomplish in the new year, and starting a creativity practice is one way to discover new strengths and reach new goals. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Rochelle Seltzer, a leadership coach, speaker, and author of Live Big: A Manifesto for a Creative Life. She explains why creativity is a natural boost for our mental health and tells us how we can use it to navigate uncertain times and how it can give us direction for the new y...
Jan 06, 2025•26 min•Ep. 62
