Mental & Emotional Health

COVID-19 Special: The Unprecedented Challenges our Front Line Healthcare Professionals are Experiencing, Part 1
April 5, 2020
A Stanford University MD who helps doctors deal with stress weighs in on the Coronavirus pandemic. Dr. Greg Hammer is author of "GAIN without Pain: The Happiness Handbook for Health Care Professionals." What unprecedented challenges are frontline health professionals experiencing amid the current crisis? But weren’t they already poised for burnout even before COVID-19 arrived? How does stress undermine our health during the current lockdown? What lessons can we apply from "GAIN Without Pain" to cultivate resilience during the enforced lockdown? As a pediatric intensive care physician, Dr. Hammer offers advice on how to keep kids calm during the quarantine. Click HERE for part 2.

COVID-19 Special: The Unprecedented Challenges our Front Line Healthcare Professionals are Experiencing, Part 2

Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Dr. Greg Hammer, author of "GAIN without Pain: The Happiness Handbook for Health Care Professionals." Click HERE for part 1.

Rethinking “Catastrophic” Thinking, Part 1
March 31, 2020
In the face of an unprecedented pandemic, anxiety is warranted, but should not become debilitating or incapacitating. Drawing from the lessons of evolutionary psychology, Dr. Nando Pelusi, a cognitive-behavioral psychologist and frequent contributor to "Psychology Today," offers practical advice on how to calibrate our responses to danger. We are “hardwired” to respond to threats with our primitive limbic systems; ideally, our rational brains can provide us with sensible “reality checks” to rein in our maladaptive fears. This is the essence of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) which seeks to analyze the basis of our feelings and substitute helpful narratives to help us better interpret them. How to talk to children about the pandemic? How to cultivate resilience? How to cultivate a balance between complacency or denial vs. unproductive chronic worry. Click HERE for part 2.

Rethinking “Catastrophic” Thinking, Part 2

Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Dr. Nando Pelusi, a cognitive-behavioral psychologist and frequent contributor to "Psychology Today." Click HERE for part 1.

Special Covid-19 Update: Coronavirus Fears, Part 1
March 29, 2020
Benjamin Asher MD, integrative ENT specialist, with extensive background in Mind-Body Medicine and with over three decades experience as a meditation teacher, shares tips on combatting stress and anxiety during the current lockdown. There are well-vetted techniques for coping with worries over vulnerability which arise naturally under challenging circumstances such as we’re all experiencing; some involve meditation, some cognitive reframing, others are procedures that alter the brain’s fear circuitry. Dr. Asher explains how early life trauma can program the nervous system for exaggerated reactivity; identifying these buried insults and appropriately processing them can set the stage for healing. Additionally, some individuals with chronic medical conditions may feel exceptionally at risk—perhaps without medically-valid justification. Others with perfectionistic Type A personalities may feel especially thwarted as their demanding routines and careful plans are disrupted. Dr. Asher offers advice on how to “go with the flow” and create a personal path of acceptance. Ultimately, the current crisis may be a crucible for personal development and cultivation of resiliency. Click HERE for part 2.

Special Covid-19 Update: Coronavirus Fears, Part 2

Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Benjamin Asher MD, integrative ENT specialist. Click HERE for part 1.

Leyla Weighs In: Yoga and Depression
March 6, 2020
How yoga exercises its positive effect on depression.

Intelligent Medicine Radio Show for February 29, Part 2
March 2, 2020
Leading presidential candidates are all 70 plus—are they fit for Presidency? What critical information is missing from Bernie Sanders‘ health disclosure? Caller with polyps asks for advice on preventing colon cancer; Is too much B12 bad for you? Protocol for reversing Barrett’s esophagus; Keto diet vs. polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS); Lavender products might induce premature breast development in young girls and boys; Work stress prompts back pain; Mom’s Vitamin D deficiency hikes kids’ risk for ADHD; Mushroom compound protects against pregnancy hypertension. Click HERE for part 1. Click HERE for articles and resources relating to this podcast episode.

Brain Wash: Detox Your Mind for Clearer Thinking, Deeper Relationships, and Lasting Happiness, Part 1
February 25, 2020
Dr. Austin Perlmutter is co-author with his father, Dr. David Perlmutter, of "Brain Wash: Detox Your Mind for Clearer Thinking, Deeper Relationships, and Lasting Happiness." His book explores how modern life—with its attendant fast food, sleep deprivation, lack of exercise, non-stop stress and saturation with social media—rewires our brains for poor decision-making. The result is a torrent of lifestyle-related maladies. Dr. Perlmutter, a recent graduate of medical training, reflects on the limitations of mainstream medicine in addressing these problems. In fact, medical training itself renders overworked young doctors ill-prepared to message effectively to patients. Dr. Perlmutter explains how chronic inflammation rewires our brains and impairs judgment. Research shows that it severs connections between our frontal cortex—the rational brain—and the amygdala—the seat of emotional reactions. No wonder that our society is beset with conflict and impulsivity. Dr. Perlmutter reflects on what it might take to transform our medical system in future decades. Click HERE for part 2.

Brain Wash: Detox Your Mind for Clearer Thinking, Deeper Relationships, and Lasting Happiness, Part 2

Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Dr. Austin Perlmutter, co-author of "Brain Wash: Detox Your Mind for Clearer Thinking, Deeper Relationships, and Lasting Happiness." Click HERE for part 1.