Category: radiant life magazine

Want to Change Yourself? Start Smaller

One of my favorite things is to find life-changing ideas that are hidden in plain sight. It’s far easier than you might think. These ideas are usually called “common sense.” Everyone knows they’re good ideas, but what they miss is that they are actually great ideas. The magic is in taking these simple ideas seriously…


Rethinking Magnesium

Magnesium is an essential nutrient that you may be lacking. It is a cofactor in hundreds of enzymatic processes in the body, yet many people are completely unaware of the health challenges that can ensue from an insidious deficiency. Let’s explore the need for magnesium, for a blood test to evaluate your magnesium status, and…


Why Aren’t More Babies Being Nursed?

The day after Leslie Ott’s daughter, Ella, was born at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale, Arizona, a doctor came into her room and threatened to separate Ott from her baby. “The pediatrician told me I was starving my baby and would have to give her a bottle, or she was going to be admitted…


How ‘Present You’ Can Radically Improve the Well-Being of ‘Future You’

I have seen one clinical pearl repeatedly stand out in my 20 years of treating patients with highly complex and chronic autoimmune conditions. Those who plan their self-care fare better than those who don’t. While this insight is centered on those facing illness, the observations that follow have universal value. When you have a chronic…


Steps to Free Our Kids From Screen Dependency

“I don’t know how to explain it, but something is wrong with my son,” one mother told me, fighting back tears. “He’s a good student, he does his chores, he used to be so sensitive and caring. But I feel like I’m losing him. His video games are the center of his universe now and…


On Being Brave

When my children were little, I read a story in a magazine that stopped my heart. A mom had sent her daughter to the corner grocery store to buy some bread and milk. Her daughter was walking home with the purchases when a stranger in a car pulled to the curb beside her. He smiled…


The Neuroscience of Compassion

Neuroscientists are affirming what people have known for centuries: We can train our brain for compassion. Ancient practices include cultivating compassion; in modern parlance, we say we can retrain the brain. These changes can increase our capabilities for love, happiness, and success. Once you learn how easy it is to rewire your brain for compassion,…


Embodying the Truth 

The truth is a powerful thing, but unraveling what is true isn’t nearly as straightforward as we might believe. The dictionary meaning of truth points to an indisputable fact or an accurate portrayal of objective reality. Honesty, integrity, and transparency allow the truth to be seen. Lies, denial, and deceit cover it up. You may…


Virtues: Our Best Bet for Happiness

“What constitutes a good life?” “How should one live?” “What kind of a person should one be?” In their answers to these perennial questions, history’s great minds have frequently invoked the concept of virtue. Philosophers ancient and modern have argued that the road to a happy, thriving, worthwhile life is paved with virtues. Aristotle, for…


Struggling With Meditation or Mindfulness?

In this day and age, just about everyone associates meditation and mindfulness with improved well-being. Especially now, as people deal with COVID-19, there’s an invigorated interest in staying well—mind, body, and soul. But many people aren’t sure where to start. In my experience, cultivating a meditation and a mindfulness practice that works for you is…