Live Happy Now

Can a doodle improve your mental health? If it’s drawn by Danny Casale, it just might! Under the moniker of Coolman Coffeedan, Danny is using his art to provide encouragement, make people laugh, and even explore the challenges of mental health. His work took off during the pandemic, and now he has millions of followers who rely on his adorable characters to uplift and inspire them. His new book UR Special: Advice for Humans from Coolman Coffeedan, tackles topics ranging from loneliness and anxiety to grief and self-confidence. And just like this conversation, his art will make you smile.   In this episode, you’ll learn: How Danny turned doodling into a mental health movement. Why it’s important to him to address mental health issues openly. Why he thinks so many people are connecting with his drawings.

Music is one of the most powerful — and accessible — tools we have for improving our mental health.  On this episode of On a Positive Note, host Paula Felps is joined by acclaimed music therapist Jennifer Buchanan, author of Wellness, Wellplayed: The Power of a Playlist, to talk about the many ways music can be used as a tool for healing and growth. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why music and mental health go hand in hand. How to make a purposeful playlist. What an “anchor song” is and how it can help change your mental state.

Anxiety disorders are one of the most common mental disorders today, and it affects more than 40 million people. Today’s guest, Liza Kindred is a licensed minister, reiki practitioner and meditation teacher whose work has been featured in publications worldwide. Her new Calm Your Anxiety Journal is a hands-on workbook to walk users through their anxiety, discover their personal triggers and use journaling and other practices to make peace with it finally. In this episode, you’ll learn: What happens in your brain when you’re feeling anxiety and overwhelmed—and what to do about it. Why it’s important to acknowledge and talk about our trauma. How to start rewiring your brain and develop new habits to calm the chaos.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and throughout the month we’re taking on some of the tough topics around mental health. This week’s guest is Mattie Cummins, a counselor, brain coach, and CEO of Cerebrations, which provides counseling and coaching for people with anxiety, chronic pain, neurodiversity and other life transitions. Her mission is to empower people to tap into their own inner strength, beauty and experiences to calm their mental chaos, and she talks about some of the tools we can use to create more calm and joy in our lives.  In this episode, you’ll learn: What happens in your brain when you’re feeling anxiety and overwhelmed—and what to do about it. Why it’s important to acknowledge and talk about our trauma. How to start rewiring your brain and develop new habits to calm the chaos.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and here at Live Happy, we realize that happiness and good mental health go hand in hand. So we’ve brought the whole crew together to talk about it! Throughout the month of May, we’re going to focus on tools for better mental health. But to kick it off, our team sat down for a conversation about how the past couple of years have affected each of us and some of the ways we’ve coped. Joining host Paula Felps for this special episode are Live Happy CEO and Co-Founder Deborah Heisz; e-commerce Marketing Manager Casey Johnson; Web Editor Chris Libby; Senior Marketing Manager Britney Chan; and Senior Digital Marketing Specialist Shane Lee. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why it’s so important to talk about mental health. How the pandemic increased anxiety and loneliness. Practices we use for improving mental health.

We all want to live longer, healthier lives — and if we can get younger while doing it, well then, all the better! In this episode, Dr. Kara Fitzgerald joins host Paula Felps to talk about her new book, Younger You: Reduce Your Bio Age and Live Longer, Better. Kara is one of the leading voices in the intersection of nutrition, epigenetics and aging, and she’s here to talk about what her research says about how to not just become healthier, but to actually reduce our biological age from the inside out.   In this episode, you’ll learn: The difference between genetics and epigenetics — and how each one affects your health. What nutrients can help slow aging and improve your health. How exercise suppresses tumors — and why it becomes more valuable as you age.

Every one of us has a dreamer inside, but as we grow up, we often forget to listen to them. On this inaugural episode of On a Positive Note, host Paula Felps sits down with songwriter and recording artist Sylvia, who’s best known for her mega hit “Nobody.” Now, Sylvia has released the concept album Nature Child – A Dreamer’s Journey, which is earning rave reviews and has put her back on the Billboard music charts. Listen to find out how this album was 30 years in the making and why it’s time to awaken the dreamer in all of us. In this episode, you’ll learn: How her early concert audiences inspired this album. Why the pandemic became the perfect time to explore these songs. Why it’s so important to rediscover our inner dreamer.

We celebrate Earth Day on April 22, so this week we’re asking not what our planet can do for us — but what we can do for our planet. On this episode, host Paula Felps is joined by Dr. Dana Ellis Hunnes, an assistant professor at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and author of Recipe for Survival: What You Can Do to Live a Healthier and More Environmentally Friendly Life. In this timely episode, Dana talks about how we can create a healthier, happier and more environmentally friendly life — and even get our kids involved!   In this episode, you’ll learn: How eating more plants and less meat helps the planet. Why taking care of our health is beneficial to the environment. The role of CSAs and community gardens in improving the environment.

A sense of humor – and a sense of purpose – are key ingredients for living a happy life. This week, host Paula Felps talks with Emmy Award-winning actress Sharon Gless about how she has used both of those attributes throughout her storied career. In her funny but touching new memoir, Apparently There Were Complaints, Sharon talks candidly about her journey to success as well as her struggles with alcohol, marriage and menopause. In this episode, she talks about some of the highlights of that journey and the important roles that gratitude and purpose have played in her life.  In this episode, you’ll learn: How humor has helped her handle life’s challenges. What she learned about taking responsibility for everything in her life — and how that changed her life. How the characters she’s portrayed have affected her.

There are many ways to practice happiness, but the key is to find what works for you – and make a habit out of it. This week, Jackson Kerchis sits down with host Paula Felps to talk about Rewired, his Happiness Habit Challenge beginning April 11 designed to help you develop three solid happiness-supporting habits over 30 days. Jackson is founder of the Happiness Studies major at the University of Alabama, and now he’s offering this crash course in creating happier habits. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to go from “knowing” to “doing.” The importance of training your brain for happiness. How small changes in daily habits can produce big results.

