Wellness Minutes
Looking for a short mental health podcast you can actually fit into your day? Wellness Minutes is designed for busy people who know stress, burnout, and overwhelm—but want quick, practical ways to feel better.
Hosted by an Indian Clinical-Community Psychologist based in the U.S., each short episode ( under 7 minutes) offers guided practices and bite-sized wisdom from psychology, neuroscience, and spirituality. Whether you need fast stress relief, a quick mindfulness break, or simple coping strategies for burnout, this podcast gives you tools you can use right away.
Think of it as your pocket-sized wellness companion: short, calming, and grounded in evidence-based mental health practices. Each episode is an invitation to pause, breathe, and bring more balance into your everyday life—no matter how busy things get.
Wellness Minutes
Reconnecting Through Talking Rituals: A Wellness Guide
Do you ever feel disconnected from family and friends, especially those living far away? When each day blends into the next, how do we maintain meaningful connections?
Drawing inspiration from Anne Lamott's book "Help Thanks Wow," this episode explores a simple yet profound talking ritual that offers both health benefits and deeper engagement with loved ones. The three-word practice creates a framework for authentic conversation that acknowledges our struggles, celebrates our gratitude, and recognizes moments of wonder in our daily lives.
"Help" invites us to practice self-compassion by acknowledging difficulties and recognizing when we need support. Asking for assistance—whether with small tasks like laundry or bigger challenges—is a mindful act that validates our struggles and opens space for solutions. "Thanks" encourages gratitude practice, not to ignore problems but to reduce the overwhelming feelings they generate. And "Wow" prompts us to look for moments of awe that research shows bring us into the present moment, affecting our perception of time and making life more satisfying.
This episode provides practical guidance for incorporating this ritual into daily life and shares personal experiences of how it helped during difficult times. The practice creates meaningful connection points with family and friends that transcend distance and routine, allowing us to share our full humanity with those we care about most.
Next time you're feeling disconnected, try sharing your daily "Help, Thanks, Wow" with someone you love. You might be surprised by how three simple words can transform your relationship and bring you collectively to the present moment. What "wow" moment will you notice today?
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Opening Music by Jeremiah Alves from Pixabay
Closing Music by Aleksandr Karabanov from Pixabay
Thank you for listening,
much metta,
Dr G
Welcome to episode 11 of the Wellness Minutes, a podcast that reminds you to pause and take a deep breath when we run out of conversation with ourselves and others. Is there a way to reconnect, especially with family members and friends here or overseas? Especially with family members and friends here or overseas, what if there could be a talking ritual that could have health benefits and also keep us engaged with each other, Especially when each day appears so similar to the previous one? I have an idea and I hope you'll stick around to listen. A few years ago, I read this lovely book called Help Thanks Wow by Anne Lamott. She's a prolific writer. She combines humor and spirituality in these lovely ways. Do check her out, you know, if you ever need to laugh and cry all at once. So, coming back to her book, I happened to read it at a time that I was going through a really difficult time and it was a combination of health issues, work, stress and just the ongoing pain of being so far away from my family. So I happened to read this book and I was just struck by the simplicity of acknowledging what I need help with, what I'm grateful for and what struck me with a sense of wonder. So Help, Thanks, wow. Became like a tiny conversation I had with myself and my husband every day. In fact, recently found journal entries from that time as well, filled with just help. Thanks, wow for each day. It was fun. Help allowed me to acknowledge something was difficult, I could not change it alone and that I needed the advice or support from others.
Speaker 1:Asking for help is a form of self-compassion. You're being mindful of your current stress and you're acknowledging this moment is hard, Especially right now. We could do with so much more communication within our families about how to ask for and how to receive help. Start by acknowledging to yourself what you need help with, small or big, laundry or money, whatever it is. Asking for help, even if you just ask yourself for help, is a way of recognizing. Even if you just ask yourself for help, is a way of recognizing you are suffering but that you cannot have all the solutions. Asking for help is like giving yourself permission to explore who could help you at this current time. Thanks allows me to be grateful for what I have so I could experience the benefits of what I have in my life and express appreciation to the people and things in my life that actually help me deal with the messiness of human life.
Speaker 1:Gratitude is not expected to make you ignore your problems. It's more a way to reduce the to make you ignore your problems. It's more a way to reduce the overwhelming feelings created by our problems. Wow, Now, that's an invitation to look around at the world with a sense of wonder and awe. There are things that are happening around us each day, things that can inspire us, take our breath away, take us away from the present moment, and also look at the present moment, Whatever it may be.
Speaker 1:According to researchers from the Stanford School of Business, experiences of awe bring people into the present moment, and being in the present moment underlies our capacity to adjust our perception of time, influence our decisions and make life feel more satisfying than it would otherwise. I've linked the study in my show notes and I hope you'll go check it out. It's a fascinating study and it inspires me to look for more wow moments every day. And seriously, some days, looking for wow moments can feel like a treasure hunt. So I'm just grateful that there's a sunset and sunrise every day, Because, if nothing else, I can just look up at the sky to find at least one wow. So, yeah, hope the idea of saying help, thanks, wow gives you a chance to come to the present moment with every part of your humanity, and I hope you'll be able to share your experiences with your loved ones as well. Take care.