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Staying Human with Dr. Vivek Murthy: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Vivek Murthy
What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a fulfilling life? Like so many people, trusted physician Dr. Vivek Murthy grapples with what it means to live well. As U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy started a groundbreaking public conversation around loneliness and the importance of connection. Now, he’s inviting listeners to join him as he explores what makes life meaningful, even when that means going against the grain. Through warm, provocative conversations with people from all walks of life, Dr. Murthy takes on topics that profoundly affect our health and well-being, but that most people don’t really talk about, let alone with a doctor: What if we redefined success not in terms of money or status but in terms of meaning? How do we find our sense of purpose? Can we center our lives around connection and community? Can technology help us be more human instead of taking away from our humanity? In a world that can feel harsh and isolating, Staying Human is a show about finding better, more human ways to live, together.
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- 4 days ago1h 10m
Michael Pollan: Are You Losing the Ability to Think for Yourself?
What does it mean to think for yourself in a world that's constantly trying to think for you? And in an age when AI can do more and more for us, what makes human experience valuable?In this warm and personal conversation, bestselling author Michael Pollan joins Vivek to explore one of life's greatest mysteries: consciousness. Drawing on his latest book, A World Appears, as well as earlier work including How to Change Your Mind and The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael shares his lifelong love of asking questions and why he prefers being a beginner to an expert.In this episode, you'll hear about: Why boredom might be good for you — and what happens to your creativity when every quiet moment is filled by your phone. What you risk losing when you outsource thinking to AI — and why the process of thinking may be just as valuable as the answers you find. Why Michael Pollan prefers being a beginner — and how approaching unfamiliar subjects with curiosity has shaped his writing. How to become more present in your own life — and what meditation and reconnecting with nature can teach you about paying attention. What shaped Michael Pollan’s personal story — as he opens up about his father and the experiences he values most.. It's a conversation about what makes us human, and why some of life's most meaningful discoveries begin not with answers, but with questions.We want to hear from you: What’s an experience you’d never want to turn over to technology? Leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN (1-833-744-8626) or email hello@stayinghuman.us.About Michael PollanAbout Dr. Vivek Murthy, your hostIG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
- 2 weeks ago1h 4m
Robin Wall Kimmerer: What is nature teaching us that we’re too distracted to see?
What is nature trying to teach us that we’re too distracted to notice?Botanist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer joins Vivek for a conversation about slowing down and paying attention to the living world around us. She invites us to see the land as “not something but someone.” Robin is a scientist, a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and the author of the beloved bestsellers Braiding Sweetgrass, Gathering Moss, and The Serviceberry. For decades she has helped people see nature through both science and Indigenous wisdom.In this episode: Why we feel more alive and at ease in nature, and what gets in the way How our phones and busy lives pull our attention away from the world around us What changes when you think of the land as a “someone” instead of a “something” How we started treating land as property instead of home Making room for both science and the sacred in how we see the world Why a “gift economy” can shift our ways of consumption How everyday giving, like bringing soup to a neighbor, can help ease loneliness What success looks like when it’s about meaning rather than wealth or status The poems and places Robin turns to when she needs hope A closing reading of Mary Oliver’s “Wild Geese” We want to hear from you: What’s something nature has taught you about how to live a more meaningful life? Leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN (1-833-744-8626) or email hello@stayinghuman.us.About Robin Wall KimmererAbout Dr. Vivek Murthy, your hostIG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
- Sep 29, 20261h 7m
Ayad Akhtar: How Do We Stay Open to Life’s Mysteries?
