If we find ourselves off track in life, how can we ground ourselves and find our flow again?
When Josh Groban first stepped on stage as a shy 7th grader assigned a solo by his music teacher, his own mother didn’t know he could sing. Fast-forward three decades, and Josh has sold 35 million records worldwide. Josh’s rise to fame as a singer, songwriter and actor happened relatively quickly, he says, and along the way, he sometimes lost sight of what he cared about, pursued the wrong things, and experienced loneliness and depression. Through those difficult times, Josh sought therapy and built deeper connections with loved ones and learned to turn to them for support.
In this episode, Dr. Murthy and Josh Groban explore the challenges of navigating life when it becomes overwhelming, the power of the arts to heal, the importance the arts for young people, and how music has the power to transport us.
(07:09) Did Josh ever imagine his music could bring healing for people?
(09:30) Why are teachers so important for young artists?
(08:18) How Josh dealt with self-doubt
(23:01) What helped ground Josh as his fame grew?
(27:03) How does Josh know when he’s chasing the right things?
(33:34) How does Josh find the balance between hustle and flow?
(40:32) The isolation of fame
(49:43) The courage to work with a therapist
(55:30) The power behind Josh’s song “River”
(01:04) What do the arts do for our mental health & well-being?
(01:07:36) How is Josh Groban supporting the arts for young people?
(01:10:12) Why does Dr. Murthy feel so connected to Josh Groban?
(01:13:36) Why should we pursue experiencing the arts in our lives?
(01:17:02) Where has Dr. Murthy turned for inspiration or solace in music?
(01:18:47) Can we create more access to the arts for young people and turn STEM to STEAM?
Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls
Josh Groban, Singer and Actor
Instagram: @joshgroban
Facebook: @joshgroban
About Josh Groban
Josh Groban possesses one of the most outstanding and instantly recognizable voices in music. A powerhouse vocalist and dynamic renaissance man, he has sold over 35 million albums worldwide. ATony, EMMY, and five-time GRAMMY Award-nominated singer, songwriter, actor, and philanthropist, his catalog spans a series of chart-topping blockbuster albums, including “Josh Groban” (5x-platinum), “Closer” (6x-platinum), “Noël” (6x-platinum), “Awake” (2x-platinum), “Illuminations”, “All That Echoes” (gold), “Stages” (gold), his first UK #1 album, “Bridges”, and his most recent release, “Harmony”. Along the way, he has packed arenas throughout North America, Europe, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and Asia.
Groban made his Broadway debut in 2016 with a starring role in “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812,” for which he garnered a Tony Award nomination for Best Lead Actor In A Musical. In the spring of 2023, Josh took to Broadway once again, performing in the highly anticipated revival of “Sweeney Todd”, playing the title role which earned him Tony and GRAMMY Nominations along with widespread acclaim.
Groban is also a known presence on television, with appearances on “Glee”, “The Simpsons”, “The Office”, “CSI: NY, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”, and “The Crazy Ones” as well as in the feature films “Coffee Town”, “Muppets Most Wanted”, and “Crazy, Stupid, Love”. In addition, he starred in the NETFLIX series “The Good Cop” in 2018.
In 2022, he returned to the hallowed stage of Radio City Music Hall for his Great Big Radio City Show residency and launched a nation-wide live tour. Also that year, Groban also starred in ABC’s special “Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration” as none other than the Beast.
Groban remains an active arts education philanthropist and advocate, and his Find Your Light Foundation helps enrich the lives of young people through arts, education, and cultural awareness.
What does Dr. Ruth have to say about facing loneliness?
Dr. Ruth Westheimer was a legend who broke taboos around talking about sex and relationships. At her core, she cared deeply about human connection. In 2023, she was named the nation’s first honorary Ambassador to Loneliness for the state of New York.
In honor of Dr. Ruth, who passed in July 2024, the Surgeon General offers a remembrance and shares a few nuggets of wisdom she recorded while working on her last book, “The Joy of Connections.”
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Ruth, Sex Therapist & Author
Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer broke stigmas for more than forty years, beginning in the 1980s with her nationally syndicated radio show “Sexually Speaking”. She authored or co-authored forty-six books on many topics and was named New York’s Ambassador to Loneliness, the first such position in the United States. A beloved therapist known to millions as “Dr. Ruth,” she passed away in July 2024.
Parental well-being is linked to the well-being of kids – it affects kids’ health, their learning, and, ultimately, their futures.
But right now, parents and caregivers are incredibly stressed. That stress is harder to manage when you feel you’re on your own, which is why it’s concerning that parents, particularly single parents, report high levels of loneliness.
In this week’s episode of House Calls, Dr. Murthy talks about why we need a fundamental shift in how we value and prioritize parents’ well-being. He also reads a preview of his latest advisory, Parents Under Pressure: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Mental Health & Well-Being of Parents.
Learn more at https://surgeongeneral.gov/parents.
(00:02) Why is parent mental health so important?
(00:54) What is The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on Parent Mental Health and Well-Being?
(01:12) Why is parenting one of the hardest jobs?
(02:22) Why is parenting so essential to our society as a whole?
(02:55) What are some modern-day parenting challenges?
(04:39) What has the U.S. Surgeon General learned in his conversations with parents across America?
(05:18) How can parents’ mental health and well-being be better-supported?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
What does it mean to succeed when you’ve reached the Olympic podium? How do you separate that success from your sense of self-worth?
