The Overexamined Life

Todd Fink has the ability to casually articulate some of the most complex spiritual paradoxes all while exuding an aura of warmth and love. We explore the ego, the healing effect of nature, and the way society and commerce can commodify art and turn spirituality into an industry - in an effort to figure out what’s real and what’s performance, what’s authentic - who are we really when nobody’s watching? More from Todd: michaeltoddfink.comSick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, Free Gratitude Club, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or Letterboxd visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackYou can contact The Overexamined Life at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A tech founder tried the same dark retreat as Nate and tapped out after three hours. One of favourite friends of the show - Nate Green, did over a hundred, straight, alone, and with a real risk of losing his grip on reality. He walks us through what a hundred hours in blackout darkness does to your sense of time, your sense of self, and your ability to tell whether you're living or dying. Then faces the Reckoning of Self, my closing gauntlet of questions on fear, death, and regret. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, Free Gratitude Club, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or Letterboxd visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackYou can contact The Overexamined Life at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if Nirvana isn't a mountaintop, monastery thing, but something available to you right now wherever you are. Stephen Batchelor spent ten years as a monk chasing exactly that, including three-month stretches sitting in silence asking "what is this?" He came out the other side as a controversial figure with his own brand of secular Buddhism that requires no mythical beliefs - essentially, we've been overcomplicating the whole path. Today on The Overexamined Life Podcast: a modern attainable definition of Nirvana, what "embracing suffering" really means, and how to get there without leaving your house. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, Free Gratitude Club, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or Letterboxd visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackYou can contact The Overexamined Life at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Buckle up you philosophy degenerates for one of our more "out there" ones. Richard Lang has spent his life teaching Douglas Harding's "Headless Way" — a philosophy that starts with a genuinely disorienting perceptual experiment and ends up somewhere close to boundlessness, reduced stress, and a different relationship with your own self-consciousness. We talk through the exercise itself, what people report feeling when it lands, and why something this simple has stuck with people for seventy years.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, Free Gratitude Club, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub  Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo Want more from Richard? https://www.headless.org/WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or Letterboxd visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Paul Sagar was a world-class rock climber until a freak accident left him tetraplegic overnight, paralysed in all four limbs, torso, and pelvic organs, losing not just his body but the identity and dreams built around it. Paul is also a Cambridge-trained philosopher who teaches political theory at King's College London, and he brings that same rigour to unpacking his own experience, from the physical horror of his new reality to the depression that came with it. Somehow, and against every expectation, he's emerged with an ease around words like "lucky" and "happy" that most people couldn't muster on their best day. This is a hard listen that goes to some dark places before it climbs back out, but what Paul finds on the other side might change how you think about what actually matters.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, Free Gratitude Club, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his Website Jonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can you actually do anything to change your dopamine levels? The "Dopamine Detox" is trending, but today we look into some studies to help figure out what's true and what's bollocks. I also go into some strategies that have really helped me enjoy every day life a bit more.Join the free Gratitude Club: patreon.com/TOLclub.WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our freeeeeeeee Gratitude club!!!: patreon.com/TOLclubToday I'm chatting with Anne Jolles who has built an entire movement around the idea that help people access gratitude, courage, and inner wisdom through walking rather than stillness. We'll explore why walking in nature seems to calm the nervous system, whether self-compassion is really worth all the hype, and Anne will even guide us through a virtual Grace Trail that you can follow along with as you listen.Grace Trail | Wellness Trails That Inspire Reflection & ResilienceWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you deal with addiction of any kind, or really any behaviour you find unhelpful, that you wish you had more control over, that you perhaps wouldn't tell your friends or family about, this is for you. Today we largely look at addiction through the lens of pornography, but really the way pornography is entwined with shame, pleasure, boredom and trauma means that while listening you can subsititute porn for whatever dopamine shortcut you take on a regular basis. Booze, Sleeve of timtams, online shopping, social media, so on.