Live Happy Now

Fall is a time for turning inward, and this week’s guest, Kassandra Reinhardt, is here to help us learn how to connect with ourselves through yoga. Her newest book, Year of Yoga: Rituals for Every Day and Every Season, helps experienced and novice yogis alike move through the seasons using affirmations and intentions that coincide with the time of year. She’s here to tell us why our practice may c...

This week, host Paula Felps sits down with renowned cinematographer, director and producer Louie Schwartzberg. Louie is best known for the stunning imagery he creates using time-lapse photography; in films like Fantastic Fungi and the 3D IMAX film Mysteries of the Unseen World with National Geographic, he has shown us the beauty of the world in ways we’ve never seen before. With his new film, Grat...

The right song lyrics can express exactly what you’re feeling, and they can even help kids open up about what’s happening in their lives. With the Sound It Out campaign, parents and caregivers can support emotional wellness in young people by using songs and lyrics to help kids express their feelings. In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Regina Miranda, a professor of psychology at Hunter College...

As we all settle into our post-summer routine, certain family members can sometimes get overlooked. This week, therapist Brittany Derrenbacher is back to talk about how a change in routine can affect our pets. Brittany is a certified grief and pet loss specialist, founder of the special needs animal rescue Luna Bell’s Moonbows and owner of Sunshine Healing & Empowerment in Louisville, Kentucky...

We’ve hit the end of summer and for many people, that means dealing with end of summer anxiety. And it’s not just for kids! This week’s guest, Eli Weinstein, is a social work therapist and host of The Dude Therapist podcast, and he’s here to talk about how we all can handle that end of summer anxiety and head into fall with a new game plan for the whole family. In this episode, you’ll learn: What...

As we go back to school, it means kids are spending even more time on their screens. So what’s a parent to do? This week’s guest will tell you! Childcare advocate and author Florence Ann Romano joins us this week to talk about the importance of balancing time on devices. Florence Ann is a big fan of ditching the devices and discovering off-screen play, and she’s here today to talk about how parent...

Whether we admit it or not, most of us spend a lot of time comparing ourselves to others. But what if our true superpower is learning just to be ourselves? This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Dr. Ronald Siegel, a psychotherapist, Harvard psychology professor and mindfulness expert whose latest research looks at what a climate of self-comparison is doing to undermine our happiness. His new boo...

Music has such a powerful healing ability that some researchers are even looking at “sonic pharmacology” — using music as a tool to improve patients’ health. Steve Keller is one of the world’s leading experts on sonic strategy. As a researcher, he has explored how music and sound affect everything from our physical wellbeing to our emotional state to our relationships and overall perception of hap...

As kids (and teachers) head back to school, what if they started focusing on subjects like gratitude, kindness and empathy? This week’s guest, Ash Manuel, left his teaching career after discovering positive psychology and set out on a mission to change how children learn. Now, his Growing with Gratitude program is a global positive education program that helps build and protect children’s mental w...

This is a special week at Live Happy Now because we’ve reached an important milestone — and we truly could not have done it without you. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Live Happy CEO and Co-founder Deborah Heisz for an important announcement and to talk about the future of the podcast. In this episode, you’ll learn: What led to the launch of Live Happy Now. How our podcast has changed...

Bullying is a huge issue for kids today, and as we go back to school, many children are dreading having to face that challenge every day. This week’s guest, Jennifer Fraser, PhD, is author of the powerful new book, The Bullied Brain: Heal Your Scars and Restore Your Health. Jennifer is an award-winning educator whose online courses and workshops teach the impact of neuroscience on personal develop...

As the world opens up to traveling again, can you make your travel experiences more meaningful? This week’s guest will show you how! Jessica Blotter is a speaker and journalist who specializes in sustainable and regenerative tourism. After witnessing extreme poverty on a vacation to Belize, Jessica launched a movement in 2016 called Kind Traveler, which allows travelers to positively impact the co...