The world knows Chloe Kim as one of the greatest athletes ever. At 17, Chloe was the youngest person to win an Olympic gold medal in snowboarding. She was the first to win two gold medals in the Halfpipe. She was the first female snowboarder to have landed back-to-back 1080s. She is the first athlete ever to win all four major snowboarding titles in the Olympics, Worlds, Youth Olympics and X Games.
Under the pressure and expectations of the world, how does Chloe stay true to herself? Now 24, Chloe holds so much wisdom. Grappling with her incredible success, she has sought to understand what truly matters - insights that have come from her moments of pain and struggle. In this conversation, Chloe opens up about how she found her way through her depression and anxiety. And how she finds inner peace. As the children of immigrant parents, Chloe and the Surgeon General talk about family and what the American Dream means to them.
Ultimately, this episode is a meditation on where we find meaning in life.
(00:03:15) Dr. Murthy and Chloe sort out Team Dog vs Team Cat tension.
(00:05:38) Where did Chloe’s love of snowboarding come from?
(00:08:55) What inspired Chloe’s parents to come to America?
(00:12:45) What were the early days of snowboarding like for Chloe?
(00:14:25) How Chloe learned to be fearless on the slopes & off the slopes
(00:17:27) How do people’s expectations of success affect Chloe?
(00:20:50) How did Chloe get through her mental health struggles?
(00:25:05) How did Chloe turn to therapy?
(00:27:45) What brings Chloe (and Dr. Murthy) inner peace?
(00:32:58) How do you live a life that’s grounded in love?
(00:38:20) What gives Chloe a sense of purpose when things get hard?
(00:39:41) Chloe’s evolving definition of success.
(00:44:12) Chloe on her relationship to self-worth and loving herself.
(00:47:04) What is Chloe’s relationship to social media?
(00:52:17) What does Chloe want her parents to know about what they mean to her?
Special thanks to the President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition for collaboration on this episode.
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Chloe Kim, Snowboarder
Instagram: @chloekim
About Chloe Kim
The 2022 Winter Olympics cemented Chloe Kim as the female face of both snowboarding and action sports when she became the first female in history to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals in halfpipe snowboarding. After being accepted to Princeton University, Kim took the 2019–20 season off from competing to focus on her education. Returning in January 2021, after a 20-month hiatus from snowboarding competition, Kim continued her dominance of the sport, winning all 4 women’s superpipe events in the 2020–21 season including her seventh X Games gold medal and her second World Championship.
Kim has had just as much success off the mountain as she’s had on it. She’s been featured on Forbes 30 Under 30 list, Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list, and Time’s 30 Most Influential Teens list (3 years in a row), as well as the cover of Time Magazine, Shape Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Sports Illustrated Kids, and ESPN Magazine. She also had an appearance in a Maroon 5 video and the Charlie’s Angels reboot. Additionally, Kim has taken home 5 ESPY Awards, the 2022 Daring to Disrupt Award at Glamour Women of the Year Awards, 3 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Sports Awards, and 2 Laureus World Sports Awards. Kim was appointed as a member of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition on March 24, 2023, for a 2-year term. Kim, whose parents emigrated from Korea, now lives in Los Angeles and has been recognized for her positive impact in the Asian American community.
What does coming close to death teach us about living?
Sebastian Junger is not a stranger to danger and death. As an award-winning journalist and author of “The Perfect Storm,” and “Tribe,” he has spent his career covering humans in harrowing situations, from massive storms at sea to the front lines of wars. In his recent memoir, “In My Time of Dying,” Sebastian considers his near-death experience from a ruptured aneurysm and his unexpected encounter with his deceased father. How did almost dying change his view on the purpose of living?
His words are at once stark and soulful, and they are filled with truths that can help us lead a more meaningful and fulfilling life.
(03:17) Sebastian Junger’s near-death experience
(14:56) How Sebastian came to look at nearly dying as a sacred experience
(21:09) How does Sebastian make sense of the vision he had of his father?
(33:57) Did nearly dying affect how Sebastian is raising his children?
(39:26) Where does Sebastian Junger see love fitting into our lives?
(48:19) How do we build that sense of unity that comes with feeling part of a tribe?
(56:09) How can we set aside differences and find the humanity in one another?
(01:01:08) How does Sebastian Junger think about purpose?
(01:02:23) Why is Sebastian Junger so proud of being able to comfort his daughter?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Sebastian Junger, Journalist & Filmmaker
Instagram: @sebastianjungerofficial
Facebook: @sebastianjunger
About Sebastian Junger
Sebastian Junger is the New York Times bestselling author of Tribe, War, Freedom, A Death in Belmont, Fire, and The Perfect Storm, and codirector of the documentary film Restrepo, which was nominated for an Academy Award. He is also the winner of a Peabody Award and the National Magazine Award for Reporting.
In celebration of World Friendship Day, the Surgeon General invites an old friend and House Calls producer to talk about how their deep connection has seen them through the best of times and the worst of times, sustaining them both personally and professionally.
(00:28) House Calls gets personal as Dr. Murthy introduces an old friend (who is also a House Calls producer)
(01:56) How Dr. Murthy and his friend Ann Kim met
(03:27) How many marriages have resulted from Dr. Murthy’s personal pastime of matchmaking?
(03:54) How has Dr. Murthy and Ann Kim’s friendship cultivated a focus on social connection?
(04:44) How can we find the light in other people?
(05:28) Why is talking with a friend in challenging times so helpful?
(08:38) How can a friend help us explore our interests and find our focus?
(11:29) How can we help children foster deep friendship with their siblings?
(13:27) Dr. Murthy shares his favorite poem about friendship.
