Glass Half Full with Leslie Krongold, Ed.D.

Imagine if your physician not only understood your invisible chronic illness but also had experience healing her own autoimmune conditions. That physician could be Cynthia Li. Dr. Cynthia Li talks about her book, , and answers my questions covering everything from autoimmune illness, functional vs. integrative medicine, the writing process, to the role intuition played in her healing process and n...

What is prayer and how do we do it? How does prayer differ from meditation? How can prayer impact healing? These are a few of the questions addressed by three podcast guests. The Jewish perspective of prayer from a rabbi who has faced cancer and chronic pain. The Christian perspective of prayer from a Baptist pastor whose late wife battled autoimmune disease and young son is in remission from canc...

Approximately 20% of Americans have hearing loss . This can be a result of any multitude of situations -- a symptom of a health condition, tinnitus, viral infection, acoustic trauma, or side effect from a medication. Dr. Lilach Saperstein, an audiologist with her own podcast , discusses issues related to the outer, middle, and inner ear. Learn how to best protect your hearing as well as communicat...

Four women with different physical abilities talk about what fashion means to them and how they deal with fashion challenges. Cheryl and Lainie both have Charcot Marie Tooth (CMT) and wear AFO leg braces. Lainie explores fashion hacks and DIY solutions in her blog, Trend-Able . Keisha has Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy, studied fashion, and launched her company, Girls Chronically Rock . Kirsten Pa...

If you have a physical or mental health condition that has altered the way you look or behave, it may scare people. Have you had friends or family members change how they interact with you or perhaps distance themselves? A recent incident with an old friend got me thinking about this topic. In the Glass Half Full Facebook group some have shared their stories. I invite you to share your experiences...

Any style of yoga can be made accessible and provide healing for someone with a physical challenge, someone experiencing anxiety and/or depression, or someone with a larger body. Three yoga teachers - skilled in making yoga more accessible - share their stories. Rose Kress, of LifeForce Yoga , experienced relief from years of anxiety and chronic pain when she began a yoga practice. Her teachings f...

Vocal problems can occur for people with all types of conditions -- Parkinson's disease, muscular dystrophy, stroke. Acute laryngitis is very common while chronic laryngitis affects over 20% of the population. Christine received a diagnosis of spasmodic dysphonia and now experiences some relief with botox shots. Hanna, who has SMA type 1, uses assistive technology to help her communicate. Check ou...

We've got Jill Nussinow, R.D., The Veggie Queen , sharing tips about nutritious and medicinal mushrooms as well as Adam Strauss , creator of The Mushroom Cure , talking about his years of treating anxiety and OCD which led to his discovery of psilocybin's therapeutic powers. To dig deeper into the awe-inspiring mushroom world, check out weekly online articles at Spirituality & Health .

Just a few things to mention. It's your time to catch up on missed episodes while I'm away. Check the website for links to The heat is on: how weather affects our health and Accessible Yoga . For more tips on how to beat the heat, visit the Brain & Life website. Don't forget to sign up for the email newsletter and subscribe to the YouTube channel.

In this third of a series podcast episode, Valerie Sans shares how her cancer experience had a dramatic impact on her life. After surgery and chemo treatment, she left a career of teaching to co-found a travel company, French Escapade , and explored alternative healing modalities including the Budwig Protocol, homeopathy, immunotherapy, Beljanski Protocol, acupuncture, Papimi , and a more plant-ba...

In the second part of this podcast episode series Jeanette Marin shares her story about a thyroid cancer diagnosis and how it changed her life. Jeanette is married with 4 children and a stand-up comic. To see Jeanette perform, follow her on social media: Facebook , Instagram , or Twitter .

How does a diagnosis of cancer and treatment change a person? In this 3-part series you'll hear different stories on how a woman - diagnosed with cancer (breast, thyroid, and ovarian) - experienced the changes. In part 1 Shannon Lee Knorr , a Pilates and yoga instructor, shares how her own yoga practice and teaching style changed.

February 28 is  International Rare Disease Day.  There are over 6,000 rare diseases or disorders with 80% having genetic origins. Global events are planned to draw attention to the need for medical research. This brief, light-hearted podcast episode shares a few less critical aspects to having a rare disease. For a deeper dive, check out last year's Rare Disease podcast  episode . Make sure you be...

An echocardiogram technician told me I have a  beautiful  heart and that got me going. What makes for good heart health? What role do genetics, lifestyle, and environment play? Dr. Erica Pitsch talks about the  Framingham Heart Study , John talks about congestive heart failure and  Mended Hearts , and Saurabh shares how yoga and meditation help his stress level and coping with myotonic muscular dy...

One yoga teacher's health journey. Katrina LaShea was able to ease her back injury and subsequent ankle injury pain through a yoga practice. What once worked as a treatment, later became her passion. Today Katrina teaches yoga to African-American women and girls at Girl Trek retreats as well as at her Oakland yoga studio. Beginning this February, the Girl Trek founders will be visiting 50 cities a...

Need help with sleep? David -- resident DIY expert -- explains how to decarb , squish , and infuse cannabis. Unfamiliar with these terms? No worries. These terms, and more, are explained for the novice. Podcast episode, and complementary YouTube video, demonstrate the processes involved with creating cannabis tinctures and infusions for making edibles. An earlier podcast episode features six peopl...

Holidays can be tough; that's why we're focusing on our favorite things. Peni, Laurel, and Kristl share their voices and 22 previous podcast guests tell us how they beat the funk when  dogs bit e or  bees sting . Since this is the shortest podcast episode ever...check out these previous episodes all about optimism: Passion : Motivation to move through the bad stuff and experience joy Skydiving, Tr...

How do you give back? In previous podcast episodes we heard from Amy - a music philanthropist - who sings to raise money for causes she believes in, Chris - a software engineer - who has been involved with a nonprofit organization that helped him as a youth, and Hazel - a retired government employee - who teaches others about service dogs. Today's episode features Susan, diagnosed with breast canc...

Tis the season to be thankful, grateful, and appreciative. But how does one get to a place of gratitude if you're feeling miserable -- physically, emotionally, or both? Toni Bernhard, author of How to Be Sick (Second Edition): A Buddhist-Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers , talks about gratitude as it relates to the Four Sublimes States of Buddhism.  A brief introduction t...

November is the time to recognize Family Caregivers . One man's caregiving story leads to a conversation about strokes - one  of the most debilitating medical conditions - and stroke recovery. Erica Pitsch, PT, MPT, DPT, NCS, of University of California, San Francisco, explains what happens during a stroke and what may be involved with stroke recovery and rehabilitation. Caregiver Resources includ...

Maybe you have a firm grasp on what being an Advocate is all about? This episode explores different ways people with disabilities, their allies, and their caregivers practice advocacy. Whether you're searching for the best healthcare options, leading a support group, mentoring newbies, meeting with legislators, or using social media to get a message out -- it's all about advocacy. Nancy Husari, a...

To kick off Disability Awareness Month, our guest is Nina G - the first female stuttering comedian and dyslexic writer. You'll get a taste of her stand up material as well as learn about her path to comedy and the educational and advocacy work she's been engaged in for years.