Simple Ways to Unwind Without Alcohol

With the holiday season upon us, it may be a good time to reflect on your relationship with alcohol. Rebecca Williams, PhD, author of the new book, Simple Ways to Unwind without Alcohol, offers us strategies for behavior changes that can lead to more ease and better health. She encourages us to slow down, develop compassion for ourselves, and discover new ways of understanding what we need.

About Health 12/4/23, KPFA.org—94.1FM ….Listen now!
https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=411595 

Guest

Rebecca E. Williams, PhD is a psychologist, wellness expert, and award-winning author.  She received her master’s degree from Harvard University, and her doctorate with a specialization in clinical psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara.  Rebecca enjoyed a twenty year career as a clinic director with the San Diego VA Healthcare System; was associate clinical professor in the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Diego; and maintained an active private practice.  She is co-author of two popular books bridging addiction recovery with the power of mindfulness.  The Gift of Recovery: 52 Mindful Ways to Live Joyfully Beyond Addiction and The Mindfulness Workbook for Addiction: A Guide to Coping with the Grief, Stress, and Anger that Trigger Addictive Behaviors.  The workbook is now in its second edition and has been translated into multiple languages.  Rebecca is excited to introduce her latest book Simple Ways to Unwind without Alcohol: 50 Tips to Drink Less and Enjoy More designed for those who want to change their relationship with alcohol and embrace a healthy lifestyle. Find out more by visiting her website www.mindfulnessworkbook.com.

Reducing Chemical Exposures

Have you wondered about the safety of the products you use to keep your home clean, or the chemicals that are in your lipstick or hair products? Did you know that you may be putting asbestos, formaldehyde, or even lead on your hair or lips?  Toxic chemicals in our cosmetics, sunscreens, and skin care products are unregulated, and many cleaning produces, non-stick frying pans, or water resistance clothes, may contain the toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS.  Recent reports from the United States Environmental Protection Agency reveal that PFAS may be a bigger issue than we originally thought.

Every day we’re exposed to toxic chemicals in the air, water, food, and in the products we use. The more we know, the better chance we have of making good choices for our health and the health of our children.

Listen now to About Health 11/6/23, KPFA radio—94.1FM

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=410192

 

Guest:

Kaley Beins is a Senior Scientist at the Environmental Working Group (EWG). She focuses on the intersection of public health and toxicology, specifically improving human health by reducing chemical exposures. Before joining EWG, she worked for the Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, where she contributed to consensus studies and organized federally funded workshops. Prior to her work at the National Academies, she helped develop toxicological profiles for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and supported green chemistry and product labeling programs for the Environmental Protection Agency. She has also contributed to community health and environmental justice initiatives at nonprofits and local health departments. Kaley is active in the Washington, D.C., chapter of the Sigma Xi Scientific Research Honor Society as vice president, was a Fulbright Research Fellow, and co-hosts a medical education podcast. She is an associate member of the Society of Toxicology.

 

Sleep Matters

Although most people spend about a third of their time in bed, all too often people struggle to get deep and restful sleep. Sleep is essential to our bodies for maintaining mental and physical health, and it helps to repair and restore our brains. It’s reported that 50 to 70 million Americans have chronic sleep disorders, with the most common sleep disorders being insomnia, sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, and narcolepsy.

Today the doctor is in to answer your questions about sleep, and how to know when you need help from a medical professional to prevent health issues related to sleep disruptions.

Listen now to About Health on KPFA.org, 94.1 FM

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=409450

Guest:

Kin M. Yuen, M.D., M.S. Dr. Kin Yuen is a board-certified physician in sleep medicine working with Bay Sleep Clinic. She is an assistant professor at UCSF and Adjunct associate professor at Stanford University. She completed her Master of Science degree in Health Services Research and her post-doctoral fellowship at Stanford University.  Her research interests include sleep disorders especially in women and children, cardiac arrhythmia, and the use of medical devices in sleep.  

Conversations About Death

Death is a part of life, but too often people are afraid to talk about their fears about dying, and their priorities for care at the end of life. Many people find themselves in challenging situations when they are faced with a dying relative or friend, not sure what steps to take to honor the dying person’s wishes.

Are you prepared? Do you have a will? An advanced health care directive? If not, you are not alone. 

** Listen now to About Health (9/11/23) ** https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=407174

Let’s talk about death and about communicating with the people we love while we can. 

Guest

Eileen Spillane is the founder of Befriending Death, a platform that offers the signature course “Let’s Chat About Death” as well as 1:1 coaching, a book club, and community gatherings. Her motivation to create these courses came from many years as a Critical Care Nurse witnessing unnecessary suffering. Her hope is to normalize conversations around death with a supportive, friendly community, so life and death decisions can be approached long before one is hospitalized. In addition to working as a Registered Nurse for the last thirty three years, Eileen is a meditation and dharma teacher, and works as an active travel guide for international hiking and biking trips. She is a former Zen Hospice Project volunteer and a trained end of life doula.

Eileen offers a free book club. In October, she will have two authors joining for a discussion:

  • Joanne Cacciatore, author of Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief on 10/10 9:30 AM PST

  • Sally Tisdale, author of A Guide For Future Corpses: A Practical Perspective on Death And Dying 10/12 5 PM PST

To learn more about her work and offerings go to https://www.befriendingdeath.com/

Befriending Your Vagus Nerve

Listen now to About Health–8/28/23

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=406461

There has been a lot of talk about the Vagus Nerve these days, so I decided to do a show to learn more about how it functions, and how it can help us during times of stress or illness. The vagus nerve is one of the longest and most important of 12 cranial nerves in our bodies, and it connects our brain to our gut, and affects our mood, digestion, heart rate, immune response, and much more.

Join me and my guest Amelia Barili to learn about the Vagus Nerve and ways it can help us respond instead of react and calm ourselves in these challenging times.

 

Guest

AMELIA BARILI PhD, travelled the world studying ancient traditions on how to develop good health from the inside out. She received her diploma in Yoga Therapy and Philosophy, in 1972, at Kaivalyadhama Yoga Institute, India. Having also studied the Medical Qigong system with old Chinese masters, Amelia is a pioneer at integrating both wisdom traditions. She has brought these ancient contemplative practices into the academic environment and teaches meditative techniques as tools to overcome stress and foster deep learning. She is an award-winning faculty at UC Berkeley and the Osher LifeLong Learning Institute, where she teaches youth and older adults a systematic embodied mind approach for personal and community transformation. Since March 2020 she has been offering, and continues to offer, free Saturday online classes. The classes integrate Yoga, Qigong, and Neuroscience to teach participants how to work with their nervous system to maintain good health, resilience, and inner strength. She just finished teaching a nine weeks course with Dr. Stephen Porges, at the Polyvagal Institute, on “Embodying Safety: Integrating Yoga, Qigong and Polyvagal Theory.” For more information about Dr. Barili’s work and to join her Saturday classes visit ameliabarili.com and her YouTube channel thenewparadigms.