(16:11) How can we inspire more friendship?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Ann Kim, House Calls Producer and Friend
Instagram: @annkimannkim
About Ann Kim
Ann Kim is Chief Innovation & Design Officer at the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General. In this role, Ann and her team aim to bring creativity and design thinking to government, modernizing and humanizing ways to advance public health. She oversees the surgeon general’s website, first-ever podcast (“House Calls with Dr. Vivek Murthy”), and creative development of new products and initiatives. She served as Chief Design Officer during Dr. Vivek Murthy’s previous tenure from 2016-2017, developing campaigns to address substance use, opioids prescribing, and emotional well-being.
Prior to public service, Ann served as as executive director of health and well-being at global design firm IDEO. During her decade at IDEO, her portfolio included the design of HIV-prevention products, digital mental health tools, and new models of healthcare delivery.
In the first decade of her career, Ann was a producer and filmmaker for public television. Her credits include the award-winning PBS/Frontline series “The Age of AIDS” and “Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?” the landmark documentary series on the social determinants of health. She has reported for the public radio from Botswana, India, and North Korea. Her latest documentary, “Lovesick,” is about a physician in India who is also a matchmaker for her HIV-positive single patients.
Ann is a graduate of Harvard College, with a joint degree in Anthropology & the Study of Religion. She is a board member of Noora Health. And, unlike her dear friend the Surgeon General who identifies as a cat person, she considers herself a dog person.
The Surgeon General and Selena Gomez, singer, actress, and founder and creator of Rare Beauty and the Rare Impact Fund, take the stage at the Rare Beauty Mental Health Summit to talk about loneliness, connection, and the power of talking about our mental health.
(02:42) Why is bringing people together to talk about mental health so important to Selena?
(03:49) Why has loneliness and connection become a focus of the Surgeon General’s work?
(07:15) How does Selena manage her relationship with social media?
(08:31) What has Dr. Murthy learned about the impact of social media on young people?
(13:46) Why is Selena personally committed to providing support for mental health?
(15:28) What’s the difference between loneliness and isolation?
(20:34) Does Selena have one thing she does each day to stay connected with friends and family?
(22:27) What makes Selena and the Surgeon General hopeful about the future of mental health?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Selena Gomez, Singer, Actress & Philanthropist
Instagram: @selenagomez
X: @selenagomez
Facebook: @selena
About Selena Gomez
In addition to being an award winning actress, producer, Grammy nominated recording artist, philanthropist, and mental health advocate, Selena is the Founder & Creator of Rare Beauty and the Rare Impact Fund, which she launched simultaneously in 2020. Selena created Rare Beauty with a mission to break down unrealistic standards of perfection and help people celebrate their individuality by redefining what beautiful means. As part of her commitment to addressing mental health and self-acceptance, one percent of annual Rare Beauty sales go directly to the Rare Impact Fund to expand access to mental health services for young people around the world.
What makes us successful?
What makes our lives fulfilling?
Are they the same things?
We’re exposed to so many ideas of what is success, it’s not always easy to be clear on what path best serves us. This episode’s guest, Adam Grant, is an organizational psychologist and expert on what motivates us, what gives us meaning, and how we can live more generous and creative lives.
This conversation takes some personal turns, with Adam and the Surgeon General talking about their friendship, marriage, kids, and recent struggles, including a shared tendency to seek out the approval of others. They open up about failures and how we can learn from them.
Adam also shares an unconventional idea for helping his kids feel valued and loved. Listen as this episode gets real about what’s at the heart of a fulfilling life.
(03:30) How does Adam Grant define success?
(07:44) Are fame, fortune, and power really the values we need for successful lives?
(12:05) Why do character and values matter and how do we cultivate them?
(20:08) How does Adam create boundaries for tech and social media in his own life?
(27:01) How does Adam extend what he studies as an organizational psychologist to his children?
(39:42) Why does Adam find value in being open about his struggles and failures?
(44:39) How can we talk about our current struggles, even when it’s sensitive?
(46:50) Dr. Vivek Murthy shares a personal struggle of his own.
(48:20) How can we address habits and traits that impact our relationships?
(51:48) Should Meeting Night become the new Date Night?
(55:16) How does Adam find time to cultivate and maintain friendships?
(01:01:11) Do we have to learn lessons by making mistakes ourselves? Can’t we learn from the mistakes of others?
(01:07:57) What gives Adam hope?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Adam Grant, Organizational Psychologist
Instagram: @adamgrant
X: @adammgrant
LinkedIn: @adammgrant
Facebook: @adammgrant
About Adam Grant
Adam Grant has been Wharton’s top-rated professor for 7 straight years. As an organizational psychologist, he is a leading expert on how we can find motivation and meaning, rethink assumptions, and live more generous and creative lives. He has been recognized as the world’s #2 most influential management thinker and one of Fortune’s 40 under 40.
He is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 6 books that have sold millions of copies and been translated into 45 languages: “Hidden Potential”, “Think Again”, “Give and Take”, “Originals”, “Option B”, and “Power Moves”. His books have been named among the year’s best by Amazon, Apple, the Financial Times, and the Wall Street Journal. His viral piece on languishing was the most-read New York Times article of 2021 and the most-saved article across all platforms.
Adam hosts the TED podcasts “Re:Thinking” and “WorkLife”, which have been downloaded over 70 million times. His TED talks on languishing, original thinkers, and givers and takers have over 35 million views. He has received a standing ovation at TED and was voted the audience’s favorite speaker at The Nantucket Project. His speaking and consulting clients include Google, the NBA, Bridgewater, and the Gates Foundation. He writes on work and psychology for the New York Times, has served on the Defense Innovation Board at the Pentagon, has been honored as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and has appeared on Billions. He has more than 8 million followers on social media and features new insights in his free monthly newsletter, GRANTED.
