Being Well with Forrest Hanson and Dr. Rick Hanson

Rick Hanson, Ph.D., Forrest Hanson
  • 4.8 (2.5K)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

Forrest Hanson is joined by clinical psychologist (and his dad) Dr. Rick Hanson and a world-class group of experts to explore the practical science of lasting well-being. Conversations focus on the key insights from psychology, science, and contemplative practice that you need to build reliable inner strengths, overcome your challenges, and get the most out of life. New episodes every Monday.

  1. 5d ago

    The New Science of Pain: It's Not Just Physical with Dr. Rachel Zoffness

    Pain psychologist Dr. Rachel Zoffness joins Forrest and Dr. Rick to explore what pain is, why it can persist long after an injury has healed, and what actually helps. Rachel explains why the brain, rather than the body part that hurts, is what constructs pain, the difference between acute and chronic pain, and the distinction between hurt (what you feel) and harm (what's damaged). They get into the biopsychosocial model, the "pain dial" that stress, sleep, mood, and social connection can turn up or down, the disappointing response rates for most pain treatments, why pain is absolutely not “just in your head,” what sham surgery and open-label placebo studies reveal about how pain works, and why the research is so hard to interpret.  This is not medical advice. Please do not start, change, or discontinue any medication based on this episode. All decisions should be made with your doctor. About our Guest: Dr. Rachel Zoffness is a pain psychologist, assistant clinical professor at the UCSF School of Medicine, and the author of Tell Me Where It Hurts.  Key Topics: 0:00 Introduction 1:42 Acute vs. chronic pain 3:41 What is pain? 9:20 The biopsychosocial model 11:11 Hurt vs. harm: the tale of two nails 19:10 The pain dial 23:10 Nociception vs. pain 26:46 Your pain recipe 29:46 The "all in your head" stigma 31:23 Central sensitization 35:53 Pushback from pain patients 40:42 Loneliness and pain 46:51 Pacing 50:48 Reducing distress vs. reducing pain 54:26 Does anything work? 1:00:07 What placebo actually is 1:03:19 Acupuncture, sham surgery, and open-label placebo 1:09:42 Why the research is such a mess 1:14:10 Hopelessness, and trying one more thing 1:17:46 Mindfulness and attention 1:23:02 Advice for friends and family 1:30:22 Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors Go to https://Zocdoc.com/BEINGWELL to find and instantly book a top-rated doctor today. Check your health the way I do with 160+ lab tests and access to scans through Function, all for only $365 a year. Learn more at https://functionhealth.com/BEINGWELL and use code BEINGWELL25 for a $25 credit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  2. Sep 11

    People Pleasing vs. Fawning: Why We Do It and How to Change

    Dr. Rick and Forrest talk about what separates people-pleasing from the fawn response, and why those differences affect what actually helps. They trace the surprising history behind both ideas, explain each’s relationship with trauma, and answer common questions along the way. They discuss why old friendships pull you back into old patterns, when appeasement is actually the right call, how to assert your needs when people expect you to concede, and how to figure out what you want after a lifetime of tuning into everyone else.  Sign up for Dr. Rick's new Boundaries workshop, and use promo code BeingWell25 to receive a 25% discount. RickHanson.com/Boundaries Key Topics: 0:00: Introduction 2:05: What’s the difference between people-pleasing and “just being nice?” 8:50: Common signs of people-pleasing 21:00: Where "people-pleasing" and “fawning” come from 27:00: Pete Walker, trauma, and how the two terms got merged 30:45: "Is the conflict causing my anxiety, or is my attachment style causing the conflict?" 39:10: Becoming more assertive  47:30: How to change relationships built on the pleasing version of you 55:15: Emotional neglect, shame, and learning what you want 1:04:30: Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors Visit https://Upwork.com to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow.  Visit https://Rula.com/BEINGWELL to find affordable, high-quality therapy that’s actually covered by insurance.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  3. Aug 31

    Depleted Mother Syndrome: Why Moms Burn Out, and How to Recover with Jan Hanson

    Forrest is joined by his parents, psychologist Dr. Rick Hanson and nutritionist Jan Hanson, to discuss "Depleted Mother Syndrome:” the exhaustion, brain fog, and low mood so many mothers experience. They talk about how Jan hit bottom in the years after Forrest and his sister were born, why the hardest stretch often comes two or more years after birth, the problem with dismissing these experiences as "just motherhood,” and how people can recover. Key Topics: 00:00: Intro & welcome Jan! 2:39: What inspired the book 10:02: Dr. Rick’s perspective 13:30: Depleted Mother Syndrome 18:33: The accumulated impacts of motherhood  25:44: Taking care of your health as a mom 36:40: Rick & Jan’s personal experience 50:08: Small actions that maintain and repair a relationship 1:04:19: What Jan would tell her younger self Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors If you’re ready to simplify the business side of your practice, now is a great time to try SimplePractice. Start with a 7-day free trial, then get 50% off your first three months. Just go to SimplePractice.com to claim the offer. Go to Zocdoc.com/BEINGWELL to find and instantly book a top-rated doctor today. Get better sleep, backed by your own data. Go to OrionSleep.com/BEINGWELL for 15% off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  4. Aug 24

