<p dir="ltr">A conversation with singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles and psychologist Dacher Keltner, recorded at the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/events/wellfestival#overview">New York Times Well Festival</a>, moderated by Dan. All three of them have dealt with anxiety and continue to work with it, and they discuss the ways they look for joy and sustainable wellness. </p> <p dir="ltr">Related Episodes:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.danharris.com/p/sara-bareilles-anxiety-anger-and-567?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false"> Sara Bareilles: Anxiety, Anger, and Art</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.danharris.com/p/the-evolutionary-case-for-kindness-ecd?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false"> The Evolutionary Case for Kindness | Dacher Keltner</a></p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.danharris.com/p/this-scientist-says-one-emotion-might-d45?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false"> This Scientist Says One Emotion May Be the Key to Happiness. Can You Guess What It Is? | Dacher Keltner</a></p> </li> </ul> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Get ready for another Meditation Party at Omega Institute! This in-person workshop brings together Dan with his friends and meditation teachers, Sebene Selassie, Jeff Warren, and for the first time, Ofosu Jones-Quartey. The event runs October 24th-26th. Sign up and learn more at <a href="http://eomega.org/workshops/meditation-party-2025">eomega.org/workshops/meditation-party-2025</a>.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Join Dan's online community <a href="http://www.danharris.com/">here</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Dan on social: <a href="https://bit.ly/3tGigG5">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://bit.ly/3FOA84J">TikTok</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to our <a href="https://bit.ly/3FybRzD">YouTube Channel</a></p> <p><strong id="docs-internal-guid-611d7808-7fff-aff3-6b57-582cf979a651"><br /> To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit <a href="https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris">https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris</a></strong></p>
Actionable Insights
1. Embrace Vulnerability for Connection
Be willing to share your vulnerability and what is difficult or true, as this acts as medicine, bringing precious gifts, people, and deeper relationships into your life.
2. Practice “Action Absorbs Anxiety”
When feeling anxious, especially about large issues, take action even if it’s unrelated to the specific problem, such as holding a door, volunteering, or helping friends, because being useful benefits both yourself and the world.
3. Cultivate Human Connection
Prioritize and seek out human connection, as it is described as the single most helpful offering you can make towards yourself in times of hardship, given that humans are wired for connection.
4. Accept and Sit with Difficult Feelings
Instead of pushing away anxiety or panic, allow yourself to feel whatever you are experiencing, understanding that resistance makes these feelings persist and that they are physical sensations that you can sit with.
5. Get Outdoors Regularly
Spend time outdoors, as there are 21 identified pathways through which natural elements like clouds, sky, light, water sounds, and spring smells calm your nervous system.
6. Consider Therapy for Deeper Understanding
Engage in therapy to help put the scenes of your life into a coherent story, exploring early memories and primordial fears to understand and manage anxiety and panic.
7. Explore Medication with Professional Guidance
If struggling with severe anxiety, consider discussing medication options with a professional, as it can be a life-changing tool for managing symptoms.
8. Engage in Exposure Therapy for Panic
Deliberately and aggressively expose yourself to the specific situations or things you fear (e.g., small elevators, planes), as the theory suggests the only way out of fear is through it.
9. Practice Diaphragmatic Breathing During Panic
When a panic attack starts, focus on diaphragmatic breathing to address the physiology of the attack, rather than engaging with inner thoughts or cognition.
10. Integrate Meditative Practices
Regularly engage in meditation or activities with meditative qualities, such as listening to calming music or observing visual arts, to calm the amygdala, lower cortisol, and gain perspective.
11. Start Meditation Small and Flexibly
For those interested in meditation, begin with a small duration (e.g., one minute) and adopt a ‘daily-ish’ policy to build a habit without added stress, exploring apps or in-person centers for guidance.
12. Engage in Expressive Writing/Journaling
Practice expressive writing or journaling to put your life experiences into a narrative, which is beneficial for managing anxiety and depression.
13. Incorporate Regular Exercise
Make exercise a consistent part of your routine as a method for coping with and managing anxiety.
14. Seek Wisdom from Ancient Philosophies
Read texts from traditions like Lao Tzu or Buddhism to gain perspective and understand fundamental truths, such as ’life is hard,’ which can help in navigating difficult emotions.