PODCAST · education
Wellness Podcast
by Alyssa Martoccio
This podcast is for anyone looking for ideas to improve their mental health and wellness. I am not therapist/psychologist but a college professor interested in helping students (and everyone) with quick tips and tricks to make life just a little bit easier/happier/calmer etc.
Episodes
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Week 194: "Deep Play" tips and tricks
In this episode, I talk about the 4 characteristics/featuresof “deep play” and why deep play is so important to those of us who would like to have long and happy career paths. The definitions come from the book Rest: Why you get more done when you work less, by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang and…
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Week 193: Life is just hard- resilience helps
In this episode, I talk about how life is hard and that is OK- if we can learn to be more resilient, we can truly change our lives and the world. I talk about the Stockdale Paradox, which involves resilience and hope, I define hope and resilience using Brené Brown’s work (and her book the Gifts…
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Week 192: Cultivating an attitude of abundance
In this week’s episode, I talk about abundance as an antidote to scarcity, why cultivating an attitude of abundance is so important to our mental health, and how we can try in our lives even just for a few minutes a day to cultivate an attitude of abundance. Action item: this week, when you think...
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Week 191: The joy of thanks
In this week’s episode, I talk about the joy (for both giverand receiver) in thanks/appreciation. I talk about some examples where I have received thanks, and given thanks, in my life, and about how it made me feel and how I still remember it (from both sides). I talk about the Happiness Labwith...
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Week 190: The joy/connection of collective effervescence
In this episode, I define collective effervescence, givesome examples of finding joy but also just connection through experiences that promote collective effervescence, and give an action item: go out and experience just a little bit of collective effervescence yourself this week! Some...
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Week 189: Control what you can and let go of what you can't
In this episode, I talk about how in this scary and uncertain world we need to make a choice, to control those things that we can control, and to let go of the things that will just have us spinning our wheels, wasting our time, our energy, our “one wild and precious life” (Mary Oliver) on things...
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Week 188: Don't "yuck" other people's "yum"
In this episode, I talk about what it means to “yuck” someone else’s “yum” and how stopping doing this can make our lives just a little bit happier and better. This episode relates to episode 93 about the advantages of “nerding out” aboutthings as well so check out that episode if you’d like to...
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Week 187: Splinters
In this episode, I talk about literal and metaphorical splinters(metaphorically, emotional overreactions) and how they both have a lot in common. I talk about “Chandeliering” from Brene Brown, which is a difficult situation that is objectively a 2 or 3 on a scale of 1-10, but we react to it as if...
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Week 186: The middle of the middle: appreciating where you are right now
In this episode, I talk about how I feel right now, from the middle of the middle (middle age, middle parenting- that is, parenting kids who are about "halfway" to being adults). But I also talk about how even though we don't realize it, we are always in the middle of something, and sometimes we...
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Week 185: Cool down: Last episode til fall!
In this episode (the last until late August), I talk about how to transition from a big project, the end of the school year, end of a holiday season, just any end of a thing, through a "cool down." By this I mean the opposite of a "warm-up" like you would do before exercising. For my own cool…
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Week 184: Managing introvert burnout
In this week's episode, I talk about my introvert (manager) burnout, give examples of what I mean and how I am feeling right now, and give 6 tips to help manage this burnout. While I am a department chair/middle manager, this advice works for all introverts who are feeling exhausted/burned out...
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Week 183: Survival strategies for when life is hectic
In this episode, I talk about six strategies that work for anyone, whether it's the end of the school year for you, for your kids (Maycember anyone?), or just a hectic time for any reason. 1) Build in time for breaks, even super short ones. Maybe re-think what a "break" is (folding laundry and...
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Week 182: Move your body!
This week, I thought about what I wanted my college students to hear at this time of the semester (about a month left until summer) and it is this: move your body! I talk about 3 tips to get you started moving your body and to remove barriers to exercising every day. 1) Lower the bar to starting…
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Week 181: Lower the bar
In this week's episode, I talk about the best way I've ever learned to start a difficult project (writing an academic paper for example), pick up a habit I've been wanting to start (like weightlifting), or just get an annoying daily task done (think laundry or checking the mail). It's to "lower…
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Week 180: Being in the moment- mindfulness practice for beginners
In this week's episode, for the first time since week 8, I touch on mindfulness again and being in the moment. I talk about focusing on being in the moment for good things, bringing calm and giving time to our kids (or pets, or friends, or to watching the trees and the flowers and the rain or...
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Week 179: What's the rush?: Slow it Down Part 2
In this follow-up episode to my episode #50 from 5 years ago, I discuss the necessity of slowing down from time to time. This week, I was forced to slow down, because as I've said many times on this podcast, since I didn't slow myself down, my body did for me- by getting me sick! I give examples...
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Week 178: Emotions: When is it time to move on?
In this week's episode, I talk about 2 ways that we deal with our emotions (from Brene Brown's work): 1) processing and 2) perseverating. Basically, processing is when we acknowledge and address our emotions constructively, either by working to resolve an issue or accepting something that has...