    How to Feel Your Feelings with Simone Saunders

    We’ve all been told to “feel our feelings,” but what does that actually mean, and how do you do it? Forrest talks with trauma therapist Simone Saunders about how to go from knowing your patterns to being able to do something about them when things get intense.  They discuss what your nervous system does when it decides you're not safe, why the tools you've collected go offline in exactly the moments you need them, and how a sense of agency changes that equation. Simone walks through her three-step process for noticing a sensation, working out what it's asking for, and doing something different with it. They also talk about the functional freeze, what to do when you “don’t feel anything,” and how to relate to shame and grief. Key Topics: 00:00: Intro: overthinking, cognitive bypassing, and intellectualizing 4:42: What it means to “be in the body” 9:46: Bottom-up approaches and trauma 18:33: How to recognize disconnection and functional freeze 28:38: Moving out of a dictatorship and into a partnership with your body 34:51: How to actually feel your feelings 46:29: The difference between emotions and feelings 52:14: Meeting your needs 57:40: The limit of self-understanding, frameworks, and tools  1:00:07: Moving into experiments, titration, and when you feel too much or not enough 1:17:28: Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors Level up your bedding with Quince. Go to https://Quince.com/BEINGWELL for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns. Visit https://Upwork.com to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow.  Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at https://RocketMoney.com/BEINGWELL. MasterClass keeps adding new classes, so there’s never been a better time to get in. Get at least 15% off any annual membership at https://MasterClass.com/BEINGWELL Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  5. Aug 17

    The Psychology of Manipulation: How to Become Manipulation Resistant

    Dr. Rick and Forrest explore how to become more resistant to manipulation, discussing terms like gaslighting, DARVO, and love bombing. They talk about why cynicism doesn’t make you immune to manipulation, and how excessive skepticism and trust can go together. They share the “handles” manipulators exploit, break down common forms of reality distortion, emotional manipulation, and situational engineering, and discuss what actually helps.  Key Topics: 0:00: What is manipulation? 6:25: Are cynical people less manipulatable? 14:52: How can we become manipulation resistant? 25:51: How manipulation works 26:30: Tactic 1: Reality distortion 33:49: Tactic 2: Emotional manipulation 38:02: Tactic 3: Situational engineering 40:00: Key qualities to develop 45:17: Establishing protective systems and managing "the fuzz" 1:02:36: Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period at shopify.com/beingwell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  6. Aug 10

    What’s The Problem With Therapy Speak? August Mailbag

    Terms like boundaries, gaslighting, triggers, trauma, and attachment are everywhere now. Dr. Rick and Forrest answer a listener question about the consequences - good and bad - of clinical language escaping the therapy room. They then answer three more questions: an introverted listener wonders about the pressure to be social, a couple wants to know how to loosen their strict scorekeeping around household tasks, and a 27-year-old wonders whether becoming a therapist means wasting the degree they already have.  Key Topics: 00:00: Introduction 1:24: Question 1: The rise, and problems, of therapy speak. 8:15: Boundaries as a tool for control 11:04: Epistemic injustice: who gets believed 14:48: The ups and downs of labels. 19:20: Question 2: Do I really need to expand my social circle if I'm happy being mostly alone? 28:23: Question 3: How do we balance household responsibilities without scorekeeping? 41:15: Question 4: I want to become a therapist, but I’m scared to change careers. What should I do? 51:30: Recap Sponsor Visit Upwork.com to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow.  For a limited time, try OneSkin with 15% off using code BEINGWELL at oneskin.co/BEINGWELL.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  7. Aug 3

    Burnout: A Practical Guide for Normal People

    Dr. Rick and Forrest explore burnout: what it is, why it’s so common, and what people can do about it. They begin by framing burnout as largely a structural problem that individuals are forced to manage. They unpack the six major drivers of burnout, why some people are especially vulnerable, and how chronic stress affects the mind and body. They then turn to practical ways to recover more effectively, including psychologically detaching from work, finding more effective forms of relaxation, protecting your own self-concept, and reducing underlying vulnerabilities. Finally, they talk about how we can preserve meaning and agency when we truly can’t change our circumstances. Key Topics: 00:00: Intro and burnout as a structural issue 7:20: Six major factors of stress and what to do about them 21:57: Mindfulness, relaxation, and recovery 34:11: Protecting your own self-concept and job crafting 41:46: Reduce vulnerabilities and taking care of yourself 1:04:45: Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors If you’re ready to simplify the business side of your practice, now is a great time to try SimplePractice. Start with a 7-day free trial, then get 50% off your first three months. Just go to SimplePractice.com to claim the offer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  8. Jul 27

    The Grieving Body: How to Heal After Loss with Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor

    We all understand the emotional impact of grief, but its effects on the body are often overlooked. Forrest is joined by clinical psychologist and researcher Dr. Mary-Frances O’Connor to explore the physiology of grief. Dr. O’Connor explains how our brains and bodies organize themselves around the people we love, creating “maps” of their presence and relying on them for physical and emotional regulation. They discuss the health risks associated with bereavement, how to care for the healing body, ambiguous loss, the difference between grief and prolonged grief, and how we can gradually build a meaningful life around loss. About our Guest: Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor is a Professor of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona and Director of the Grief, Loss, and Social Stress Laboratory. She is the author of two books on grief: The Grieving Brain and The Grieving Body. Key Topics: 00:00: Intro 4:42: The map that no longer exists 12:00: Co-regulation: the attachment figure as an external pacemaker 16:35: Physiological effects of grief 24:53: Taking care of yourself after a loss 36:46: Protest, despair, and meditative practices 45:45: Prolonged grief and getting stuck in restoration 57:31: Progressive Muscle Relaxation vs mindfulness 1:03:00: Re-engaging with the world 1:15:42: Recap Support the Podcast: We're on Patreon! If you'd like to support the podcast, follow this link. Sponsors Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at https://RocketMoney.com/BEINGWELL. Level up your bedding with Quince. Go to Quince.com/BEINGWELL for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns. Visit Upwork.com to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Forrest Hanson is joined by clinical psychologist (and his dad) Dr. Rick Hanson and a world-class group of experts to explore the practical science of lasting well-being. Conversations focus on the key insights from psychology, science, and contemplative practice that you need to build reliable inner strengths, overcome your challenges, and get the most out of life. New episodes every Monday.

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