In this part 2 of their conversation, the Surgeon General explores Dr. Abraham Verghese's craft as a writer -- what is his creative process? And what is the relationship between his writing and his work in medicine? The episode closes with Dr. Verghese sharing one of his favorite poems.
(02:56) How does Dr. Verghese deal with moments of fear and uncertainty that arise in practicing medicine?
(04:42) How has Dr. Murthy dealt with uncertainties in practicing medicine?
(08:19) How did Dr. Verghese’s unusual medical training shape who he is as a physician?
(15:18) What gave Dr. Verghese the courage to try writing?
(20:20) What is Dr. Verghese’s creative process for writing?
(22:19) What was it like for Dr. Murthy to write a book?
(26:41) How does Dr. Verghese deal with time pressure and deadlines when writing?
(30:15) Does Dr. Verghese experience writer’s block?
(33:36) A poetic moment with Dr. Verghese
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Abraham Verghese, Physician and Writer
Instagram: @abraham.verghese.official
About Dr. Abraham Verghese
Dr. Abraham Verghese is a renowned physician, author, and educator, currently serving as the Linda R. Meier and Joan F. Lane Provostial Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine. He leads the PRESENCE center at Stanford. Dr. Verghese's work sits at the intersections of medical practice, humanism, and narrative, setting a higher bar for patient-centered care. In addition to two memoirs, he is the author of the two acclaimed and bestselling novels, “Cutting for Stone” and “The Covenant of Water.” In 2016, President Obama awarded him the National Humanities Medal; he is also the recipient of numerous honorary degrees. He is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy as well as the American Association of Arts & Sciences. His dedication to patient care and his promotion of bedside medicine creates a meaningful dialogue in the medical field.
For doctors who spend years training to make their patients better, what happens when there is no cure?
This is how Dr. Abraham Verghese came of age as a physician.
At the height of the AIDS epidemic, he treated a rural population of dying young men, men his own age, who had no future and were often shunned by other doctors. Working with his AIDS patients, Dr. Verghese learned that treating the spirit can bring patients and their families an invaluable part of what they need when facing the incurable. As Dr. Verghese became renowned both as a doctor and a writer, he carried forward his rituals of personal focus on the patient and their families to keep humanity central to his medical practice.
(02:28) Dr. Murthy and Dr. Verghese recount their first meeting
(06:14) How did Abraham learn the difference between curing and healing?
(09:10) What did Abraham come to understand about doctors while caring for AIDS patients in the 1980s?
(13:08) How Dr. Murthy got his start in public health during the AIDS epidemic
(17:22) How can we build a more humanistic approach back into medicine?
(21:20) Do patients feel invisible these days?
(24:21) With the proliferation of electronic medical records, how can medical students learn to connect with patients?
(29:24) How Dr. Murthy learned the importance of the physical exam with patients.
(36:11) When Dr. Verghese sees patients, what are some of the rituals he practices?
(41:12) Was medicine always Dr. Verghese’s calling?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Abraham Verghese, Physician and Writer
Instagram: @abraham.verghese.official
About Dr. Abraham Verghese
Dr. Abraham Verghese is a renowned physician, author, and educator, currently serving as the Linda R. Meier and Joan F. Lane Provostial Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine. He leads the PRESENCE center at Stanford. Dr. Verghese's work sits at the intersections of medical practice, humanism, and narrative, setting a higher bar for patient-centered care. In addition to two memoirs, he is the author of the two acclaimed and bestselling novels, “Cutting for Stone” and “The Covenant of Water.” In 2016, President Obama awarded him the National Humanities Medal; he is also the recipient of numerous honorary degrees. He is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy as well as the American Association of Arts & Sciences. His dedication to patient care and his promotion of bedside medicine creates a meaningful dialogue in the medical field.
In this special episode, Dr. Murthy sits down with Sara Bareilles, Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter and actress, and Celia Keenan-Bolger, Tony award-winning singer and actress. You may know more about them as performers than you do about their experiences with mental health, but this conversation will change that.
As two very good friends who are warm, funny, and genuine, this conversation is an intimate portrait of their friendship and its importance to mental health. Their conversation explores questions many of us have on our minds: How do you prioritize friendship when the world demands us to be so productive? What does it mean to show up for one another? And how do you overcome questions of self-worth and find the courage to speak openly about your mental health?
As you listen, we hope you feel their friendship effect, too. Sara Bareilles closes out the episode with a surprise performance.
This episode was recorded LIVE in New York. Special thanks to the 92NY for hosting.
(03:55) How did Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger meet and become good friends?
(08:33) How can we make friends and have healthy social lives as we get older?
(18:03) Is there a difference between the way men and women make friends in middle age?
(25:54) How do Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger create the space for friendship in a world that’s always asking them to be more productive?
(33:24) How do Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger balance online activity with real-world friendships?
(44:02) Where did Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger find the courage and clarity to speak openly about their mental health?
(52:41) How have Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger dealt with feelings about lack of self-worth when they arise?
(01:02:19) What are some of Dr. Murthy’s and his guests’ favorite lyrics?