Music education typically focuses on teaching students who want to be musicians or music teachers, but this week’s guest sees it as a vehicle for teaching an entire spectrum of social emotional learning skills. Nadine Levitt is a mother, former opera singer and the founder of WURRLYedu, which uses music to teach children about things like empathy, collaboration, impulse control and so much more. I...

Laughter and humor feel good, but have you thought about how much good it can do? This week’s guest, Dr. Shepherd Siegel, is a musician turned educator whose recent research has centered around the idea of play, playfulness and humor as a driving force of change. His latest book, Tricking Power into Performing Acts of Love: How Tricksters through History have Changed the World, looks at the tricks...

It’s summertime, and that makes it a great time to get outside and enjoy the sunshine. But this is about more than working on a killer tan; this week, Laura Allen and Courtney Crim from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, talk about the amazing power of nature. Laura and Courtney developed the course The Natural Environment and Well-being, and on this episode, they explain why it’s so import...

Summer is all about fun and happiness, so this week, we’re looking at how to make this your family’s happiest summer yet.  On this week’s episode, educator and children’s emotional health expert Maureen Healy talks about how to do that! Her new book, The Happiness Workbook for Kids, looks at how to navigate the difficult times we’re in and create fun, positive experiences for children. In this epi...

We all want and need relationships — but you might be surprised to find out how little we actually know about them! This week, bestselling author Eric Barker joins us to talk about his newest book, Plays Well With Others, that takes a deep dive into friendships, marital relationships and every other kind of relationship to explore what we’re doing right, where we could improve and how the pandemic...

If you’re one of those sensitive people out there, congratulations – you’re about to learn what an incredible superpower it is. This week’s guest is Katie Abey, author of the new children’s book We Feel Happy, which helps children explore their feelings. As a sensitive person herself, Katie is aware of some of the challenges that can bring, and her book is designed to help children learn more abou...

Music is a great tool for bringing people together, and during the days of lockdown, the Marsh Family from the UK began sharing song parodies to express what they were going through. As it turns out they were exactly what the world needed, and their viral videos now have received more than 30 million views. They were dubbed the “Von Trapped Family” by the New York Times, and in this episode of On...

June is Pride month, which makes it the perfect time to revisit the theme of unity. This week’s guest, Wes Schmitz, is co-host of the popular Two Bottles Deep Podcast, which is designed to open up conversations between the gay and straight communities. Wes has been connecting people his entire life and his podcast has picked up an unexpected following thanks to its honest, open conversational appr...

In this always-on world, it can be a challenge to find downtime. But cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Sara Mednick, author of the new book, The Hidden Power of the Downstate, says that spending too much time in our upstate is leaving us unhappy, exhausted and unhealthy. In this episode, she explains the need for us to discover our downstate and leverage it to enjoy a healthier, happier life. In this e...

Wil Wheaton burst into the spotlight in 1986 in the iconic coming of age movie Stand By Me. He went on to play many more roles throughout his teen and young adult years, including starring as Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation and playing a version of himself on the hit TV show, The Big Bang Theory. But his success hid a childhood filled with trauma and abuse that led to a lifetime o...

Can a doodle improve your mental health? If it’s drawn by Danny Casale, it just might! Under the moniker of Coolman Coffeedan, Danny is using his art to provide encouragement, make people laugh, and even explore the challenges of mental health. His work took off during the pandemic, and now he has millions of followers who rely on his adorable characters to uplift and inspire them. His new book UR...

Music is one of the most powerful — and accessible — tools we have for improving our mental health.  On this episode of On a Positive Note, host Paula Felps is joined by acclaimed music therapist Jennifer Buchanan, author of Wellness, Wellplayed: The Power of a Playlist, to talk about the many ways music can be used as a tool for healing and growth. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why music and men...

Anxiety disorders are one of the most common mental disorders today, and it affects more than 40 million people. Today’s guest, Liza Kindred is a licensed minister, reiki practitioner and meditation teacher whose work has been featured in publications worldwide. Her new Calm Your Anxiety Journal is a hands-on workbook to walk users through their anxiety, discover their personal triggers and use jo...