Imagine being given an opportunity to ask the woman who will soon (likely) take charge of your nation's healthcare system anything you liked. What would you say? I recently unexpectedly found myself in exactly this position when I was invited to a lunch at the National Press Club of Australia where the Federal Shadow Minister for Health, Catherine King was giving her inaugural address. We’re a few months off an election here in Australia and if the blustering winds continue in the same direction, it’s likely Ms King will be in charge of our nation's health system in a few... Read full article »

As a health journalist who shares my story of recovery from a chronic disease in hope of encouraging others, it can be tempting to only share the highlights of my whole-health life, and to engage in the hashtag-driven, insta-world where wellness icons and lifestyle gurus post moment-by-moment mythology about their unblemished lives. And although I’d probably sell more books if I did, as anyone who’s been following my blog will tell you, that’s not what I’m about.While my message to those looking for ways to get healthy or stay healthy is that there is a solid foundation of evidence from... Read full article »

I gave a talk last week to a group of lovely women who wanted to know more about what I’ve learned from interviewing dozens of scientists about the connection between our mind, body and health, and what changes I’ve made in my life in order to get well and stay well after I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. Afterwards, I invited them to ask questions and there were two things that struck me about what happened next. The first (and this is something that always strikes me when I talk at events) is that no one is safe from... Read full article »

A few weeks ago something happened that knocked me for six. For the non-Aussie person reading this blog it’s the best expression I can find to describe an event triggering feelings of sudden unexpected grief that brought everything to a stop. It’s a phrase that refers to the game of cricket where the ball is hit out of the park without touching the ground.   I had sleepless nights and anxious days. I reached for comfort foods and returned to old habits. What followed shortly after was a familiar and somewhat scary physical response. I felt flat, exhausted and foggy... Read full article »

I had the great pleasure of spending last weekend with a group of people who had just been through an amazing transformative experience.   All week they had been eating amazingly healthy food, exercising, meditating and practicing mindful activities like Tai Chi and Yoga. They had no alcohol, caffeine or chocolate, which some of you might think sounds like torture, but these people all had the healthy-shiny-glowy look of well people.   They’d been through a program at The Golden Door health retreat and it culminated with a screening of my film The Connection, followed by a Q and A... Read full article »

I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease when I was 24 years old. Although my doctors meant the best for me, they couldn’t offer me a cause or a cure. After traveling the world and meeting some of the leading experts in mind body medicine, I realized that in order to change my health, I needed to change my mind.   Here are 6 things that I did to change my mind and change my health:   1. I Started Practicing Yoga I was jogging about four times a week and doing weights training twice a week when I first... Read full article »