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our freeeeeeeee Gratitude club!!!: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoFind more from Jeremy: https://www.unhookedacademy.com/ WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join the free gratitude club! It’s so wholesome! patreon.com/tolclubSpiritual mentor Dianne Horton, claims she doesn't suffer…not because she was born that way, but because it's a skill she learned and believes anyone can develop. At one point she even says she enjoys eating an ice cream as much as being in a car crash, so I challenged Dianne harder than I usually would to understand how she cultivates this state of mind, whether a life without suffering is really teachable, and whether we'd actually want a world without suffering if it also meant losing some of the drive behind progress, productivity, and innovation Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After 100 interviews with gurus, doctors, and scientists chasing the same question...what actually makes happiness stick...I've landed on four things we can do to win at life. And by win at life, I mean not be depressed. It's working. I call it the Proof of Life. Have a squiz at this one, I think it's really helpful. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] - "Recollections" by Asher Fulero. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode has been de-monetized out of respect for the Viveka Hermitage. Join the free Gratitude Club: patreon.com/TOLclubEmail me: [email protected] I seek council from one of the wisest people I know, Jitindriyā, a Buddhist nun. Jitindriyā helps me out with understanding death, depression, love, karma, apologising, and much more. If you are navigating depression, anger, anxiety, grief, fear, you can check out more of Jitindriya's work below. https://vivekahermitage.com/embodying-awareness-metta/https://vivekahermitage.com/working-with-challenging-emotions/ WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join the gratitude club for free 😊 Patreon.com/tolclubWhen pain refuses to go away, many of us start to believe we're permanently broken. That was my story too. I used to suffer from chronic daily migraines that were basically life ruining.I recovered in part through the mind-body approach pioneered by Dr. John Sarno, which sees chronic pain as a nervous system signal that can be changed. It changed my life, and it has changed the lives of thousands of Dr. Tovah Goldfine's patients. For over 40 years, she has helped people understand and overcome chronic pain from a physical, physiological, and psychological perspective. She’s pretty cool.https://www.drtovah.com/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his Website Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join the gratitude club free! Patreon.com/tolclubWhen I hit something uncomfortable, I suffer in my head. My guest Paul Attia is an overexaminer too, only when he faces a problem, he doesn't just get crippled by it. He analyses it, contextualises it, and builds a framework to solve it according to his values. Then he lives by it, deliberately, nothing left to chance. As an ex cross-examiner turned counsellor, Paul's methodologies are so powerful that some of the world's wealthiest families trust him to navigate their most difficult interpersonal problems. Today he's sharing those frameworks; on relationships, parenting, gratitude, and how to close the gap between who you are and who you're capable of being.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his Website Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When confronted with devastating grief, perhaps the most visceral pain humans can experience, most of us hide. We numb ourselves, distract ourselves, and do everything we can to avoid it.My guest today is Dr. Joanne Cacciatore, who chose a different path. After the loss of her daughter, she turned toward grief rather than away from it, transforming her pain into a life's work helping others navigate loss. Joanne is one of the world's leading grief experts, a professor at Arizona State University, founder of the MISS Foundation, and author of the bestselling Bearing the Unbearable. She has supported grieving families around the world and served on a mental health advisory board for Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry.Join our free gratitude club!!! Patreon.com/TOLclubCheck out Joanne’s carefarm: https://www.missfoundation.org/selah-carefarm/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join my FREE Gratitude Club so we can all be a lot happier for f*cks sake.https://www.patreon.com/c/TOLclubOK so. Earlier this week I spent 10 minutes examining every inch of my naked body in the mirror…an exercise in extreme suffering I undertook in the pursuit of enlightenment because Stephan Bodian told me to.Bodian is a former monk, psychotherapist, pioneering Western Zen teacher, and the original author of Meditation For Dummies. He also has a brand spanking new book out called Infinite Awakening: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/infinite-awakening-9780834846494Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

