Ep 57 | Robert Keith Wallace, PhD: 16 Super Biohacks for Longevity. Ayurveda & Modern Science.

Join me for an enlightening conversation with Dr. Robert Keith Wallace, PhD, a pioneer in bridging ancient Ayurvedic wisdom with modern science to unlock the secrets of longevity and vibrant living.  

Dr. Wallace, a distinguished researcher in consciousness physiology, has inspired numerous studies on meditation and mind-body techniques, published in reputable journals including Science, American Journal of Physiology, and Scientific American. With degrees from UCLA and postgraduate research at Harvard University, he served as the founding president of Maharishi International University and chairs its Department of Physiology and Health and serves on the Board of Trustees.

Renowned as a scientist, author, and educator, Dr. Wallace has dedicated his career to exploring the nexus of mind, body, and consciousness. His groundbreaking work on consciousness physiology and integration of Ayurvedic principles has influenced diverse fields. Today, we explore his book 16 Super Biohacks for Longevity  where Dr. Wallace offers practical Ayurvedic-inspired strategies for well-being, emphasizing their alignment with modern medical science, notably the microbiome.

Throughout his career, Dr. Wallace has advocated for merging ancient wisdom with contemporary science, particularly in meditation, stress reduction, and holistic health approaches. His research underscores the profound impact of mind-body practices on overall wellness, emphasizing not just extending lifespan but also living creatively and productively at every stage.

Join us as we delve into timeless wisdom and practical strategies for optimal health and vitality with Dr. Robert Keith Wallace, PhD.

Find Dr. Wallace:  Biohack Longevity, Dr. Keith Wallace

A sampling of books authored or co-authored by Dr. Wallace: 

1. The Rest and Repair Diet:  Heal your Gut, Improve your Physical and Mental Health, and Lose Weight (2019) with Samantha J. Wallace, Alexis Farley
2. Neurohacking for Online Learning:  Study and Life Habits Optimized for your Personal Mind-Body Energy State (2023) with Carol Paredes
3. 16 Super Biohacks for Longevity:  Shortcuts to a Healthier, Happier, Longer Life (2023) with Samantha Wallace, Ted Wallace
4. Quantum Golf, 2nd Ed., Revised (2021)
5. Gut Crisis:  How Diet, Probiotics and Friendly Bacteria Help you Lose Weight and Heal your Body and Mind (2017) with Samantha Wallace
6. Self Empower:  Using Self Coaching, Neuroadaptability and Ayurveda (2021) with Ted Wallace, Samantha Wallace
7. Dharma Parenting:  Understand your Child's Brilliant Brain for Greater Happiness, Health, Success and Fulfillment (2016) with Fred Travis
8. The Coherence Effect, Tapping into the Laws of Nature that Govern Health, Happiness and Higher Brain Functioning (2020) with Jay B. Marcus, Christopher S. Clark
9. The Coherence Code:  How to Maximize your Performance and Success in Business - For Individuals, Teams, and Organizations (2020) with Ted Wallace, Samantha Wallace
10. Maharishi Ayurveda and Vedic Technology:  Creating Ideal Health for the Individual and World, Adapted and Updated from The Physiology of Consciousness, Part 2 (2016)

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me as I interview Marilyn Schlitz, PhD, a social anthropologist, researcher, writer, and charismatic public speaker.  Marilyn is a Professor in the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology at Sofia University and has previously taught and/or conducted research at Stanford, Harvard, and Trinity Universities.  She is President Emeritus and Senior Fellow of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, an organization she led for more than 25 years.  Marilyn is a leader in consciousness studies (over 3 decades).  Her research and publications focus on personal and social transformation, cultural pluralism, extended human capacities, and mind-body medicine.  She is adept at working with both individuals and organizations, helping them develop the personal and interpersonal skills required for modern leaders.  

Her books include:

• Consciousness and Healing:  Integral Approaches to Mind Body Medicine;
• Living Deeply:  The Art and Science of Transformation in Everyday Life;
• Death Makes Life Possible (Co-producer with Dr. Deepak Chopra of film by same title).  

Marilyn has published hundreds of articles --- including the results of scientific studies in scholarly journals and more popular publications.  She has lectured extensively around the world and has spoken before the UN and Smithsonian.  