Vivek talks with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Ayad Akhtar about his new novel, The Radiance, and what it means to be truly connected to the world—including the parts of it which defy easy explanation.In this novel, a professor recovering from a hit-and-run bike accident grapples with two accounts of what's happening to him: the clinical, scientific one reflected in scans and diagnoses, and an experience that feels far more spiritual. Vivek and Ayad follow this tension into their own lives, including how mystery has shaped their own beliefs and life experiences.They discuss everything from the craft of writing, to protecting our attention, to existential questions of what it means to be human in the age of machines and AI. They also get deeply personal with Vivek sharing about time he spent recently at an ashram in India, and Ayad describing why dreams are so important to him that he’s actually slept with a pencil tied to his finger to better record them. This is a provocative, surprising conversation that brings together both heart and mind.Is there a moment in your life that was profound, spiritual, and hard to explain — one that shaped who you are? Leave a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN (1-833-744-8626) or email hello@stayinghuman.us. We'd love to hear from you.. . .About Ayad“The Great American Novelist” | Esquire Magazine The Radiance Book tour Ayad Akhtar’s recent essay “What Were My Dreams Trying To Tell Me?” | The AtlanticAbout Dr. Vivek Murthy IG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/#StayingHuman #VivekMurthy #AyadAkhtar #Radiance #spirituality #Soul #Consciousness #WritersOnWriting #Empathy #Mindfulness #LiteraryFiction #SpiritualAwakening #Meditation #mystical
- Sep 15, 202658 min
Remembering Dr. Rachel Remen: What is the Secret to True Healing?
What does it really mean to heal? What is the difference between curing and healing? What can we offer one another when something can’t be fixed?Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen spent her life exploring what it means to be human. As Vivek puts it, Rachel was “a doctor’s doctor.” In addition to practicing and teaching at UCSF and writing the bestsellers Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather’s Blessings, Rachel created The Healer’s Art, a course that helped generations of doctors, including Vivek, find the sacred in medicine.Following her death at age 88, Vivek sits down with fellow physician and his college roommate Dr. Akil Palanisamy to remember their beloved mentor, who profoundly shaped them both as doctors and as human beings.Through intimate stories and archival excerpts of Dr. Remen herself, they explore her enduring wisdom: why our wounds can become sources of connection, why listening can be an act of healing, how to live with uncertainty, and why healing remains possible even when curing is not. Vivek and Akil also share about how they turned to Rachel during some of their most difficult moments.This episode is an invitation to anyone wrestling with loss and uncertainty. Or simply searching for ways we can help one another heal.Special thanks to Commonweal for sharing excerpts of Vivek’s last public conversation with Dr. Rachel Remen. Vivek and Akil recount their experiences first meeting Rachel On the power of listening How Rachel mentored Akil and Vivek through a challenging times The Wounded Healer Elements of mystery in medicine Akil shares a passage of Rachel's writings on mystery On grappling with uncertainty, and Rachel's spirituality Fixing vs. Serving Rachel's focus on those the system can leave out What would Rachel have thought about AI in healthcare? Vivek and Akil reflect on grieving Rachel's passing and their final visits. . . Dr. Rachel Naomi RemenThe Healer’s Art Kitchen Table WisdomMy Grandfather’s BlessingsDr Remen & Vivek’s conversation: Can We All Become Healers? CommonwealCommonweal is hosting a virtual memorial service for Dr. Remen on Oct 3, 2026. Please register hereDr. Akil Palanisamy The TIGER Protocol, by Dr. Akil Palanisamy. . . Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN.IG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/About your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com
- Sep 1, 20261h 4m
Angela Duckworth: What Situations Bring Out the Best in Us?
Angela Duckworth changed the way millions of people think about achievement with her bestselling book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. Yet ten years later, she’s come to believe that grit and willpower are only part of the story.In this conversation, Angela joins Vivek to explore a powerful question: How much of who we become is shaped not just by what’s inside us, but by the people, places, and circumstances around us?Drawing from her new book Situated, Angela shares what she’s learned about creating environments that bring out our best—from the objects within arm’s reach to the friends, mentors, workplaces, and communities we choose. She and Vivek also talk candidly about ambition, parenting, and the difference between pursuing something out of fear versus genuine purpose. They also talk about why success and achievement can feel empty when we’re chasing it for the wrong reasons.Together, Angela and Vivek ask: What does it really mean to succeed? How can we shape our lives around what matters most?About AngelaHer books Situated: Find the People and Places that Bring Out Your Best Grit: The Power of Passion and Perserverance IG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com#StayingHuman #AngelaDuckworth #Grit #Situated #UPenn #VivekMurthy #Loneliness #Willpower #Success #Fulfillment
- Aug 18, 202644 min
Robert Putnam: What Does It Mean To Be a Social Capitalist? (and how does it affect our health?)
