On January 27, 1880, Thomas Edison was granted U.S patent 223,898 for “An electric lamp for giving light by incandescence⁠.” He had invented the world’s first commercially viable light bulb and within a couple of decades every home and business throughout America and Europe was illuminated with artificial light.   As the founder of General Electric he had a vested interest in rebranding the night as the beginning rather than the end of the day used his celebrity status to boast that he needed only four or five hours of sleep each night.  As Alan Derickson writes in his book... Read full article »

At a barbeque to celebrate Australia Day this week I was struck by how many of my friends seemed totally exhausted. Whether it was because they are the parents of young kids, had been partying over the holiday season, or are hard at work climbing the corporate ladder, there was a common bond of fatigue uniting us all. For some of my friends, a minimum 50-hour workweek is not only the norm; it’s the expectation if they want to be successful. Other friends sit in traffic for at least three hours a day during their daily commute. This lifestyle isn’t... Read full article »

I will never forget the look on my two-year-old son Theodore’s face when he learned to swim during our family holiday last week. We had been swimming with him every morning and every afternoon, watching him gain the confidence to let go, trust that he could float and then finally work up the courage to start moving his arms and legs to move independently in the water. His face expression said it all – triumph, exhilaration, and the joy of being free.   The moment was magic and I wanted it to last forever. But pretty soon I felt my... Read full article »

I needed to pop to my local shopping mall yesterday to pick up a couple of final holiday gifts and found myself stuck in a traffic queue as I joined thousands of others intending to do the same. As we all converged on the shopping centre car park simultaneously, traffic came to a standstill. There was no escape. Given that I’m on a tight writing deadline for my book, time is not something I have to spare at the moment and as I inched my car forward I felt my blood start to boil. My stress response was kicking in.... Read full article »

Where I live in Sydney, Australia there is a sense of franticness in the air. Traffic has come to a standstill as people add various silly season shenanigans to their already overloaded schedules in the extreme heat of the Australian summer. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy this time of year and I’m especially looking forward to our Harvey family Christmas Eve where we celebrate Danish style and come together for important Christmas rituals like almond rice pudding and rum balls. But I know I won’t be alone in allowing the holiday season to get the better of me... Read full article »

When I was first diagnosed with an autoimmune disease for which doctors could offer no cure, naturally the first thing I looked at was my diet. Rightly so.  Diet has well and truly been established as being among the most important influences on our health. Having a bad diet is among the leading causes of premature death and chronic disease. Having a good diet on the other hand is associated with increased life expectancy, dramatic reduction in lifetime risk of all chronic disease, and even improving gene expression.  And while it’s all very well for experts to tell us to... Read full article »