Happy Mind, Happy Life
Happy Mind, Happy Life: 10 Simple Ways to Feel Great Every Day. A science-backed guide to a calmer, happier you.
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Podcast
Why Your Brain Wants You To Be Anxious, Lazy & Fat (And What You Can Do About It) with Dr Anders Hansen
I think it’s fair to say that human beings have got it pretty good. Compared to most of our evolutionary history we have never been richer, safer, or lived longer lives. Yet, despite that, more of us are struggling with our health than ever before. What’s going on? This is the question that my guest today has spent years trying to answer.
Dr Anders Hansen is a Swedish psychiatrist, a globally renowned speaker with his own TV series exploring the human brain and he is also the author of multiple bestselling books, including his latest two The Happiness Cure and The Attention Fix.
He believes we can start to understand the struggles of modern life by looking to the brain, where our emotions are created. The brain did not evolve for intelligence, creativity or even happiness. Its sole purpose is to help us survive and reproduce – to make it to tomorrow, alive. We have inherited the evolutionary defence mechanisms that kept our ancestors hyper alert, fearful, and able to evade danger.
The trouble is that modern life has evolved at a pace our genes and brains have been unable to match. So today, these incredible survival skills that once helped us, now show up as unwanted feelings like chronic anxiety, distractibility, an urge to overeat, under exercise and even gamble. We often see these as mental health failings – something broken that needs to be fixed, says Anders. But when you look at them through the lens of evolutionary psychology, these behaviours all start to make perfect sense.
We no longer live on the Savanna: we live in a world of abundance and super-stimulation – and, if we want to thrive, we need to work against our brains’ natural instincts.
Easier said than done? Perhaps, but this conversation contains some excellent practical advice to get you started.
Anders is someone who really wants all of us to learn how exactly our brains are wired – so we can more easily understand ourselves and our daily behaviours. He is passionate, knowledgeable and a brilliant communicator. I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with him, I hope you enjoy listening.
Disclaimer: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.*
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Watch the video version of the conversation here:
Connect with Anders:
Anders books:
The Attention Fix: How to Focus in a World that Wants to Distract You†
The Happiness Cure: Why You’re Not Built for Constant Happiness, and How to Find a Way Through†
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Dr Chatterjee’s books and resources:
- Order Happy Mind Happy Life. UK version,† US & Canada version†
- Feel Great Lose Weight is available to order now. Click here for the UK version† and click here for the US & Canadian version†
- Dr Chatterjee’s book Feel Better in 5 is out now. Click here for the UK version† and click here for the US & Canadian version†
- Order Dr Chatterjee’s book The Stress Solution†
- Find Dr Chatterjee’s 4 Pillars of Health in The 4 Pillar Plan†
- Available in the US & Canada with the title How to Make Disease Disappear†
- Click here for Dr Chatterjee’s YouTube channel
- Join the Dr Chatterjee 4 Pillar Community Tribe Facebook page
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*DISCLAIMER: Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.
†Disclosure: All books marked with a † are hyperlinked to an affiliate program. We take part in Amazon’s affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon’s website. You are not charged any extra by using these links to purchase books.
Dr. Rangan Chatterjee
MbChB, BSc (Hons), MRCP, MRCGP