Living Well with Janet
Learn more about “Living Well with Janet”
Hi, it’s Janet! I’m a yogi, meditator, plant-forward eater, and all-around wellness enthusiast who is constantly exploring what it means to “live well”. I’m also a 2nd generation Asian American woman, an experimenter, and a deep thinker. Join me in my conversations and contemplations on the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social, and environmental aspects of living well.
All Episodes
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In a previous episode, I talked about the importance of play and how I have been trying to incorporate more of it into my life. *Spoiler alert* In that episode (In My Play Era, I Took a Heels Class) I talked about how scheduling a playful activity like a dance class actually wasn’t the best way to get into a state of play. In this episode I share a moment when I unexpectedly, and without planning, found myself in a state of play. How and doing what? You’ll have to listen to find out :)
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In this episode, I chat with Alexis Fernandez, the host of Do You F*cking Mind, a podcast that uses brain health and neuroscience as a jumping board to teach listeners how to improve their self-perception and view of the world through physical and mental alignment. We talk about how breakups can be a catalyst for big positive life changes, managing anxiety and burnout, a lot of tips around sleep hygiene, how nutrition can impact mental health, understanding overthinking, social relationships, and more. You won't want to miss this one!
Do You F*cking Mind is neuroscience, psychology, and tough love in podcast form. Do You F*cking Mind?, @alexispredez, @dyfmpodcast, dyfmpod.com
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How many people should you date at one time? What’s the best way to ask someone about their past relationships? Listen in on my conversation with Elite Matchmaker, Cassindy Chao to find out! We also talk about having accountability partners when you’re dating, cultural differences in interracial relationships, and why someone should consider using a matchmaker. If you haven’t already, check out the first part of our convo Living Well with Janet: Dating Tips with Elite Matchmaker, Cassindy Chao
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On a recent episode of ABG, I shared that I had a conversation with a matchmaker who offered me the tip to practice flirting more in 2024. Given we are about a week away from Valentine’s day, I’ve invited her to the pod for an extensive chat about dating. We talk about what makes two people compatible, common hang-ups that I (and probably other Asian American people) struggle with in dating, managing shifting gender role expectations, romancing versus womanizing, how a man’s relationship with his mother can impact his relationship with you and how to manage boundaries from both the child and parent perspective.
Cassindy Chao is a matchmaker who comes from a family of Matchmakers. She is a former Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Equities research analyst and happily married Mother of 3 but caught the matchmaking bug in college - matching dozens of couples at the “Wellesley College Asian Association Blind Date Semi-Formal”. She believes in deep, purposeful connections based on shared values and common goals.
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Play is the act of doing something purely for enjoyment. More often than not, we prioritize the practical. Our adult lives are filled with responsibilities to people at work, to our partners, to kids, parents, extended family, etc. And when it comes to ourselves, there is no shortage of tasks, activities, and engagements that we stack onto our to-do lists for personal and professional development. But play, the act of doing something purely for enjoyment, is so beneficial - essential even - to a well-lived life. This year, I'm on a mission to play more. In this episode, I share that I take a heels class. Listen in as I share my experience - why I chose this as my activity of play, what I learned, and tips for anyone who is also interested in taking a heels class.
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It's the last episode of 2023! In celebration of making it through one full year of continuous episodes, I'm answering some questions from listeners who submitted to my callout on @janetdoubleu (thank you!). How do I get back on track when I fall off of a healthy habit? What do I emphasize in my dental health? How do I calm myself before sleep? Do I stalk my ex on social media? I talk about all of these things and more.
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When a loss happens (a death, a job, a breakup, whatever) some people experience emotions right away. For me, I usually cry a bit but then soldier on and attend to the To Dos. Only when things calm down do the feelings come. So when I went through a pretty big breakup back in August, while I cried when it initially happened, I became focused on the logistics of moving out, finding a new living situation, and taking care of my car incident (check out Living Well with Janet: How to Keep a Positive Mindset When Everything Feels Like it’s Going to 💩 for the bitter tea ). Now, months and months later, I've had more time to process and really think about and feel all the things this past relationship and breakup meant for me. So I want to share a story of how I found myself bawling, alone in my car on the traffic-lined streets of LA, to a Taylor Swift song blasting in the background. What about you? Are you someone who feels grief immediately or does it take time to hit you?