We touch upon:

• Her career as a transpersonal journey.
• What's resonating for her now.
• Her current scientific research and study:  exploring the psychomanteum and its impact on grief -- succeeded by its impact on talent & training.  Her research includes live and VR studies.    
• How "absorption" enters into her research:  the capacity of an individual to enter a flow state and truly immerse into an experience.  
• How training, repetition, and practice impact or detract from the experience.  
• The work of Tanya Lurhmann, author of the book How God becomes Real:  how habits, practices, relationships, sensations and stories enable humans to experience God as real.  By delving into the differences across faiths and cultures, she makes a persuasive case for what we actually do share in common.  
• Her audio series on moving through grief.  
• Death terror:  what it is and how we can move closer to our fears.
• Death as an opportunity for transformation.
• Overcoming cultural taboos around death.  
• What "being on the edge of a paradigm shift" really means.  
• How our current "worldview" impacts our experience and how we can expand our awareness to consider/encompass other worldviews.  
• How uncertainty keeps things fresh:  "Whatever it is, I hope I can't envision it from my current vantage point."  
• Power dynamics in our modern healthcare paradigm.  
• Why questions enable us to expand our current worldview or paradigm around dying & death.  
• The meaning of the Tagore quote:  "On the day death comes knocking at your door, what will you offer to him?"  How do we rephrase so as not to instill fear, but instead encourage individuals to embark on a more fulfilling life?
• The role of transformation in all of our life experiences.  

Find Marilyn:  marilynschlitz.com

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me as I interview Dr. James Duffy, MD, a psychiatrist who specializes in:  Acupuncture, Body-Mind Therapy, Brain Health, Burnout, Herbs & Supplements Guidance, Huntington’s Disease, Integrated Care, Movement Disorders, Neurocognitive Disorders, Parkinson's Disease.  

Multi-faceted, Dr. Duffy guides doctors in returning the healer to their work.  He currently focuses on working with individuals (including healthcare professionals) to remediate burnout.  He transformed the Institute of Spirituality & Health in Texas – to foster the powerful connection between spirituality and health.  He is a student of Tibetan Buddhism and speaks regularly about healing as contemplative practice – a unique opportunity to serve others while expanding one’s own heart.  

In this interview, Dr. Duffy touches upon:

• The issue of burnout and how it impacts physicians and other medical professionals; how burnout is impacting our collective consciousness.  
• The significance of Christine Longaker's book, Facing Death and Finding Hope: A Guide to the Emotional and Spiritual Care of the Dying.  
• The significance of Kirsten DeLeo's book, Being Present through the End.  Kirsten helped to pioneer Authentic Presence, one of the first contemplative-based programs in end-of-life care in the United States. 
• The impact of the Dalai Lama's response to the question of what constituted the essence of Tibetan Medicine: "To have a good heart," accelerated his professional work and commitment to align with the authentic heart of compassion.  
• How contemplative practice opens us to the realization that "People do not have ideas, ideas have people," a quote by Carl Jung.  It is challenging to wake up to the truth of this and not fall victim to an idea that does not uphold how we aspire to live our lives.  
• The book he is currently writing tentatively titled:  "The Practice:  The Contemplative Heart of Healing."  
• How the pervasiveness of burnout in our culture is surfacing as "the inner climate crisis."  
• That the healer's job is to identify the shadow of our community and find ways to transcend it through contemplative practice and action.  
• How burnout results from the belief that "I am not enough," which in turn results from shame which in turn results from trauma.  If shame remains in the shadows, it is impossible to be vulnerable, authentic.  
• How his workshop series (7 sessions) titled The Yoga of Medicine is designed to cultivate enlightened healers.  The first session is titled Asana  is like the physical asanas in yoga practice, clarity and specificity result from intention.  When faced with a choice, intention should be the starting point -- if choices and actions are aligned with intention, everything falls into place.  
• How modern cultures regularly farm out entropy (including the sick and dying) and indigenous thinking can encourage more holistic and compassionate paradigms.  See book by Tyson Yunkaporta titled Sand Talk:  How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World.  
• His talk on the regenerative mind and its connection to other regenerative mediums:  regenerative agriculture, regenerative economies.  
• How Chinese Medicine nourishes the inner in light of the outer.  Books by Lonny Jarrett including Nourishing Destiny:  The Inner Tradition of Chinese Medicine.  A

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me as I interview Dr. James Duffy, MD, a psychiatrist who specializes in:  Acupuncture, Body-Mind Therapy, Brain Health, Burnout, Herbs & Supplements Guidance, Huntington’s Disease, Integrated Care, Movement Disorders, Neurocognitive Disorders, Parkinson's Disease.  