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Week 177: Some thoughts on weightlifting
In this week's episode, I talk about my adventures in weightlifting in 2026! I explain why I decided to start weightlifting (to alleviate some neck and shoulder pain and stop taking so much Advil each week- it worked!) and how (lots of YouTube videos and Googling and starting out SLOWLY which for...
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Week 176: When anger is your friend
In this week's episode, I talk a bit about my own history with anger, as a half-Italian whose family of origin is somewhat quick to anger. I talk about how during the pandemic I started meditating to yell at my kids less but then found myself not getting "good and angry" when things happened that...
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Week 175: Happy with your life vs happy in your life
In this week's episode, I talk about the difference between being happy in your life (experiencing positive emotions on a daily basis) and being happy with your life (a more general sense of life satisfaction, fulfillment and purpose). I give examples of each and talk about how it is best to try…
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Week 174: Touch Tree
In this week's episode, I talk about what a "touch tree" is, a concept that I learned from the author Glennon Doyle, and I give some examples of touch trees for me in my life. Action item: find something that is a touch tree for you and find a way to remind yourself to go back to this thing each...
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Week 173: Toxic positivity and being OK with being sad
In this week's episode, I talk about a book I'm almost finished reading by Susan Cain (author of Quiet) called "Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make us Whole." For me, the thesis of this book is that sadness and "negative" emotions are not bad/to be avoided and can actually make our lives…
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Week 172: It's OK to be different
This week's episode is short and sweet, inspired by one of my children when he was 2 years old saying "it's OK to be different, and, I promise, it's OK to be different" when "reading" a book to me one day. I talk about how important it is to just love what you love and don't let anyone tell you...
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Week 171: Numbing vs true comfort
In this week's episode, I talk about things that we do to numb our feelings vs things that we do that bring us true comfort. I define what these two things are- numbing helps us NOT feel our feelings (not good) vs true comfort helps us restore and nourish ourselves, and be more resilient in the...
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Week 170: The necessity of joy during dark times
In this week's episode, I talk about how important it is to experience joy and to enjoy our lives, even and especially during dark times. Sometimes I think we think that if the world is an awful place, then all we should be doing is reading the news and sitting and moping on our couches. But the...
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Week 169: Life actually IS hard, you're not just doing it wrong
I just wanted to give a quick last episode of the year, where I talk about how life actually IS just hard, you're not making a mistake or doing it wrong if things are hard. This is basically a pep talk for the end of the year. Action item: Push in whatever ways you must (I have to finish some...
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Week 168: My advice for surviving the holidays this year
In this week's episode, I talk about my 2 biggest pieces of advice for surviving the holidays this year. 1) Lower your expectations! This means not expecting everything to go perfectly when it never (ever) has before and expecting people to be who they are. If your dad never wanted to go to a...
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Week 167: This too shall pass
In this week's episode, I talk about an idea that I've been thinking about for a while- the concept that "this too shall pass." What I mean by this is just that sometimes, having long term perspective that something awful or just even a little difficult that is happening in your life will,...
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Week 166: Moving the needle
In this episode, I talk about how at this point in my college semester as a professor, I am always super overwhelmed and behind on many things. My plan for when I am at this point is to just move the needle on a few important projects to make myself feel better, and then to sort of reward...
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Week 165: Why I love winter
In this episode, I talk about the reasons that I love winter. Even though I know this can be an unpopular opinion (especially if you live somewhere really cold during the winter), I think it is important for our mental health to really find reasons to enjoy each of the seasons that you have in…
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Week 163: Longevity Lessons from Blue Zones
In this episode, I talk about Blue Zones, or places in the world where people often live to age 100 or later but are also healthy during this time. The 3 main lessons (from Dan Buettner, who was recently on the Happiness Lab) are that people from Blue Zones 1) eat more fruits, whole grains,...
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Week 163: Celebrate tiny wins "Treat yourself"!
In this week's episode, I talk about how lately, when I finish a work project, I have been "treating myself" to things that mostly involve a little bit of extra time- leaving work early and going on a bit longer bike ride, taking a bath or reading a book for a bit during the middle of the work…
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Week 162: To life the "good" life, don't forget adventures
In this episode, I talk about my adventures in Boulder, Colorado last week in the context of a book I read last spring called "Life in Three Dimensions: How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make a Fuller, Better Life" by Professor Shigehiro Oishi. The premise of this book is that there are…
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Week 161: Slow down time, explore your own town
In this episode, I talk about how, as we age, we tend to do more of the same thing over and over, which actually makes us perceive time as moving more quickly. This is in part why children perceive time as moving more slowly- they are constantly in new situations and learning new things. In order...
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Week 160: ADHD Part 3- What ADHD looks like vs what it actually is
In this week's episode, I talk about 3 more characteristics of ADHD, what they look like, what they actually are, and some ways we've been working on these at my house. 1) ADHD can look like difficulty with transitions 2) ADHD can look like rudeness and 3) ADHD can look like carelessness. I give...