JOIN THE GRATITUDE CLUB FREE: patreon.com/tolclubRecent science has told us that gratitude has the power to do something nothing else in the world can. It can get you off the hedonic treadmill. We go deep into what that means, and look at said science :)Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] are all the studies with their links:Emmons & McCullough (2003) — Gratitude journaling, well-being, and physical healthPubMedFull PDFWood, Joseph, Lloyd & Atkins (2009) — Gratitude and sleep qualityPubMedScienceDirectMills et al. (2015) — Gratitude and heart failure (mood, sleep, inflammation)PubMedRedwine et al. (2016) — Gratitude journaling RCT, inflammatory biomarkers, heart rate variabilityPubMedPMC Full TextGrant & Gino (2010) — Gratitude expressions and prosocial behaviorHarvard Business SchoolSemantic ScholarWood, Froh & Geraghty (2010) — Comprehensive review of gratitude and well-beingScienceDirect Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you're a writer, musician, entrepreneur - someone building something in the margins of your real life, this one is for you.My guest today is Caddicarus: over a million subscribers, nearly 400 million views, and a very honest bloke.Here's the thing so many of us carry without even realising it, the belief that the moment we hit the number, whatever your number is, life clicks into place. Caddickarus has the number and he still found himself burnt out, hollow, losing the will to make the very thing that made him who he is.The data doesn't keep you going. The passion keeps you going. The why keeps you going.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jonathan Bricker makes the case that shame isn't just a byproduct of addictive behaviour, it's basically the whole engine. We get into why that voice in your head, the really mean one. The really really really really mean one, is actively strengthening the very cravings it's trying to crush. And Jonathan hands us something genuinely useful: a clear, evidence-based way of handling urges that doesn't involve white-knuckling it or hating yourself thin.Checkout Jonathan’s addiction app, Quitbot, here: https://quitbot.net/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if death wasn’t something to fear? What if you were completely at peace? In short, what if dying didn’t suck? Helen and her team at Preparing the Way (https://preparingtheway.com.au/), walk alongside people in the final chapter of their lives. We talk about what it means to heal into death rather than fight it, why grief doesn't start when someone dies but long before that, what the phrase conscious dying actually means, and Helen very generously lets me use myself as a guinea pig, which results in one of the stranger and more unexpectedly moving conversations I've had on this show. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This will make all your food taste so good that you just might literally explode right now where you are I'm serious, click this to explode. We all want to explode!Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This one got personal. We go deep into my own panic attacks, and at a certain point it stops feeling like an interview and starts feeling like a live therapy session.Dr. David Rosmarin is a clinical psychologist, Harvard Medical School faculty member, and founder of the Centre for Anxiety, and he has spent his career arguing that anxiety isn't a disease to be cured but a human condition to be understood. That when you stop fighting it, the edge comes off. And beneath it, more often than not, you find a virtue.More from Dr. Rosmarin https://dhrosmarin.com/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The grass may be greener on the other side, but it doesn’t matter, you’re on this side. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spend our days optimising, refining, and sanding down every rough edge, only to end up exhausted in a life that looks right but feels strangely hollow. In this conversation with Johann Hari, we unravel the illusion of “junk values” and explore Eudaimonia, a deeper, more human kind of meaning that can’t be engineered.More about Johann here! https://johannhari.com/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you ever feel like you’re missing your own life? Like you’re just a passenger? You’re always experiencing something, but when you look back, the day is a blur… memories without the feeling of having lived them. It feels like just yesterday I was 17. It probably does for you too. Unless you are 16. Anyway. I think I’ve found a solution to this problem. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A.I. is getting smarter and more intimate. People whisper secrets to glowing screens, confess fears to code, feel understood by something that isn’t conscious. I catch myself doing it too, more than I probably should.So I called in Deborah Nas, tech strategist and futurist, to talk A.I.