Multi-faceted, Dr. Duffy guides doctors in returning the healer to their work.  He currently focuses on working with individuals (including healthcare professionals) to remediate burnout.  He transformed the Institute of Spirituality & Health in Texas – to foster the powerful connection between spirituality and health.  He is a student of Tibetan Buddhism and speaks regularly about healing as contemplative practice – a unique opportunity to serve others while expanding one’s own heart.  

In this interview, Dr. Duffy touches upon:

• The issue of burnout and how it impacts physicians and other medical professionals; how burnout is impacting our collective consciousness.  
• The significance of Christine Longaker's book, Facing Death and Finding Hope: A Guide to the Emotional and Spiritual Care of the Dying.  
• The significance of Kirsten DeLeo's book, Being Present through the End.  Kirsten helped to pioneer Authentic Presence, one of the first contemplative-based programs in end-of-life care in the United States. 
• The impact of the Dalai Lama's response to the question of what constituted the essence of Tibetan Medicine: "To have a good heart," accelerated his professional work and commitment to align with the authentic heart of compassion.  
• How contemplative practice opens us to the realization that "People do not have ideas, ideas have people," a quote by Carl Jung.  It is challenging to wake up to the truth of this and not fall victim to an idea that does not uphold how we aspire to live our lives.  
• The book he is currently writing tentatively titled:  "The Practice:  The Contemplative Heart of Healing."  
• How the pervasiveness of burnout in our culture is surfacing as "the inner climate crisis."  
• That the healer's job is to identify the shadow of our community and find ways to transcend it through contemplative practice and action.  
• How burnout results from the belief that "I am not enough," which in turn results from shame which in turn results from trauma.  If shame remains in the shadows, it is impossible to be vulnerable, authentic.  
• How his workshop series (7 sessions) titled The Yoga of Medicine is designed to cultivate enlightened healers.  The first session is titled Asana  is like the physical asanas in yoga practice, clarity and specificity result from intention.  When faced with a choice, intention should be the starting point -- if choices and actions are aligned with intention, everything falls into place.  
• How modern cultures regularly farm out entropy (including the sick and dying) and indigenous thinking can encourage more holistic and compassionate paradigms.  See book by Tyson Yunkaporta titled Sand Talk:  How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World.  
• His talk on the regenerative mind and its connection to other regenerative mediums:  regenerative agriculture, regenerative economies.  
• How Chinese Medicine nourishes the inner in light of the outer.  Books by Lonny Jarrett including Nourishing Destiny:  The Inner Tradition of Chinese Medicine.  A

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me for a  fascinating interview with Barbara Slaine.  We dive deep into a topic that is often considered taboo:  death & dying.  Barbara shares her years of experience as an end-of-life doula, guiding individuals and families through this process.  She also touches upon her documentary film project - tracking the impact of training incarcerated and previously incarcerated individuals to care for their fellow inmates as they make their final transition.  
 
Barbara wows us with the resources at her fingertips:

•  New Realities  with Alan Steinfelt on Apple Podcasts.  
• Barbara's documentary film project, tentatively titled A Ripple Effect.  
• Dr. Joseph Sacco, MD, Hospice & Palliative Medicine.  
• Book, Die Wise:  A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul by Stephen Jenkinson and Dr. Martin Shaw.  
• Florence Walt, the founder of Hospice UK.
• Fleet Maull who runs the National Prison Hospital Association.
• The idea that she should consider writing the book, Death for Dummies.  
• The end-of-life doula course she runs at her center, liphebalancecenter.com.  
• The work of Henry Ferako-Weiss, who is an end-of-life doula and a mentor.
• Book, Dying to be Me, My Journey from Cancer to Near Death to True Healing by Anita Moorjani.  
• The concept of how death teaches us to embrace more being, less doing.  
• Realization of how interacting with death in a real way is currently in the zeitgeist.  Barbara attributes this to the pandemic - a call to many to wake up to nature of reality.  Barbara:  "We want real and death is real."
• Book, How we Live is How we Die by Pema Chodren.  
• The Zen Hospice Caregiving Project in California.  

Find Barbara:  liphebalancecenter.com

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me as I interview prolific writer and healer, Robert Sachs, who encourages us to awaken our hearts in these troubled times -- not by sticking our heads in the proverbial sand, but by cultivating and practicing being awake in our own lives.  

Today we explore the concepts raised in his book - PERFECT ENDINGS:  A CONSCIOUS APPROACH TO DYING AND DEATH.  