(01:12:52) A special performance by Sara Bareilles
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Sara Bareilles, Singer-Songwriter & Actress
Instagram: @sarabareilles
Facebook: @sarabareilles
Celia Keenan-Bolger, Actress & Singer
Instagram: @celiakb
About Sara Bareilles and Celia Keenan-Bolger
Sara Bareilles has received three Tony® Award nominations, most recently in 2023 for her performance as ‘The Baker’s Wife’ in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into the Woods – three Primetime Emmy® Award nominations and nine GRAMMY® Award nominations. On Broadway, she composed music and lyrics for Waitress, and stepped into the lead role both on Broadway and in the West End. Most recently, she starred in the filmed live-capture of Waitress: The Musical, which ran for two weeks in theatres nationwide in December 2023. Her other musical theater credits include a song on the Tony Award-nominated score for SpongeBob SquarePants and Emmy Award-nominated appearance as Mary Magdalene in NBC's “Jesus Christ Superstar Live.” Bareilles produced original music and executive-produced the musical drama series “Little Voice,” teaming up with Jessie Nelson, J.J. Abrams and Apple. She also plays Dawn Solano on the Emmy-nominated musical comedy series “Girls5eva”, the third season of which premieres in March 2024 on Netflix.
Celia Keenan-Bolger is an actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for portraying Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (2018). She has also been Tony-nominated for her roles in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2005), Peter and the Starcatcher (2012), The Glass Menagerie (2014), and her most recent role in Mother Play (2024). Other credits - Broadway: The Cherry Orchard, Les Misérables. Off-Broadway: The Oldest Boy, Merrily We Roll Along, A Small Fire. Select Film/TV: “The Gilded Age,” “Bull,” “Louie,” “The Good Wife,” “Nurse Jackie,” “Good Behavior,” “Elementary". Tony Award, Outer Critics Circle, three Drama Desk Award wins.
As a parent, have you ever worried about whether you’re doing a good enough job? Do you feel the pressure to be perfect? Have you felt drained by the demands of parenting?
In this deeply personal conversation, the Surgeon General (and dad of 2) and psychologist Dr. Aliza Pressman put the spotlight on parent mental health. Dr. Pressman changes the conversation from trying to be the perfect parent to growing as a parent. To help our kids’ mental health, we also need to prioritize and care for parent mental health.
Drawing from her research, Dr. Pressman offers reassuring approaches to help parents find self-compassion and stay regulated so kids can better regulate themselves. She also shares how to turn moments when things go wrong into moments for repair and growth in parent-child relationships.
The conversation ends with a parenting Q&A, hosted by Dr. Murthy and surprise Q&A co-host Kate Bowler!
(04:00) What challenges does Aliza Pressman see parents facing today?
(05:00) Why can it feel difficult to talk about the joys of parenting?
(07:55) What’s the upside of being an imperfect parent?
(10:15) How does parent mental health influence kids?
(12:49) What does Dr. Murthy see in his own parents parenting journey?
(18:55) What is self-regulation and how do we cultivate it?
(30:47) Why do parents feel exhausted and drained these days?
(34:21) Can we get clear on the goal of parenting?
(43:44) How does Aliza handle the flow of news and information to herself and her kids?
(50:38) What are 5 ways to help children become resilient people?
(57:30) Parenting Q&A with the Surgeon General & Kate Bowler
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Aliza Pressman, Psychologist & Author
Instagram: @raisinggoodhumanspodcast
Facebook: @raisinggoodhumanspodcast
Substack: @dralizapressman
About Dr. Aliza Pressman Dr. Aliza Pressman is a developmental psychologist with two decades experience working with families. She is the author of the New York Times bestselling book, “The 5 Principles of Parenting: Your Essential Guide to Raising Good Humans,” and the host of the popular podcast “Raising Good Humans”. Aliza is the co-founding director of The Mount Sinai Parenting Center and is an assistant clinical professor at Mount Sinai Hospital. She holds degrees from Dartmouth College, Teacher's College, and Columbia University. Aliza is the mother of two teenagers.
What is our purpose, both individually and collectively? What lies in the balance of who we are now and who we will become?
In Part Two of this episode, the Surgeon General and Shankar Vedantam, host of “Hidden Brain,” go deep into conversation about our individual and national quest for meaning and purpose.
This episode becomes deeply personal as both host and guest reveal their family’s hopes for coming to America, and the unimaginable ways in which those dreams were realized. They find themselves asking where else on earth has what America can offer? And how can we remember and reinforce our ideals at moments the noise becomes too great?
(03:23) How can we encourage young people to dream about the future?
(09:21) How can we bring freshness and curiosity to our daily lives?
(11:57) What does it mean to be a tourist in our own lives?
(15:28) What is the power of having purpose in our lives?
(22:39) What’s the difference between goals and purpose?
(25:39) How would Dr. Murthy bolster America’s sense of purpose?
(28:58) What is the enormous possibility that the United States offers?
(30:16) What story of America did Dr. Murthy see in the crowd at his swearing in ceremony?
(32:51) Who are Shankar Vedantam’s Unsung Heroes?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Shankar Vedantam, Host, “Hidden Brain” Podcast
Instagram: @hiddenbrain
X: @hiddenbrain
Facebook: @hiddenbrain
About Shankar Vedantam
Shankar Vedantam is the host and executive editor of the Hidden Brain podcast and radio show. Shankar and NPR launched the podcast in 2015, and it now receives millions of downloads per week, and is regularly listed as one of the top 20 podcasts in the world. The radio show, which debuted in 2017, is heard on more than 425 public radio stations across the United States.
Vedantam was NPR’s social science correspondent between 2011 and 2020, and he spent 10 years as a reporter at The Washington Post. From 2007 to 2009, he was also a columnist, and wrote the Department of Human Behavior column for the Post.