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What is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and who can benefit from it? Is trauma limited to single-event experiences? How does Gen Z approach mental health versus previous generations?
To help me answer these questions is Dr. Monica Band, an award-winning practicing mental health therapist and educator, specializing in providing trauma-informed care for Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), with an emphasis on Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) and LGBTQIA+ communities. She is also the host of a new podcast called I Need to Ask You Something from Lemonada Media and the Jed Foundation, a timely series featuring stories about mental health, told directly from teens across the country.
No matter your circumstance, I believe almost everyone can benefit from better understanding the role that trauma plays in one’s well-being and learn about methods for better coping in today’s chaotic world.
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Just because you’re alone, doesn’t mean you have to be lonely. Listen in as I share my thoughts on loneliness and how I've been living my life so that I can be alone without being lonely. Leave a in the comments if you enjoyed this episode! I'm also curious if you have tips for combatting loneliness - leave 'em in the comments so we can all get ideas :D
Also, let me know what other subjects you're interested in hearing about - living well is such a broad topic and I'm always looking for new things to look into or test out and share.
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Have you ever experienced a situation that seemed catastrophic in the moment, like when you think back to it as a memory, you feel it in your body - whether it was wide-eyed panic, stomach sinking disbelief, or rising anger fuming through your nose and exiting your mouth in expletives? In this episode, I share how I discovered that my car was stolen, the surprisingly calm reaction I had, and how I was able to achieve this mindset. I also share some thoughts on The Tale of Two Wolves.
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'Healing girl summer' is the concept of taking a season to focus on tending to yourself, for yourself. It’s all about taking both the time and the space to prioritize your relationship with yourself over anyone else - to introspect, reflect, care for, inspire, and learn how to love yourself before you can love anyone else. In this episode, I share how I relate to this concept in my life right now and a handful of specific 'healing girl summer' practices that I’m doing. Which one do you plan to try? Or what's something else you're doing to heal and feel inspired?
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On today’s episode, I talk about different tools for achieving and maintaining wellness. Many of us have probably heard of talk therapy, but what about hypnotherapy? And we all probably know that Yoga is a great tool for living well, but what about Ayurveda? To help us dig deeper into these topics, I invited Neelu Kaur to the pod - she is a Certified NLP (NeuroLinguistic Programming) coach, certified Yoga Instructor, Ayurveda Specialist, and trained Ericksonian Hypnotherapist. Neelu focuses on bringing mindfulness and stress management practices to both individuals as well as organizations and many of her clients are AAPI and/or women in the workplace. Listen in as she shares a wonderful overview, as well as specific tips, on how to live well.
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It’s been a pretty big year for me for a number of reasons, but an even bigger year for a few of my loved ones. As someone who is fairly introverted and generally shies away from hosting events and celebrations, I’ve had to step into my discomfort a couple of times this year. In this episode, I share how I hosted three major social events as someone who isn't the hosting type - my partner's birthday, a best friend's bachelorette, and my dad's retirement party. If you're also an introvert and/or not the hosting type, I hope this episode provides you with some helpful tips!
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When Lulu Ge went off birth control, she started experiencing intense health struggles. After an extensive journey, she finally found something that worked when she reconnected with her culture's practices of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). She then created Elix Healing - a treatment for menstrual pain that uses Chinese medicine wisdom and modern medicine approaches. What is TCM's take on cycle syncing? When is the best time to schedule a first date during your menstrual cycle? Listen in to find out!
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June is Infertility Awareness Month. Around this time last year, I was just beginning my egg-freezing journey. How did I prepare for the experience? Did I take supplements? How did I exercise? Who was my support system? In this episode, I offer a high-level checklist of the key ways that I prepared myself for this significant endeavor. If you're interested in my full story with extensive details, check out: Ep 183: Janet’s Egg Freezing Journey - Giving Yourself Time to Start a Family and Ep 208: Checking In with Janet 6 Months Post-Egg Retrieval on the main AsianBossGirl show.
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This episode is not about trying to convince anyone to meditate, if they aren’t somewhat interested already. I think most people I’ve spoken to don’t need to be sold on meditation and would like to start meditating, but the common hang-ups I hear are: "How do you meditate? Like what is going on when your eyes are closed? What am I supposed to be doing?" and "I've tried meditating before - I've downloaded apps, watched videos, or attended a short session - but I always fall off the habit. How do I develop a meditation practice or ritual?