Born in the U.S., Robert moved to England while a teenager and embarked on the study of Eastern Philosophy.  There, he received a degree in Comparative Religion and Sociology and began his study with Tibetan Buddhist Masters and renowned teachers of the healing arts, Macrobiotics Master Michio Kushi and Shiatsu Master Rex Lassalle.  

Desirous of furthering his studies in mental health and bodywork, he attended the Central Ohio School of Massage and earned a Master's degree in Social Work from the University of Kentucky.  Deeply affected by his daughter's death during this time, Robert began to study the conscious dying practices of Tibetan Buddhism.  He is a member of Sogyal Rinpoche's Spiritual Dying Network and the National Hospice Organization.  

Along with his wife, Melanie, Robert has pursued studies in both Indian and Tibetan Ayurveda.  Recognized by renown teacher Dr. Deepak Chopra and other physicians of both Eastern and Western orientation, their writings are considered to be some of the clearest and most usable texts available.  

 With an educational background and training that is as conventional as it is alternative, Robert has worked with physicians, clinics, hospitals, private individuals and organizations, teaching them how to integrate contemporary scientific approaches with the ancient wisdom traditions in the areas of stress management, preventive health care, end-of-life care, and relationship and group dynamics.  He has served as an instructor for the Chopra Center for Well Being in San Diego and the Tibetan Medicine for the Sino-American Rehabilitation Association College in Los Angeles.  

He is a prolific writer.  His books include:

• Nine-Star Ki: Your Astrological Companion to Feng Shui , 
• Tibetan Ayurveda: Health Secrets from The Roof of The World 
•  Rebirth Into Pure Land 
• Perfect Endings: A Conscious Approach to Dying and Death 
• The Passionate Buddha: Wisdom on Intimacy and Enduring Love 
•  Becoming Buddha: Awakening The Wisdom and Compassion to Change Your World 
• Wisdom of The Buddhist Masters: Common and Uncommon Sense 
• The Ecology of Oneness: Awakening in a Free World,
• Ayurvedic Spa.  
• The Buddha at War:  Peaceful Heart Courageous Action in Troubled Times

His most recent book, The Path of Civility:  Perfecting the Lessons of a President by Applying the Wisdom of a Buddha, is a merging of the lessons and teachings of two great individuals:  George Washington and the Buddha.  This book is indicative of the focus of his recent work:  encouraging individuals to engage in these troubled times by applying principles of effective and hence, civil discourse. 

Find Robert:   

https://thepathofcivility.com/
https://www.diamondwayayurveda.com/

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Join me as I talk with James Pace about EMFs (electromagnetic toxins) -- which include the invisible forces emanating from power lines, cell phones, appliances, and computers. Electromagnetic pollution directly causes or contributes to imbalance and disease. From the  perspective of SV Ayurveda, EMFs pollute and corrupt the nadis (vibrational channels), thereby disturbing mental, physical, sensory, emotional, and spiritual health. 

Highlights:  

• What are EMFs (vibrational toxins).

• How EMFs pollute the environment and how they enter the body.

• How vibrational poisoning “writes over” the body’s and the environment’s natural rhythms.

• Eight main gateways through which EMFs enter mind and body.

• How EMFs weaken the pranic energy of the body.

• Signs and symptoms of EMF toxicity.

• Protections and countermeasures for vibrational pollution.

About James Pace:

A SV Ayurveda Health Educator & Marma Therapist, James began studying Ayurveda in 1989 at the Ayurvedic Institute in NM, which led to advanced studies including Maharishi Ayurveda in Spain and the Ayurvedic Institute's Gurukula Program In India.  
     After meeting Vaidya Rama Kant Mishra, James organized consultations for him in New Jersey from 2004 through 2010. He also served as Vaidya Mishra’s Seminar Coordinator in the New Jersey/New York Metropolitan area.  These programs included workshops at the New York Open Center, Arsha Vidya Gurukulam (AVG) Saylorsburg, PA, and other venues.
     At Vaidya Mishra’s request, James moved to California in 2016 to assist in a variety of projects, including private health consultations at the Prana Center, Chatsworth, CA. Since Vaidya Mishra's death in 2017, James continues his work with the Prana Center --- in support of Vaidya Mishra’s mission of providing intelligent herbal synergies and access to the wisdom of the Shaka Vansiya Ayurveda lineage.

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Today, I have the good fortune to chat with a fabuous guest, Melanie Sachs.  

Melanie has spent many decades expanding the healing energy of Ayurveda throughout the world.  She is the co-author of 2 books along with her husband Robert Sachs:  Ayurvedic Beauty Care and Ayurveda Spa:  Treatments for Large and Small Spas.  

