Mental Health and Wellbeing

Is Mental Illness Real?

June 23, 2021

Every once in a while someone says something that challenges you to the core and forces a rethink of what you thought to be real and true. One such moment occurred for me recently when a friend offhandedly remarked that a mutual acquaintance of ours doesn’t believe mental illness exists. How bizarre, I thought at … Read full article »

5 Books That Changed Me in 2020

December 9, 2020

In 1993 author Peter James caused a global outrage when he published his thriller Host on two floppy disks. The first “electronic novel,” which is about a scientist who downloads his brain into a computer and has his body frozen, was considered the beginning of the end of literature as we know it, not because … Read full article »

Addiction, Books, Cal Newport, David Raubenheimer, diet, Digital Minimalism, Johann Hari, mind-body medicine, Stephen J. Simpson, Wayne Jonas, wisdom

What To Do About “The Social Dilemma”? A Netflix Film Review

October 12, 2020

As a journalist who makes documentaries intended to spark conversations about our health and wellbeing, I’m very aware of the power of the majority. I believe that good old water cooler conversations and word of mouth are the crucial first step to creating positive, meaningful change. So when the third person in a week asked … Read full article »

mental health, social media, technology, technology addiction

Is it Really Possible to “Boost” Wellbeing?

September 24, 2020

There’s a strange paradox that took place in the years following the birth of my two sons. Although I discovered a new and delightful maternal love, along with a profound sense of clear-minded meaning and purpose, my mental wellbeing took a dive. All the caring, cleaning, cooking, washing, planning, and putting-on-a-brave-facing combined with chronic sleep … Read full article »

Corey Keyes, hedonic treadmill, Kimina Lyall, Marian Baird, mental health, Robert Cummins, subjective wellbeing, Subjective Wellbeing Homeostasis, Wellbeing

We Need To Talk About Mental Health… DIFFERENTLY

September 9, 2020

It was a story of a young man who has dropped out of university because he can’t cope with the pressure of studying during a pandemic, it was hearing that two girls I know couldn’t see their dad on Father’s Day because he’s having another breakdown, it was the news that a mother of three … Read full article »

The New Science of “Overthinking”

August 27, 2020

“I think it would be really helpful if you could share practical tips for people on how they can just turn their minds off,” said Andrea, who works in the HR department at a multi-national software company.* Andrea was calling because she was providing copies of my latest film, My Year of Living Mindfully to … Read full article »

Amishi Jha, default mode network, DFM, mindfulness

Embracing Imperfection and the Art of Being A Compassionate Mess

February 19, 2020

The work I produce is unoriginal, meaningless tripe…I’m a terrible mother, who’s always too tired for her kids…I can’t cook… All this, according to the voice in my head, is fact. Fortunately, of late, I’ve been learning not to believe everything I think. I first began taking notice of the mean voice in my head … Read full article »

Kristin Neff, mindfulness, self compassion

50 Shades of Crappy: The Power of “Emotional Granularity”

August 1, 2019

At the risk of sounding like I’m whining about my #firstworld problems; this morning was nothing short of crappy. With thanks to two small children who had broken my sleep throughout the night, I woke up feeling crappy. With thanks to a freezing house not suited to Sydney’s mid-winter weather, I got out of bed … Read full article »

Chapter 02 - Emotions, Emotional Granularity, emotions, Lisa Feldman-Barrett, mindfulness

Maybe We Should Stop Trying To Be Happy And Seek This Instead

February 21, 2019

When I was studying for my final high-school exams I had Post-It note on my desk which read “India.” Amidst the misery of practice essays and assignments, the note was a vow that once I was done, I would travel. It was the dream of independence, of discovery and a promise that one day I … Read full article »

Discomfortable, Evolutionary psychology, happiness, hedonic treadmill, hedonism, Robert Wright

The Surprising Impact of Saying “Thank You”

December 19, 2018

I recently found myself filled with anthropological curiosity amidst the sharp suits and fabulous heels embellishing a crowd of pre-parenthood, 20-something-year-old, working professionals. As pioneers of The Selfie, millennials have a reputation for being tech-addicted entitled brats who are in need of a constant feed of positive affirmation. But this event well and truly set … Read full article »

Gratitude, Philanthropy, Wellbeing

3 Ways To Manage Your Wellbeing In the Silly Season

December 13, 2018

This blog is inspired by the culmination of almost every conversation I’ve had in the last seven days that I strongly suspect many of my readers will relate to. It goes like this – Me: “Hi, how are you?”Friend: “I’m sooooo [insert word associated with being crazy-busy-stressed-hectic-overloaded etc]” It’s hard to escape that we’re in … Read full article »

diet, materialism, Moderation, Ritual, sleep, stress

5 Books That Changed Me in 2018

November 21, 2018

In my never-ending quest for greater health and happiness, I’m a ravenous consumer of health-related non-fiction books. As I’ve explained before, bad past experiences have made me quite guarded against pseudoscience and quick-fixes, so I go for books written by scientists, journalists and credible industry-insiders who are well-researched, transparent in their sources, and who are … Read full article »

Mental Health and Wellbeing

Latest posts from Shannon's blog

Is Mental Illness Real?

5 Books That Changed Me in 2020

Is it Really Possible to “Boost” Wellbeing?

We Need To Talk About Mental Health… DIFFERENTLY

The New Science of “Overthinking”

Embracing Imperfection and the Art of Being A Compassionate Mess

50 Shades of Crappy: The Power of “Emotional Granularity”

Maybe We Should Stop Trying To Be Happy And Seek This Instead

The Surprising Impact of Saying “Thank You”

3 Ways To Manage Your Wellbeing In the Silly Season

5 Books That Changed Me in 2018

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