Vedantam and Hidden Brain have been recognized with numerous journalism awards, including the Edward R Murrow Award, and honors from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, the International Society of Political Psychology, the Society of Professional Journalists, the National Association of Black Journalists, the Austen Riggs Center, the American Psychoanalytic Association, the Webby Awards, the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors, the South Asian Journalists Association, the Asian American Journalists Association, the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association, the American Public Health Association, the Templeton-Cambridge Fellowship on Science and Religion, and the Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellowship.
In 2009-2010, Vedantam served as a fellow at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.
Shankar Vedantam speaks internationally about how the “hidden brain” shapes our world and is the author of two non-fiction books: The Hidden Brain: How our Unconscious Minds Elect Presidents, Control Markets, Wage Wars and Save Our Lives, published in 2010, and Useful Delusions: The Power and Paradox of the Self-Deceiving Brain published in 2021, an exploration of deception’s role in human success.
Have you ever had a moment when you’ve wanted to reach out to someone you haven’t seen in awhile, but something stops you, like the worry you’ll say the wrong thing? Or have you had the experience of assuming that someone who disagrees with you must also dislike you?
It turns out, our mind can play tricks on us that make it harder to connect.
Shankar Vedantam, host and creator of the podcast ”Hidden Brain” joins the Surgeon General for a two-part conversation that travels across science and deeper philosophical questions about life.
In this first conversation, Shankar explains the “hidden brain,” the part of the mind that function outside of our awareness, making unconscious decisions and judgments. They ponder the paradox of how social anxieties keep us from connecting, but how acts of connection and kindness have far greater impact and power than most of us realize.
Offering both science and personal stories, Shankar and Dr. Murthy help us work through our fears of connecting. And help us close the gap between our values, like kindness, and our actions.
(04:04) How does Shankar Vedantam describe the origins of the Hidden Brain podcast?
(06:18) How can we understand if our hidden brain is helping us?
(08:34) How does our hidden brain keep us from connecting with other people?
(14:04) What does it mean to express gratitude to someone else?
(18:39) How has Dr. Murthy cultivated his sense of kind and warmth?
(24:20) How can we tell a better story about the nature of our humanity?
(29:36) How did Shankar Vedantam become a translator of science?
(33:12) How do listeners respond to the Hidden Brain podcast?
(36:12) How are ideas for Hidden Brain podcast episodes developed?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Shankar Vedantam, Host, “Hidden Brain” Podcast
Instagram: @hiddenbrain
X: @hiddenbrain
Facebook: @hiddenbrain
About Shankar Vedantam
Shankar Vedantam is the host and executive editor of the Hidden Brain podcast and radio show. Shankar and NPR launched the podcast in 2015, and it now receives millions of downloads per week, and is regularly listed as one of the top 20 podcasts in the world. The radio show, which debuted in 2017, is heard on more than 425 public radio stations across the United States.
Vedantam was NPR’s social science correspondent between 2011 and 2020, and he spent 10 years as a reporter at The Washington Post. From 2007 to 2009, he was also a columnist, and wrote the Department of Human Behavior column for the Post.
Vedantam and Hidden Brain have been recognized with numerous journalism awards, including the Edward R Murrow Award, and honors from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, the International Society of Political Psychology, the Society of Professional Journalists, the National Association of Black Journalists, the Austen Riggs Center, the American Psychoanalytic Association, the Webby Awards, the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors, the South Asian Journalists Association, the Asian American Journalists Association, the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association, the American Public Health Association, the Templeton-Cambridge Fellowship on Science and Religion, and the Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellowship.
In 2009-2010, Vedantam served as a fellow at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.
Shankar Vedantam speaks internationally about how the “hidden brain” shapes our world and is the author of two non-fiction books: The Hidden Brain: How our Unconscious Minds Elect Presidents, Control Markets, Wage Wars and Save Our Lives, published in 2010, and Useful Delusions: The Power and Paradox of the Self-Deceiving Brain published in 2021, an exploration of deception’s role in human success.
What is hope and why is it so powerful?
For writer Rebecca Solnit, hope is a commitment to possibility in the face of uncertainty. While many of us react to the unknown with anxiety or worry, Rebecca sees the opposite: that inherent to unpredictable circumstances is the possibility people can take action and to come together to create change.
In this conversation, Rebecca Solnit and the Surgeon General discuss why hope is necessary. They look back at communities formed in response to disasters, like 9/11 and hurricanes, and how hope and connection are inextricably linked. A historian, Solnit points to milestones like the fall of the Berlin Wall in which people’s actions, sometimes incremental, led to unforeseen outcomes.
In facing the massive uncertainty of climate change, Solnit offers why she is hopeful. Rather than fall to despair, she points that humans, throughout history, have seen the possibility to intervene and take action. And THAT is what Solnit calls hope.
(04:34) Why can disasters be so powerful for uniting communities?
(11:16) Why do some types of disasters bring people more together than others?
(16:55) How do you advise young people who feel despair about climate change?
(27:21) How can the way we remember history’s great social changes contribute to hope or hopelessness?
(31:28) How does social media contribute to loneliness and isolation?
(37:45) Has tech convinced us that living efficiently is more important than living in person?
(47:33) How does Rebecca Solnit make herself feel better when she gets down?
(48:35) What does the Surgeon General do to feel better when he is down?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Rebecca Solnit, Writer
About Rebecca Solnit
Writer, historian, and activist Rebecca Solnit is the author of twenty-five books on feminism, environmental and urban history, popular power, social change and insurrection, wandering and walking, hope and catastrophe. She co-edited the 2023 anthology “Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility”. Her other books include “Orwell’s Roses”; “Recollections of My Nonexistence”; “Hope in the Dark”; “Men Explain Things to Me”; “A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster”; and “A Field Guide to Getting Lost”. A product of the California public education system from kindergarten to graduate school, she writes regularly for the Guardian, serves on the board of the climate group Oil Change International, and in 2022 launched the climate project Not Too Late (nottoolateclimate.com).