-induced psychosis, the ethics of A.I. romance, and what it means for our brains, hearts, and society. Few conversations have felt this urgent.Check out Deborah’s TEDx talk: Why are people falling in love with ChatGPT? https://youtu.be/WWS086AY1OsSick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if changing your mind wasn’t a weakness, but the most honest way to live? I am convinced (for now) that embracing the idea that you are not one rigid identity allows you to not ‘dig in’ to any one position and really frees you up to be authentic. When there’s no self to defend, hypocrisy isn’t hypocrisy at all: it’s honesty.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The creative life can be brutal. It seems there’s endless work required for the most minimal recognition, and this endless work only begins after you finish your day job, since none of it pays anyway. At least this line of thinking is one creatives tend fall prey to. Which is not helpful, regardless of whether or not it’s true. Cue Adam Leipzig;Adam was a senior executive at Walt Disney Studios and later president of National Geographic Films. Adam has been a producer, distributor, or supervising executive on forty films including Dead Poets Society, March of the Penguins His projects have earned more than $2 billion worldwide and have won multiples Oscars, BAFTAs, Emmys, Golden Globes. Adam continues to produces films, teaches at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, and is author of Fearless Persistence: Creative Life, Creative Work, and the Ten Laws of Culturenomics—a book and movement about courage, purpose, and pushing forward when the path gets tough. Adam has created tried and true methodologies for resilience and success in creative fields, some of these secrets he was kind enough to share with us today. If you do any kind of work purely out of passion, this is a must listen.Check out Adam’s Audiobook: https://adamleipzig.com/advanced-listener-editionSick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The voice in your head is either your ally or your enemy. And you have the power to choose. The words we use to describe ourselves our the words we begin to believe. The way you speak to yourself, really really, matters Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, I chat with Dr. Shannon Albarelli, a clinical psychologist, mindfulness instructor, and ketamine-assisted therapy guide. We dive into her journey through loss, and explore how science, ancient wisdom, and psychedelics can help us unlock new parts of ourselves, find peace, and actually enjoy being alive.Find out more about Dr. Shannon here: https://www.doctor-shannon.com/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In honour of the 2026 Winter Olympics, we sit down with speed skating gold medalist Mark Tuitert to explore what actually separates an Olympic champion from everyone else—and it turns out it’s not just training harder, but mastering forgiveness, acceptance, and the messy reality of being human. Drawing on Stoic philosophy, personal loss, and hard-won perspective, this conversation is a must-listen for anyone curious about the inner chemistry of peak performance.Get your copy of "The Stoic Mindset" here: https://marktuitert.nl/en/the-stoic-mindset/Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If nobody knows, how can we trust anything? Fortunately Alan Watts weighs in to make us feel at peace. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vic Zerbst is a weapon of mass creation. They co-wrote and starred in Optics (Logie-nominated for Best Scripted Comedy) and the Christmas movie Nugget is Dead. They are also one half of the award-winning sketch duo Fruidian Nip, and this year premiered Converted! which is a queer musical developed through the Rebel Wilson Comedy Commission.But we had Vic on not just as a comedian, but as a razor-sharp thinker. In this conversation we dive into creativity, burnout, chronic pain, Vic's thoughtful takes on AI and epistemology, and of course free will.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Master Mingtong Gu, an ex-mathematician turned meditation master, has abandoned his algorithms for slow-motion arm waving. Well it’s much more than that. The art of Qigong is a recipe to become calmer, clearer, and harder to rattle. We talk about what Qigong is, how it regulates your nervous systems, why you can’t logic your way out of burnout, why today’s leaders are ineffective, how to take control of your own health, connecting the mind and body, and much more. Ennnnjoy!More about Master Mingtong Gu: https://mingtonggu.comCheck out Master Mingtong's book: www.mingtonggu.com/book Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

just can't help myself peeps.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Things have been grim but now they're ok because of an echidna :)Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A very quick wrap up and we hear from a much requested special guest. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

