Pleasure is its own principle – we seek it for its own good. Oftentimes, we’ll do things precisely for the pleasure. We only stop to think about the activity or issue if it becomes a problem: if despite its short-term pleasure it is detrimental to our overall happiness. “Happiness” has traditionally been understood as long-lived and useful, often attained in relationships, and typically doesn’t lead to addictions or dependence. In contrast, “pleasure” has been short-lived, fa

When I started my hypnosis practice it was kind of a joke to me. The two issues hypnosis is best known for are weight loss and smoking cessation. And those were two areas I had absolutely no interest working with. Then I had my first quit-smoking client. Wham! They quit, and both of us could see right away the drastic change and improvement in their life. They were happier, healthier, more positive, less stressed and less anxious. They were thrilled. Their spouse was thrilled

Depression seems at record highs in recent years – and there is evidence to support that. Some point to social isolation with increasing divorce rates and social media. Some point to the increased anxiety in our culture and lifestyle over the past ten-to-fifteen years. But there is also evidence that depression has always been a part of human existence, in every culture around the world. Now, let me make a distinction between severe, clinical depression and what I call “healt

Rawpsiration is great. It is a cookbook, mini-auto-biography, lifestyle digital-party. It is down-to-earth, fun, easy and deeply healthy. Written by a 25 year old starting out on her journey with a radically healthy lifestyle, it is written like she is your best friend, chatting, sharing what she’s discovered, her enthusiasm and passion resounding on every page. Rawspiration ($15 e-book) is the fruit of years of research, experimentation and play with a raw plant based diet,

We hardly need convincing. We all know that exercise is beneficial in so many ways. Yet we rarely commit to even incremental increases in our physical activity... if we can help it, or until a doctor prescribes it as part of treatment for disease. Well, I am not your doctor. Chances are I'm not even your coach. But I am prescribing more exercise for you right now. No matter what your ailment is, almost certainly you can benefit from a few more minutes of elevated activity. Le

A new study confirms the already well-documented link between eating a lot of meat and increased risk of disease and earlier death. That seems extreme, I know, but there's both good science behind it and a silver lining. The bad news: red meat particularly is closely associated with a wide spectrum of chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. The good news: replacing animal protein with plant protein is equally associated with a decreased risk of death. (De

These aren't for the faint-hearted. Expect a burn the next morning. Stretch out before and after, and drink water. That all having been said - wouldn't this be an interesting date night? #Exercise #Health #Couples

The root of the word "health" is "whole." Which kind of makes sense. In many ancient worldviews, disease or corruption or even evil weren't so much distinct entities in themselves, but were rather a fall from the original and good whole. Augustine of Hippo, that famed North African Christian Saint and philosopher of the third century, used the analogy of a hole in a shirt: the hole, while bad, isn't itself a thing, but the absence of the shirt. He was working toward a descrip

We all know watching TV isn't good for us, but it turns out that it can actually kill you. "High amounts of sedentary behaviour have been associated with increased risks of several chronic conditions and mortality." A recent article in the UK medical journal, The Lancet, describes "high amounts of sedentary behavior" as sitting for more than four hours per day - at work and at home (particularly watching tv). The study looked at several groups, including those who sat for mor