What lessons does life’s uncertainties offer? Kate Bowler’s stage IV cancer diagnosis ushered her into a world of fear and pain. Living in 60-day increments, her future held no promises. Angry about losing the life she had created, the love of family, friends, and her faith community helped Kate forge a new type of strength—learning to lean on others. This conversation between the nation’s doctor and Kate Bowler illuminates how we find truth and beauty within the uncertainties of life.
(05:07) How did Kate Bowler’s cancer diagnosis at age 35 affect her life?
(09:32) Where did Kate Bowler navigate the uncertainty of her illness?
(12:02) How did Kate Bowler re-define strength?
(14:26) How did Kate Bowler’s community support her during her most acute phase of illness?
(17:23) How can other families build a village for their children?
(20:27) How has Kate Bowler’s health precarity changed how she thinks about life?
(25:56) How can we encourage our kids to strive in a healthy way?
(29:38) What is the message of Kate Bowler’s most recent book?
(31:37) When Kate Bowler was ill, how did others seem to expect her to fix her life?
(34:43) How did Kate Bowler’s experience with cancer impact her faith?
(39:15) When is the last time Kate Bowler laughed uncontrollably?
(40:49) Kate Bowler closes with a blessing.
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Kate Bowler, Writer & Professor
Instagram: @katecbowler
X: @katecbowler
Facebook: @katecbowler
About Kate Bowler
Kate Bowler, Ph.D. is a 4x New York Times bestselling author, award-winning podcast host, and professor at Duke University. She studies the cultural stories we tell ourselves about success, suffering, and whether (or not) we’re capable of change. She wrote the first and only history of the American prosperity gospel—the belief that God wants to give you health, wealth, and happiness—before being unexpectedly diagnosed with stage IV cancer at age 35. While she was in treatment and not expected to survive, she wrote two New York Times bestselling memoirs, Everything Happens for a Reason (and Other Lies I’ve Loved) and No Cure For Being Human (and Other Truths I Need to Hear). After years of being told she was incurable, she was declared cancer-free. But she was forever changed by what she discovered: life is so beautiful and life is so hard. For everyone.
Kate is determined to create a gentler world for everyone who wants to admit that they are not “living their best life.” She hosts the Everything Happens podcast where, in warm, insightful, often funny conversations, she talks with people like Malcolm Gladwell, Tig Notaro, and Archbishop Justin Welby about what they’ve learned in difficult times. Author of seven books including Good Enough, The Lives We Actually Have, and her latest, Have a Beautiful, Terrible Day!, she lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her family and continues to teach do-gooders at Duke Divinity School.
In this special Q&A episode, the Surgeon General sits down with his long-time medical school mentor, Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, to talk about their journeys to becoming healers. Dr. Remen is the creator of a medical training course called “The Healer’s Art,” which Dr. Murthy took as a medical student.
As a follow-up to their House Calls episode “Can We All Be Healers?”, the pair decided to reunite and field questions from medical students and other healthcare trainees, including: How do you stay compassionate in the tough environment of the healthcare system? How do you get through career disappointments? And how can we lean our relationships to help us?
Tune in for wisdom and stories from two of our country’s most compassionate healers.
(04:08) What hardships did Dr. Remen face on her road to becoming a physician healer?
(07:57) On dealing with Dr. Remen’s heartbreak of not matching for a residency
(10:46) How did Dr. Remen stay true to her humanity during the taxing time of medical training?
(14:52) Where does Dr. Remen turn when she feels burned out?
(17:05) How does Dr. Remen cope with the reality that doctors can’t always heal?
(20:04) How can the act of healing heal the healer?
(27:54) How does Dr. Remen find hope in difficult times?
(34:08) How do cats and social connection help Dr. Remen?
(38:32) What advice does Dr. Remen offer doctors?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, Physician & Teacher
Facebook: @rachelnaomiremen
About Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD is Clinical Professor Emeritus of Family and Community Medicine at the UCSF School of Medicine and Professor of Family Medicine at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine in Ohio. In 1991, she founded the Remen Institute for the Study of Health and Illness (RISHI) a national training institute for physicians, nurses, medical students, nursing students, veterinarians and other health professionals who wish to practice a health care of compassion, meaning, service and community. She is an internationally recognized medical educator whose innovative discovery model course in professionalism, resiliency and relationship-centered care for medical students, The Healer’s Art, is taught at more than 90 American medical schools and schools in seven countries abroad. Her bestselling books “Kitchen Table Wisdom” and “My Grandfather’s Blessings” have been published in 23 languages and have millions of copies in print.
In recognition of her contribution to medicine and medical education, she has received numerous awards including three honorary degrees, the prestigious Bravewell Award as one of the earliest pioneers of Integrative Medicine and Relationship Centered Care. In 2013, she was voted the Gold-Headed Cane award by UCSF School of Medicine for excellence in embodying and teaching the qualities and values of the true physician. Dr. Remen has a 70-year personal history of chronic illness, and her work is a potent blend of the perspectives and wisdom of physician and patient.
What does it mean to show up for someone?
What does it mean to sit with another person’s pain?
And if we are hurting, why can it be so difficult to ask for help?