April is National Humor Month, which is the perfect time to talk about how to bring more laughter into your life. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Greg Kettner, a TEDx speaker, happiness coach and podcaster who helps organizations create happier, healthier cultures through his WorkHappy™ Game Plan. He teaches companies how to use laughter as a leadership tool, and he talks about the power of humor, how he turned the loss of a job into an entire happiness movement – and what you can do to work happier. In this episode, you’ll learn: How laughter makes our workplace — and our world — better. How humor can increase productivity and job satisfaction. How to apply the WorkHappy™ principles.

Throughout the month of March we’ve been taking on the issue of unity. Today, host Paula Felps is joined by Reverend Jennifer Bailey, who, in addition to being named one of the 15 Faith Leaders to Watch by the Center for American Progress, is the founder of Faith Matters Network. She’s also co-founder of The People’s Supper, which brings people together to engage constructively on issues affecting their communities. This project has brought together thousands of people to create a space for collective healing … all while enjoying a nourishing meal and civil conversation. She’s here today to share some of the tools she uses for bridging our differences.  In this episode, you’ll learn: Why getting curious can help build a bridge. The role of radical hope in bridging our differences. The benefits of spending time with “senior saints and playground prophets.”

As we continue celebrating March as the month of happiness, we’re using this time to focus on the theme of unity. This week, thought leader and author Peter Montoya joins host Paula Felps to talk about how to restore civil discourse and promote healing in these challenging — and divided — times. Peter’s latest book,  The Second Civil War: A citizen’s guide to healing our fractured nation, looks at the challenges we’re facing as a society and how things like technology and media consumption increase our anxiety. Then he talks about what we can do to promote unity and civility. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why the world feels so divided right now. Simple ways to avoid being triggered. How to change the conversation to promote civil discourse.

Throughout the month of March, we’re celebrating the International Day of Happiness and a whole month of Happy Acts. And, as part of this year’s celebration, we’re looking at the theme of unity. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Jessie Kanzer, author of Don’t Just Sit There, Do Nothing: Healing, Chilling & Living with the Tao Te Ching. Jessie talks about social media and how we can use it to become less divided. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why social media is so addictive. How to become more mindful about what you’re posting — and what you’re consuming. Tips for creating healthier relationships on social media.

Every year, Live Happy celebrates the month of March in a big way! As we prepare to celebrate the International Day of Happiness on March 20, our team also creates a full month of activities called #HappyActs to help make the most of every day. This week, host Paula Felps is joined by Live Happy CEO and Co-Founder Deborah Heisz; E-commerce Marketing Manager Casey Johnson; Web Editor Chris Libby; Senior Marketing Manager Britney Chan; and Senior Digital Marketing Specialist Shane Lee to talk about what’s planned, why this month means so much to us, and how you can be part of it.   In this episode, you’ll learn: What the International Day of Happiness is all about. How to create your own Happiness Wall. What #HappyActs are and how you can participate.

As we prepare to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8, Live Happy is proud to be the media sponsor for The Women’s Day Event, an all-day, free virtual event featuring the world’s top female experts on happiness, entrepreneurship, intimacy, female empowerment, parenting, and so much more. This week, host Paula Felps talks with Carin Rockind about why she created this annual event, what women can expect to get out of attending, and why this mission is so important to her. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why it’s more important than ever to celebrate feminine empowerment. What topics and speakers are being featured. How to take part in this free event.

There’s a special day in February for us to celebrate love — and it isn’t Valentine’s Day. In honor of National Love Your Pet Day on February 20, host Paula Felps sits down with Brittany Derrenbacher, a clinical mental health counseling intern and founder of Luna Bell’s Moonbows, a special needs animal rescue. She’s here to talk about why pets are so good for our physical and mental well-being, and then tell us how we can learn to celebrate them every day — and enrich our lives in the process. In this episode, you’ll learn: Four of the main benefits of having a pet. How pets can help people heal from trauma. How to add more joy to your pets’ lives.

Kindness is more important than ever these days, but it can also seem hard to find. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with Brooke Jones, vice president of the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, to talk about what kindness can do for us individually and as a society — and to tell us how we can start adding more kindness to our daily routine. She’ll also tell us how to get involved in the Random Acts of Kindness Day activities!  In this episode, you’ll learn: What the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation does and how you can be part of it. Simple ways to practice kindness at work, home, and school. How to enter the Random Acts of Kindness coloring contest and help #MakeKindnessTheNorm.

The chaos of the world around us is causing an uptick in anxiety, depression and an overall sense of dis-ease. This week, host Paula Felps sits down with acclaimed speaker and author Udo Erasmus, who has impacted the lives of millions with his teachings on health, peace, nature and human nature. Udo, who has combined his master’s degree in counseling with extensive education in biology, nutrition and genetics, offers a deeper understanding of the human condition and how each of us can create a foundation of peace and harmony to discover better mental and physical health. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why change feels so difficult to us. How to redirect our attention to cut through the chaos. How each of us can cultivate more calm in our lives.

Many of us are feeling fatigued and a little bit powerless over the past couple of years. But this week, host Paula Felps talks with Ashley Bernardi, author of Authentic Power: Give Yourself Permission to Feel, who explains how our most challenging times can hold the secret to our authentic power—if we’ll give ourselves permission to feel it and heal from it. She’ll explain what she learned from her own healing journey and how we can use those same techniques to find greater happiness and authentic power. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why authentic power requires you to acknowledge your traumas. Healthy ways to deal with difficult emotions. What the FEEL framework is and how to use it.