
Hosted by Sarah Ann Macklin · EN

This week I'm joined by Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor, bestselling author and one of the world's leading experts on the science of human happiness, and someone who has spent his life answering one of the most fundamental questions we all ask and what does it actually mean to live well?We explore happiness, meaning, love and what the science really says about building a life that feels worth living.Arthur Brooks is a professor at Vanderbilt University and senior fellow at Harvard Business School. He is the author of 16 books including three number one New York Times bestsellers. He has spent decades studying happiness not as a feeling but as a skill and teaching people how to practise it.What we explore together:Why happiness is not a destination and what the arrival fallacy is really costing youThe four idols your brain tells you will make you happy and why they never doWhat the neuroscience of love actually looks like and the two things that keep couples bondedHow the failure journal works and why writing down your disappointments makes you happierWhy meaning and happiness are not the same thing and which one actually lastsWhat it means to love and be loved and why Arthur believes that's the whole answerLove, Sarah Ann 💛My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/The Great British Veg Out👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...👉 Free 5-recipe PDF: https://sarahannmacklin.com/5_free_recipes👉 The Compassionate Cure: https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends!📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin/📹 Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah🐦 Twitter: https://x.com/SarahAnnMacklin📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast💌 Newsletter: https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Chapters00:00 Introduction02:59 Arthur's personal journey and finding purpose05:59 How grief can be a doorway to meaning09:07 Why knowing everything doesn't make you happy15:04 What Stoicism teaches us about happiness20:57 The four idols — money, pleasure, power, fame23:57 Why the four idols are a dangerous trap33:00 Arthur's worst day and what it taught him38:57 The arrival fallacy42:03 The neuroscience of dopamine48:00 The failure journal54:07 The neuroscience of love — oxytocin, touch and eye contact57:03 How to keep connection alive long term65:58 Why the silent treatment is so damaging72:02 How your emotions are made in the brain78:00 Finding meaning beyond achievement87:08 Where Sarah is two years on93:00 What saved Viktor Frankl98:28 Final thoughts on living well and being well

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Ruby Wax, comedian, author and mental health advocate.We delve into two of the most extraordinary moments of Ruby's career, interviewing OJ Simpson and being humiliated by Bill Cosby on camera and what she would do completely differently today.My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends! 📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Ruby Wax, comedian, author and mental health advocate.We delve into what depression actually feels like from the inside, the machine guns, the intrusive thoughts, and how mindfulness taught Ruby to create distance from the thoughts that were trying to destroy her.My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends!📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

This week I'm joined by Ruby Wax, comedian, author and mental health advocate, and someone who has spent her life turning the most painful human experiences into something that makes us feel less alone.We explore depression, mindfulness and what it really means to understand your own mind, not just survive it, but actually work with it.Ruby Wax is an Emmy Award-winning writer and performer who studied neuroscience at Oxford University and went on to write the bestselling books Sane New World and A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled. Ruby founded Frazzled Café, a peer support community for people who feel overwhelmed by modern life, and has performed sell-out shows across the world on mental health. She knows what depression looks like from the inside and she has the Oxford degree to explain whyWhat we explore together:*Why depression isn't about sadness and what it actually feels like from the inside*What mindfulness does to your brain, and why Ruby had to go to Oxford before she believed it*Why your thoughts are not you and how to create distance from the ones trying to destroy you*What happens when you stop fighting depression and let it pass instead*Why self compassion isn't weak or gushy — it's biological necessity*The moment Bill Cosby humiliated Ruby on camera, and what she would do differently now*Why Ruby feels safest in a mental institution and what that tells us about belongingLove, Sarah Ann 💛My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/The Great British Veg OutHow to support your gut, energy, and hormones by eating more — not less.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your HealthIf your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout — this is where to start.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...👉 Practical beats perfect. Here's a free 5-recipe PDF I use to support energy and stress during busy weeks.https://sarahannmacklin.com/5_free_recipes👉 If this resonates, you can join the thousands who read The Compassionate Cure each week.https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends!📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin/📹 Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah🐦 Twitter: https://x.com/SarahAnnMacklin📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast💌 Newsletter: https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Chapters00:01 — Introduction03:05 — Ruby's childhood and what shaped her05:54 — How Ruby found her voice through comedy08:49 — Being outed by Comic Relief11:49 — What depression actually feels like from the inside14:59 — The neuroscience behind mental illness17:57 — How Ruby used her illness publicly to help others21:08 — The machine guns — living with intrusive thoughts24:04 — How mindfulness creates distance from your thoughts26:49 — What happens when depression takes over completely29:52 — Why Ruby checks into a hotel instead of fighting it32:59 — Performing in mental institutions for two years35:55 — What mindfulness does to your brain — the science39:04 — How to actually practise mindfulness anywhere42:00 — Jon Kabat-Zinn and the origins of mindfulness44:58 — Ruby's modelling career and finding what she was good at47:58 — Why self compassion feels cringeworthy — and why it shouldn't50:51 — The difference between mindfulness and meditation54:01 — Ruby on relationships and what she looks for57:01 — The OJ Simpson interview60:04 — What it means to feel truly safe62:59 — How Ruby met her husband66:02 — Family history and what gets passed down69:01 — Why Ruby feels at home in a mental institution72:00 — How to observe your thoughts like clouds75:02 — Ruby's upcoming tour78:00 — The mania perfume idea80:55 — Final thoughts on living well