Part of being human is learning how to accompany people through hard times. Yet our culture looks at pain as a sign of imperfection, and vulnerability a sign of weakness. In this conversation, the Surgeon General and Rabbi Brous share in how the opposite is, in fact, true: vulnerability and pain can be extraordinary sources of strength and healing. Drawing from both professional and personal moments, Dr. Murthy and Rabbi Brous delve into why the simple act of showing up for each other — an intrinsic power we all possess — is so powerful and healing. And why it is so needed now, especially in these times when the world can feel despairing and lonely.
(00:03:21) In a challenging world, how can we find moments of light?
(00:06:23) How would Rabbi Sharon Brous describe the state of our spirit?
(00:10:14) What does it mean to show up in one another’s lives?
(00:15:30) How can we help people who are struggling?
(00:27:29) How do we show up for others when we ourselves are in pain?
(00:42:17) How can we get more comfortable asking others for help?
(00:47:31) When did Rabbi Brous know she would walk the life path she’s walking?
(00:53:23) What do you does Rabbi Sharon Brous do in moments of despair?
(01:01:54) Did we used to be better at showing up for one another?
(01:07:22) Rabbi Sharon Brous offers a blessing.
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Sharon Brous, Rabbi & Author
Instagram: @sharonbrous
Twitter: @sharonbrous
Facebook: @rabbisharonbrous
About Rabbi Sharon Brous
Rabbi Sharon Brous is the senior and founding rabbi of IKAR, a Jewish community that launched in 2004 to reinvigorate Jewish practice and inspire people of faith to reclaim a soulful, justice-driven voice. Her 2016 TED talk, “Reclaiming Religion,” has been viewed by more than 1.5 million people. She is the author of the recently published book, “The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Heal Our Hearts and Mend Our Broken World."
In 2013, Brous blessed President Obama and Vice President Biden at the Inaugural National Prayer Service, and in 2021 returned to bless President Biden and Vice President Harris, and then led the White House Passover Seder with Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. In 2023, she led a Hanukkah lighting with the Vice President and Second Gentleman. She was named #1 on the Newsweek/The Daily Beast list of most influential Rabbis in America, and has been recognized by The Forward and Jerusalem Post as one of the fifty most influential Jews.
Brous is in the inaugural cohort of Auburn Seminary‘s Senior Fellows program, sits on the faculty of REBOOT, and serves on the International Council of the New Israel Fund and national steering committee for the Poor People’s Campaign.
A graduate of Columbia University, she was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary and lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three children.
Do you have times when you miss your loved ones and just want to feel more connected?
Maybe a friend or family member is sick and you can’t connect in person. Maybe you’re traveling or are away for school. I know I have these moments. And when I do, I have a meditation I turn to, one that helps me feel loved and more connected. It only takes a few minutes, but it has the power to change my day. In this special episode of House Calls, I share it with you.
Any feedback or ideas? Share them with us at housecalls@hhs.gov.
For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Can spirituality enhance our mental health?
That is the question that psychologist and researcher Dr. Lisa Miller has pursued through her career. During her clinical internship after graduate school, she observed how while some of her patients had symptoms of major depression that required medication, other patients carried a sadness that carried life’s big questions: What is the purpose of life? Is there a larger meaning to existence? Decades later, Lisa has found that each of us has an “awakened brain,” neural circuitry that enables a human’s natural capacity for spiritual awareness.
In this conversation, Lisa and the Surgeon General delve into the science that explains spirituality’s protective effects on mental health. They also discuss the universal human need for an inner life that connects us to something greater than ourselves, and offer a few meditation practices to support the awakened brain.
(02:00) Introductory Guided Meditation
(08:43) What is spiritual health?
(15:04) How does Dr. Lisa Miller define spirituality?
(18:18) Why does spirituality protect our mental health?
(20:55) What are some practices to build spiritual health?
(24:40) What is the awakened brain?
(26:56) Are there particular stages of life when spiritual seeking spikes?
(30:03) What is an Awakened Campus?
(32:44) Why don’t college campuses focus more on spiritual well-being?
(34:26) How Dr. Miller’s spiritual crisis as a young person become her life’s work.
(45:55) What are the core elements of spirituality?
(53:12) Where has Dr. Miller found the support for spiritual exploration?
(59:58) How can parents build a spiritual foundation with their children?
We’d love to hear from you! Send us a note at housecalls@hhs.gov with your feedback & ideas. For more episodes, visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/housecalls.
Dr. Lisa Miller, Psychologist
Instagram: @dr.lisamiller
About Dr. Lisa Miller
Lisa Miller, Ph.D., is the New York Times bestselling author of “The Spiritual Child” and “The Awakened Mind: The New Science of Spirituality and our Quest for the Inspired Life.” She is a professor in the Clinical Psychology Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is the Founder and Director of the Spirituality Mind Body Institute, the first Ivy League graduate program and research institute in spirituality and psychology, and has held over a decade of joint appointments in the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical School. Her innovative research has been published in more than one hundred peer-reviewed articles in leading journals, including Cerebral Cortex, The American Journal of Psychiatry, and the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Dr. Miller is Editor of the Oxford University Press Handbook of Psychology and Spirituality, Founding Co-Editor-in-Chief of the APA journal Spirituality in Clinical Practice, an elected Fellow of The American Psychological Association (APA) and the two-time President of the APA Society for Psychology and Spirituality. A graduate of Yale University and University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her doctorate under the founder of positive psychology, Martin Seligman, she has served as Principal Investigator on multiple grant funded research studies. Dr. Miller speaks and consults around The Awakened Brain and The Spiritual Child for the US Military, businesses (including tech, finance, HR and sales), personal development, faith based organizations, schools and universities, and for mental health and wellness initiatives.