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Week 159: You'll never (ever) get it all done: A few words on hustle culture
In this week's episode, I talk about "hustle culture" or the idea that our value as a person is directly tied to how much work we can get done in any given moment. That value does not carry over to tomorrow or next week (so as soon as we finish a big project or get a ton of work done, great…
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Week 158: Healthy (and surprising) ways to "take the edge off"
We often talk about "taking the edge off" as sort of numbing our feelings through alcohol, drugs, mindless social media scrolling, or online shopping (among other things). But this week, I wanted to talk about some of the healthy ways I've been "taking the edge off" this week- through exercise,...
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Week 157: How gratitude can (and can't) help in tough times
In this episode, I talk about how gratitude can help us particularly in tough times, but how there are also ways that gratitude cannot help us during tough times. Gratitude always helps during all times, and keeping a gratitude journal or just thinking of things we are grateful for before bed can...
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Week 156, How to make decision-making easier
This week, I talk about how to make hard decisions a little easier. I discuss 4 steps, including 1) pause and give yourself some time before jumping in to make a decision too quickly, 2) vent (feel your feelings, complain, maybe even wallow a bit in your sadness etc. for just a little bit) to get...
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Week 155: Getting through tough transitions
This week, as promised, I am talking about how to get through tough transition times with 4 pieces of advice from my own experience. 1) Have a secure/solid "home base" to return to- whether it is a place in your house/apartment/dorm room where you feel safe, re-watching/reading old TV shows/books...
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Week 154: Summer fun: Let's take back the pool!
In this episode, I talk about the FUN I had at the pool (Playful, connected flow, by Catherine Price from her book The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again) swimming around the pool with my kids this summer! I talk about how, even if we don't have kids, we can remember what we used to like as…
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Week 153: Finding magic in the real world: last episode until fall!
This week's episode is NOT to listen to around children! The episode starts with a story about my children and Santa/the Easter Bunny/Tooth Fairy etc., which led my child to say, "well I guess there is sort of still magic in the world?" To which I said, of course there is! In this episode, I give...
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Week 152: How-to Guide to Surviving the End of the Semester
In this week's episode, I give my 4 favorite pieces of advice from previous episodes on how to make it through a particularly busy/stressful/transitional period. If you are not a teacher or student, this advice can help for any busy or transitional period in your life, but for me, it's the end of...
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Week 151: What ADHD looks like vs what it actually is, Part 2
This epsiode is a continuation of week 145, where I talked about 3 things that ADHD can look liks vs what is actually going on. In this episode, I do the same and talk about 3 more things: ADHD can look like 1) risky behavior/impulsivity, 2) hyperactivity/fidgeting, and 3) forgetfulness. In each…
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Week 150: Numbing vs. Real Comfort: Why we all need to be Anne of Green Gables
In this episode, I define both "numbing" and "real comfort" and give examples of each. I talk about the lessons we can learn from Anne of Green Gables, who felt all her feelings all the time and why that is important to do (at least most of the time). Action item: if you find yourself doing...
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Week 149: A note on growing older
In this episode, I tell a story about past me in graduate school during an interview, feeling bad for the middle aged man who was driving me around in his old minivan. But now, I am that man, and let me tell you, don't feel bad for me! I talk in this episode about how middle age is not the worst...
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Week 148: My favorite ways to save money
In this episode, I talk about 4 of my favorite ways to save money. Although this may seem like it's not related to wellness, I still think that spending more money than we plan to spend (or more money than we actually have) can really hurt our mental health, too. So, my 4 ways are 1) use the…
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Week 147: What actually is "Hope"? And how can we have more of it?
In this episode, I define "hope" using Brene Brown's definition from Atlas of the Heart: Hope is a way of thinking or a cognitive process, not an emotion, that's made up of three components: goals, pathways and agency. I give an example of my own: my goal is to keep promoting what I want to see...
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Week 146: Let's Get Creative!
In this episode, I talk about how creativity can help us in troubled times, about what creativity is (loosely defined), how it can help us (flow, community/connection, etc.) and give a few examples of some creative things I did this past week! Even if you don't think of yourself as a "creative"...
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Week 145: Lessons learned from my neurodiverse child (aka What ADHD looks like vs what it actually is, Part 1)
In this episode, I talk about 3 things that ADHD can look like, in my experience from my own child, and what is actually going on. I am not an expert on neurodiversity but have listened to many episodes of the Beautifully Complex podcast that has included many expert interviews, and I'd like to...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
This podcast is for anyone looking for ideas to improve their mental health and wellness. I am not therapist/psychologist but a college professor interested in helping students (and everyone) with quick tips and tricks to make life just a little bit easier/happier/calmer etc.
HOSTED BY
Alyssa Martoccio
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Wellness Podcast have?
Wellness Podcast currently has 181 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Wellness Podcast about?
This podcast is for anyone looking for ideas to improve their mental health and wellness. I am not therapist/psychologist but a college professor interested in helping students (and everyone) with quick tips and tricks to make life just a little bit easier/happier/calmer etc.
How often does Wellness Podcast release new episodes?
Wellness Podcast publishes regularly with 181 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Wellness Podcast?
You can listen to Wellness Podcast on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Wellness Podcast?
Wellness Podcast is created and hosted by Alyssa Martoccio.
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