unprocessed thoughts i dont know what else to do with Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Chief of Staff is 'Part strategist, part therapist, part parent' to the world leader. Phoebe Saintilan-Stocks has interviewed pretty much all of them, and today I realised this invisible right hand is actually kind of important. Check out Pheobe's book! Here's the link for Australia-based listeners, and here's the international shipping link. Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine saying EXACTLY what you think, and doing EXACTLY what you feel like doing? Sounds crazy to me, but Margery Ai has cultivated her ability to do exactly that. Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Death anxiety sucks up a lot of energy, but even if you don’t believe in the afterlife, there are some very good reasons not to worry. Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3 abstract techniques that have helped me kick insomnia without medication, therefore making life 1000x better. Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclubWant to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primoWATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We'll be back to regular programming next week but I just needed to *get this out of my system*Explicit language warningSick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BUT, let everything else, it was an opportunity, a violent opportunity - to learn more about what it is to be human.Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TOLclub GET 30 DAYS OF THE WAKING UP APP FREE: wakingup.com/primo  Follow Jonah Primo on Instagram: instagram.com/jonahprimo or visit his Website: Jonahprimo.comJonah writes on Substack: https://jonahprimo.substack.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From leaving orthodox religion, to positing that we may be actual literal brains floating through space (and then exploding), Miriam Schoenfield, philosophy PhD, takes us on a rollercoaster ride for our minds - explaining why we should seek the exhilarating thrill of being wrong about everything we believe. NOTE: I know there's a bit of echo and audio hum in this one, our main recording exploded and this was made from the backup, I'm SORRY.Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine if slipping through the cracks was not a disaster, but a subtle art? Today we settle in with Katherine May, the internationally bestselling British author of "Wintering", whose words have redefined how we think about stillness, resilience, and wonder. In one of my favourite episodes this season, we wander through the land of naps, daydreams and the art of staring out the window until something starts to make sense. Katherine reminds us that those quiet spells when everything seems to slow to a crawl are not catastrophes, but secret invitations to start again.Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo Read Katherine's Book Wintering here and her new book, here.  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I find myself chasing the ever-fleeting hummingbird of innocence, that shimmering thing that flits just out of reach once you’ve seen too much of the world. But we need art to keep expressing this. Through the eyes of innocent children. only then do we remember how to feel horror again, unfiltered and unarmored. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest today is the brilliant Tim Minchin. You may know him from his Tony and Olivier-winning, Grammy-nominated musical Matilda, his viral song Come Home (Cardinal Pell), or his unforgettable University of Western Australia graduation address.Tim is a relentless interrogator of the human condition: a skeptic, a critic of dogma and pseudoscience, and a fierce champion of empiricism and evidence-based thinking, all while being incredibly funny.In this conversation, we explore whether you should have grand dreams, the purpose of art, A.I., social media, meaning, mental health, orgasms and much more.Buy tix to Tim's upcoming tour here (If hyperlinks disabled - https://www.timminchin.com/2025/04/07/songs-the-world-will-never-hear-2025-australian-tour/#more-26024)The book we mentioned, "You Don't Have to Have a Dream" is available here (If hyperlinks disabled - https://www.penguin.com.au/books/you-dont-have-to-have-a-dream-9781761620058)Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

WE ARE BACK BABY! Welcome to Season 2, - and what a guest to start off with. We talked about some heavy stuff, but through the lens of buddhism. Like how does a buddhist see racism, the israel-palestine conflict, happiness, what James' own ongoing struggle with cancer looks like, through the eyes of one who is if not enlightened, pretty enlightenedish. Enjoy.Our GuestJames Low was born in Scotland, but his spirit was forged in Himalayan crags and Indian monasteries under great buddhist maasters. James wove together his understanding of Western thought and Eastern ritual — psychology, philosophy, psychotherapy — into his teachings, and has become one of the most renowned voices in making Dzogchen and mindfulness intelligible to us overexaminers and chronic sufferers. https://simplybeing.co.uk/Learn something? Enjoy ad-free episodes and help us keep the show running at patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a wild ride through the blurred lines between enlightenment and delusion. You won't get full marks. Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A quick retrospective on the childhood of this show and some strategizing for the future.  Sick of being ruled by your emotions?Join our Patreon for AD-FREE listening, bonus episodes, and mindfulness exercises that are actually fun: patreon.com/TOLclub Want to learn how to meditate? Get 30 days of the Waking Up App FREE: wakingup.com/primo  WATCH THE PODCAST on YoutubeFollow Jonah Primo on Instagram or visit his WebsiteJonah writes on SubstackEmail Jonah Primo at [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.