From the Blog
Writings on Well-Being Dr. Rick Hanson
Being Well Podcast: Self-Sabotage: Why You Do What You Shouldn’t, and How to Stop
We all self-sabotage – procrastinate, pick fights, or pull back – and Dr. Rick & Forrest explore why and how to stop it in this episode.
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Talk + Meditation: The Seductions of Healthy Desires
Feeling overwhelmed, always striving, or burnt out—even from good intentions? Learn how to stay centered and content through your core practice.
What to Do When the Bottom Falls Out?
It’s normal to feel shocked, frozen, frightened, or outraged. But here are four fundamental strengths to help us feel and function better in difficult times.
Being Well Podcast: Terry Real: Great Relationships, True Intimacy, and Inner Child Work
Forrest is joined by renowned couples therapist Terry Real to explore how we can get past our conditioning and build deeper, more meaningful connections.
Meditation + Talk: Lead with Peace and Purpose
Guest teacher Mandar Apte explored one of the central dilemmas of our time: how do we stay hopeful and take meaningful action in a world overwhelmed by violence, division, and despair?
Feel Already Full
Craving is pointless; the truth is there’s always an underlying fullness already. While the truth of futility is that it is hopeless to crave, the truth of fullness is that craving is unnecessary.
Being Well Podcast: OCD and Anxiety Disorders with Kimberley Quinlan
Forrest is joined by Kimberley Quinlan to explore one of the most misunderstood anxiety disorders: obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Meditation + Talk: How to Calm the Biological Machinery of Stress and Suffering
Feeling overwhelmed or stressed? Learn how your nervous system works—and simple, science-backed ways to calm down, open up, and feel more present and content.
Don’t Quarrel
It’s one thing to stick up for yourself & others. It’s a different matter to get caught up in wrangles, contentiousness – in a word: quarrels.
Being Well Podcast: People Pleasing, AI Therapy, and Sexual Transference: May Mailbag
Dr. Rick and Forrest open the mailbag and answer questions from listeners about people pleasing, the potential (and pitfalls) of using AI as a therapist, and what to do when you develop strong feelings for your therapist.
Meditation + Talk: Key Steps in Your Personal Growth Journey
Discover six key turning points on the path of practice—from calming the mind to letting go of craving—and come home to the peaceful strength already inside you.
Feed the Mouse
When you feel fed – physically, emotionally, conceptually – you naturally let go of longing, disappointment, frustration, and craving. The hungry heart gets a full meal; goals are attained and the striving for them relaxes; one feels lifted by life as it is. What a relief!
Feeling fed also helps you enjoy positive emotions such as pleasure, contentment, accomplishment, ease, and worth. As researchers have shown, these good feelings reduce stress, help people bounce back from illness and loss, strengthen resilience, draw attention to the big picture, and build inner resources. And when your own cup runneth over, studies have found that you’re more inclined to give to others; feeling good helps you do good.
Being Well Podcast: Disorganized Attachment: Heal By Embracing Your Needs
Dr. Rick and Forrest explore disorganized, or “fearful,” attachment, a complex style that occurs when emotional intimacy and distance both feel uncomfortable, and typically arises based on difficult life experiences.
Meditation + Talk: The Quiet Strength You Already Have Inside
Feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or like you’re not enough? Learn how to stop striving, trust your inner wisdom, and tap into the quiet strength already in you.
Being Well Podcast: Living with Depression | Dr. Scott Eilers
Forrest is joined by clinical psychologist Dr. Scott Eilers to explore how he both treats and lives with chronic depression.
Meditation + Talk: Four Ways to Deal with Life’s Challenges Without Suffering Them
Struggling with stress, regret, or overwhelm? Learn four powerful ways to calm your mind, stop overthinking, and find real peace—backed by brain science.
See What’s Likable
Liking feels good, and it encourages us to approach and engage the world. We’re wired to like some things, but our liking or disliking depends greatly on what we pay attention to and our own perspective.
Being Well Podcast: Live Show: Yung Pueblo on Relationships, Change, and Mindfulness
Forrest is joined by poet and author Diego Perez – better known as Yung Pueblo – for a live conversation recorded at City Arts & Lectures in San Francisco.
Meditation + Talk: Engaged Buddhism – Including Today
Explore how engaged Buddhism connects inner healing with outer change—practical ways to face systemic suffering with wisdom, compassion, and courage.
Enjoy Now
Since it’s always now, now is eternal. The present moment is continually passing away, so relax and be open to this moment. Not planning, not worrying, not lost in thought.
Being Well Podcast: How to Change Your Personality with Olga Khazan
Forrest is joined by someone who’s actually tried most of the things we talk about on the podcast – journalist and author Olga Khazan – to discuss how to change your personality.
Meditation + Talk: How to Turn a Corner . . . for the Better
How can we let go of old hurts and turn a corner in our lives? Learn simple, heartfelt ways to heal, move forward, and find more peace inside.