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Cindy Gallop, advertising icon and entrepreneur.We delve into whether men can handle female confidence, what real love actually looks like and why so many of us are surrounded by more love than we realise.My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends! 📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Cindy Gallop, advertising icon and entrepreneur.We delve into why the search for "the one" is keeping so many of us unhappy and the dating filter that could change everything.My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends! 📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

This week I'm joined by Cindy Gallop, entrepreneur, founder of Make Love Not Porn, former Chair of BBH USA, and someone who has spent her life questioning the rules we're told to live by.A quick warning before we start: Cindy has spent her entire life saying the things most people are too afraid to say out loud, and she does so with absolutely no filter. Which, as you'll hear, is exactly what makes her so brilliant.From challenging how we think about sex and relationships to redefining what confidence, success and fulfilment can look like, Cindy has spent decades refusing to live by anyone else's expectations. She was named Advertising Woman of the Year and has become one of the world's most outspoken voices on sex, relationships and modern culture.In this conversation, we explore what it really means to build a life that feels true to you, rather than one that simply looks right to everyone else.What we explore together:* Why so many of us live by beliefs and expectations we never consciously chose* Why confidence comes from knowing yourself, not seeking validation from others* Why Cindy believes we need more role models for living differently* Why the search for "the one" can stop us from asking better questions about love* How creating Make Love Not Porn became a mission to challenge shame and misinformation around sex* The question Cindy believes we should all ask before entering a relationship* What it actually means to trust yourself, especially when your choices don't fit society's expectationsLove, Sarah Ann 💛My book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health trackerConnecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut, energy, and hormones by eating more — not less.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your HealthIf your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout — this is where to start.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...👉 Practical beats perfect. Here's a free 5-recipe PDF I use to support energy and stress during busy weeks.https://sarahannmacklin.com/5_free_recipes👉 If this resonates, you can join the thousands who read The Compassionate Cure each week.https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends!📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin/📹 Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah🐦 Twitter: https://x.com/SarahAnnMacklin📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast💌 Newsletter: https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Chapters00:00 Introduction02:51 The secret of confidence05:58 Why we struggle to promote ourselves, especially in Britain09:08 The challenges Cindy has faced in her career11:50 Why the conversation around sex is so negative14:55 A different perspective on relationships18:05 Dating as a single woman in business21:02 Can men handle a confident woman?24:10 Using humour to disarm difficult moments27:10 Why Cindy stopped looking for "the one"29:58 Friendships, family and external validation32:57 The dating filter most people overlook36:02 How to drown out everyone else's expectations and trust yourself39:00 Confidence, dyslexia and self acceptance41:50 How Cindy started dating younger men45:01 Meeting people you'd never otherwise cross paths with47:55 What needs to be role modelled in the real world51:01 How Make Love Not Porn began54:08 A story about marriage, sex and reconnecting56:50 The noise of advice on Instagram and TikTok59:53 An interesting topic in modern relationships63:08 Cindy's honest take66:08 The pressure to keep creating content69:08 Where women are in this cultural moment

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Nir Eyal, behavioural designer and bestselling author.We delve into how our beliefs about the people closest to us can keep us trapped and a simple technique that can set you free. Featuring two of the most personal stories Nir has ever shared.Nir's books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B00HJ8021IMy book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:DIOME: Rest deeper. Stay grounded. Rested is available now and Grounded lands later this month. 👉 Get 20% off with code SARAH20 at DIOME.CONOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends! 📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