Melanie's exploraton into alternative healing include years of study with Michio Kushi, one of the forces behind bringing organic foods and macrobiotics to the U.S.  She started her Ayurvedic studies with the renowned teacher Dr. Vasant Lad - whose life work is profiled in the documentary, A DOCTOR FROM INDIA.  

During the course of her career, Melanie has worked directly with the spa industry to develop ancient Ayurvedic techniques into successful spa services, matching the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda with the modern demand for beauty and relaxation.  
 
Today, we are going to shift to Melanie's interest in permaculture, in growing soil and food for maximum diversity and sustainability.  She will introduce us  the concept of THE FRIENDLY FOREST and how it relates to the principles of permaculture and Ayurveda and can serve as a model for helping us shift toward a more peaceful, just, joyful, sustainable and supportive world.  

Be in touch with Melanie:  https://www.diamondwayayurveda.com/

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

Today, I have the good fortune to chat with a fabuous guest, Karin Lubin. 

While there is so much that Karin and I can focus on in today's chat, we connected due to my interest in the book, THE PASSION TEST, by Janet Attwood and Chris Attwood and we'll start by delving into how THE PASSION TEST can lead you to a more fulfilling life - actually a life that embodies the very core values that Karin espouses in her work:  connection, wisdom, integrity, leadership, and of course my personal favorites:  adventure and fun.  

But first, a little bit about Karin:  Born in NYC, Karin was raised by her Norwegian mother who fought in the Resistence Movement against Hitler and her Jewish father, who was born and bred in Queens.  A powerful combination.  

Karin currently characterizes her work as that of a Transformational Trainer, Journal Creator and Wisdom Healer.  This description however doesn't truly reveal her broad business background.  Having received a PhD in education, her business leadership roles have included that of a Public School Education Administrator for a period of 15 years and the Global Director of The Passion Test Facilitator Programs (essentially training the trainer), a role that she has held for over 30 years.  

Her real-life experiences working with teams in both the public and private sectors have given her a unique vantage point for the work she is currently focused on:  creating teams based on the concept of INTUITIVE LEADERSHIP - of course, a systematic approach inherently yields results and Karin's approach does just that - she has proven that creating invincible, synergistic and empowered teams is not difficult, you just have to have an open mind, be willing to dispel limiting beliefs, and of course, be schooled in the tools required for a green light.  

Karin is also a journal creator of two series of wisdom journals, one focusing on the seasons using self-help themes, and another on Internal Family Systems and the 8 characteristics of Self.  As in her work with Intuitive Leadership, Karin brings her core values to all of her teachings and programs:  connection, wisdom, integrity, leadership, and again my personal favorites:  adventure and fun.  

Find Karin:  https://drkarinlubin.com/

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen

I have the great pleasure of introducing Durga Leela, the founder of the online learning platform and sangha called YOGA OF RECOVERY.

Durga Leela is a person in long-term recovery, a certified Ayurveda Practitioner, yoga teacher and yoga therapist (IAYT certified) from the UK and now based in the US.  She has shared Yoga as a Recovery Pathway in several Recovery Conferences over the last 20 years.  She has also served as the Director of the Ayurveda Programs at the Sivananda Ashram in California since 2003, and is a professional member of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA).

Here is a sampling of Durga's current online programs: Healing the Habits that Bind - Unpacking the 6 Tenets of Yoga of Recovery (YoR)--

1. Longing and Relationship
2. Sweet & love: cuorse open 10/22/22, 7 live sessions from 11/5/22 to 12/17/22
3. Prana & progress:  cuorse open 12/22/22, 7 live sessions from 1/30/23 to 3/27/23

Durga also runs a yoga of recovery pancha karma trip to south india- 3 to 4 weeks --every year

There is so much to focus on with Durga - she is unbelievably prolific in helping individuals go deeper into their recovery pathway and to live happy, contented, and productive lives using the tools of yoga and ayurveda. 

But since we have limited time today, we will focus on Durga's new book titled Yoga of Recovery – Integrating Yoga and Ayurveda with Modern Recovery Tools for Addiction - which really is an encapsulation of  Durga's decades of work in this field.  

website:  Yoga of Recovery
instagram & fb:  @yogaofrecovery
contact:  durga@yogaofrecovery.com

I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast. What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!

Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:

• The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and fulfilling one's true potential

My email: plantsroc@gmail.com.

With sincere gratitude,

Noreen