How many of us have felt the deep need to belong, but weren’t sure where to start? In this episode, recorded live at WBUR in Boston, Vivek sits down with the Harvard professor, author, and friend for a wide-ranging conversation on building community. Robert Putnam saw America's social fracturing coming decades before anyone else did. His book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, put a name to the collapse of community life in the U.S, tracking the disappearance of the bowling leagues, church groups, and civic clubs that used to hold neighborhoods together. More recently, his ideas have reached a new generation through Join or Die, a documentary that has screened hundreds of times in communities across the country.Putnam traces his own lifelong preoccupation with connection back to a lonely childhood in Port Clinton, Ohio, and a mother who refused to let it stay that way. He unpacks “social capital” — what it is, and why it matters for both our health and our democracy. Bob also offers wisdom and hope from the last time America clawed its way back from a time of strikingly similar isolation, inequality, and division during the Progressive Era. From that history, he shares three lessons for us all today today, as we seek to build more connection in our lives. Putnam also opens up about his wife Rosemary, one of the most talented “social capitalists” he knows, and reflects on what he holds onto — quite literally, in old photographs — when he needs to remember what matters most.Join Or Die Documentary: https://joinordiefilm.com/Bob Putnam: http://robertdputnam.com/---IG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com#StayingHuman #RobertPutnam #BowlingAlone #JoinOrDie #VivekMurthy #Community #Loneliness #Civics #Duty #Democracy #AmericanLife
- Aug 4, 202654 min
Maya Shankar: What Happens When Life Changes Our Plans?
Ten years ago, Vivek and Maya Shankar met in a meeting at the White House; he still doesn't remember what the meeting was about, but he remembers being struck by her brilliance, and even more by her warmth. They stayed in touch, became close friends, and now, a decade later, Maya has traded her work as a cognitive scientist and White House advisor for a new mission: helping people understand why change is so hard, and how to come out the other side whole. She's the host of the hit podcast A Slight Change of Plans and the author of the instant New York Times bestseller The Other Side of Change.In this conversation, Vivek and Maya talk about why uncertainty can feel worse than bad news itself, and why anchoring our identity in our "why" rather than our "what" can carry us through loss and reinvention. They dig into the mental spirals we all fall into — and the small shifts in perspective that can break them — plus the crucial difference between guilt and shame, and why community and service are often the surest way out of both. Maya also shares deeply personal stories from her own life, including experiences she writes about for the first time in her book, and what she's come to believe change reveals about who we really are.It's a conversation about the hardest parts of being human: uncertainty, identity, rumination, and shame. It’s also about the quiet, durable hope that even unwanted change can show us who we're capable of becoming.. . .Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN.IG @drvivekmurthySubstack vivekmurthy.substack.com/More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com
- Jul 21, 20261h 8m
Dr. Robert Waldinger: What does 85 years of research reveal about a Good Life?
What makes a good life? Is it accomplishment and wealth? Meaning and purpose? Relationships?This is the question Dr. Robert Waldinger, a Harvard psychiatrist, has spent decades exploring as the fourth director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development – the world's longest-running study of adult life and happiness – following hundreds of people since 1938 and still running today. Robert is co-author, with Marc Schulz, of bestselling book The Good Life. He is also a Zen Buddhist priest whose spiritual journey has shaped how he thinks about thriving.In this episode, Vivek and Robert talk about what the data reveal about happiness (spoiler alert: it has little to do with achievement or status). They discuss "social fitness" and the need to tend to relationships the way we tend to our physical health, along with surprising insights about marriage and loneliness, and why attention is "the most basic form of love."Robert also shares how his Zen practice has helped him hold onto hope without looking away from the world's hardest problems. And what medicine could learn from all of this about caring for patients, and for each other.If you're wondering what the research says about a good life, this episode is for you.
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About Staying Human with Dr. Vivek Murthy
What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a fulfilling life? Like so many people, trusted physician Dr. Vivek Murthy grapples with what it means to live well. As U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy started a groundbreaking public conversation around loneliness and the importance of connection. Now, he’s inviting listeners to join him as he explores what makes life meaningful, even when that means going against the grain. Through warm, provocative conversations with people from all walks of life, Dr. Murthy takes on topics that profoundly affect our health and well-being, but that most people don’t really talk about, let alone with a doctor: What if we redefined success not in terms of money or status but in terms of meaning? How do we find our sense of purpose? Can we center our lives around connection and community? Can technology help us be more human instead of taking away from our humanity? In a world that can feel harsh and isolating, Staying Human is a show about finding better, more human ways to live, together.
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