This week's Live Well Be Well Moment with Nir Eyal, behavioural designer and bestselling author.We delve into the science of beliefs, why your brain lies to you even when you know the truth, why manifesting can actually work against you, and what the difference between a limiting and liberating belief really means.Nir's books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B00HJ8021IMy book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:DIOME: Rest deeper. Stay grounded. Rested is available now and Grounded lands later this month. 👉 Get 20% off with code SARAH20 at DIOME.CONOWATCH: The compassionate health tracker Connecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today. 👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/More from me: The Great British Veg Out How to support your gut by eating more, not less https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your Health If your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout, this is where to start! https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...Free 5-recipe PDF for busy weeks https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahma...Join thousands reading The Compassionate Cure → https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends! 📷 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin 📹 Subscribe https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah?si=UbuuWvMjAcTkELPN 📱 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast?_r=1&_t=ZN-96iOW29jTRm

Grab my Sunday Times Best Selling Book: Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard 👇😆✌🏼https://linktr.ee/HealthySBTHHave you ever wondered why you keep thinking, feeling or behaving in ways you know aren't serving you even when you know better? This week I'm joined by Nir Eyal, behavioural designer and bestselling author, and one of the most fascinating voices on how our beliefs shape everything from our habits and identity to our health and happiness.Nir has a way of cutting through the noise of self-help and getting to the science and what he shares isn't about toxic positivity or vision boarding. It's about understanding the beliefs running your life, and actually changing them.What we explore together:Why your brain continues to lie to you even when you know the truthThe difference between facts, faith and beliefs and why it mattersWhy manifesting and positive visualisation can actually make you less likely to succeedWhat a 1950s rat experiment teaches us about the power of belief and human potentialWhy your ADHD, perfectionism or Myers-Briggs label might be holding you backHow the stories we tell ourselves create suffering — and how to change themThe science of luck — and why lucky people aren't just born that wayWhy your beliefs about ageing could impact your lifespan more than diet or exerciseHow to actually change a limiting belief — practically and permanentlyIf you've ever felt stuck in patterns you can't seem to break, this one is for you.Love, Sarah Ann 💛Nir's books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B00HJ8021IMy book 'Healthy Shouldn't Be This Hard': https://www.amazon.co.uk/Healthy-Shouldnt-Be-This-Hard-ebook/dp/B0G1DHNRV5This episode is sponsored by:NOWATCH: The compassionate health trackerConnecting body and mind with unique stress recovery insights so you can live fully today👉 15% off with code LWBW15 at https://nowatch.com/DIOME: Rest deeper. Stay grounded.Rested is available now and Grounded lands later this month.👉 Get 20% off with code SARAH20 at DIOME.COThe Great British Veg OutHow to support your gut, energy, and hormones by eating more — not less.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/p/t…Reset Your HealthIf your body feels off after stress, travel, or burnout — this is where to start.👉 https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/s/r...👉 Practical beats perfect. Here's a free 5-recipe PDF I use to support energy and stress during busy weeks.https://sarahannmacklin.com/5_free_recipes👉 If this resonates, you can join the thousands who read The Compassionate Cure each week.https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Let's be friends!📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahannmacklin/📹 Subscribe: https://youtube.com/@livewellbewellsarah🐦 Twitter: https://x.com/SarahAnnMacklin📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@livewellbewellpodcast💌 Newsletter: https://sarahmacklin.substack.com/Timestamps02:30 — Introduction: Why our beliefs shape everything we think, feel and do05:01 — The difference between facts, faith and beliefs09:58 — Why manifesting and positive visualisation can backfire13:28 — Pain is not suffering — and the stories we tell ourselves18:47 — The 1950s rat experiment and the science of hope and belief24:57 — Why your beliefs about ageing could add years to your life30:03 — How to start changing a limiting belief34:57 — The steelmanning technique for difficult conversations44:56 — The four questions that can change how you see anyone54:54 — It's not your fault — but it is your responsibility59:49 — Prayer, faith and the science of belief without religion74:59 — Conditional vs unconditional love and how beliefs shape relationships99:59 — How to actually replace a limiting belief — step by step104:54 — The belief that changed everything for Nir recently119:52 — Final advice: how to start living by better beliefs today