Rethinking Wellness

Former brand strategist Jessica Elefante shares insights on resisting influence, questioning wellness industry narratives, and dangers of technology. Exploring social media impact on wellness culture, personal growth, and recognizing external influences. Navigating complexity of influences in decision-making, brand manipulation, and empowering skills for personal growth.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, sociologist and Wellness Culture author Stephanie Alice Baker returns to discuss the countercultural roots of wellness, how the wellness industry went from its early days in the 1970s to a multi-trillion-dollar global industry, how the concept of intuition is used to market wellness products and practices, and more. Dr. Stephanie Alice Baker is an Associate Professor and Deputy Head of the Sociology and Criminology Department at City, University of London. Dr Baker’s research explores influencer culture in the context of health and wellness. She currently examines the amplification of disinformation, influence networks, and potential radicalization pathways online. Learn more about her work here, and check out her new book Wellness Culture. This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comReasons why you might find yourself eating to an uncomfortable level of fullness, and what to do about it. Plus: Exciting news about Christy’s new book project!The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest!Get show notes and references here.Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold. Order it here, or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.  

Sociologist and WELLNESS CULTURE author Stephanie Alice Baker joins us to discuss the rise of wellness influencers, why people are attracted to guides and gurus, the false dichotomy between expertise and personal experience, how the concept of intuition is used to market wellness products and practices, how wellness culture has become a gateway to medical misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories, and more. Dr. Stephanie Alice Baker is an Associate Professor and Deputy Head of the Sociology and Criminology Department at City, University of London. Dr Baker’s research explores influencer culture in the context of health and wellness. She currently examines the amplification of disinformation, influence networks, and potential radicalization pathways online. Learn more about her work here, and check out her new book Wellness Culture. If you like this conversation, subscribe to hear lots more like it! Support the podcast by becoming a paid subscriber, and unlock great perks like bonus episodes, subscriber-only Q&As, early access to regular episodes, community threads, and much more. Learn more and sign up at rethinkingwellness.substack.com.Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, author and science communicator Timothy Caulfield returns to discuss what to do if your healthcare provider seems to be under the influence of gut hype, how journalists and health professionals can report on and advise people about gut health in a responsible way, how his research on gut hype changed his own eating and health behaviors, and more. Timothy Caulfield is an author and professor at the Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, University of Alberta. He has won numerous academic, science communication, and writing awards, and is a Member of the Order Canada and a Fellow of both the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. He contributes frequently to the popular press and is the author of two national bestsellers: The Cure for Everything: Untangling the Twisted Messages about Health, Fitness and Happiness (Penguin 2012) and Is Gwyneth Paltrow Wrong About Everything?: When Celebrity Culture and Science Clash (Penguin 2015). His most recent book is Relax, Dammit!: A User’s Guide to the Age of Anxiety (Penguin Random House, 2020). Caulfield is also the co-founder of the science engagement initiative #ScienceUpFirst and was the host and co-producer of the award-winning documentary TV show, A User’s Guide to Cheating Death, which has been shown in over 60 countries, including streaming on Netflix in North America. Find him at the University of Alberta, and on social media @CaulfieldTim.This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.

Timothy Caulfield discusses the widespread hype surrounding gut health, the role of mainstream media and social media in promoting gut trends, the influence of scientist-influencers in shaping public perception, and the importance of discerning accurate scientific information amidst exaggerated claims in wellness marketing.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy shares some personal thoughts on how anxiety impacts the gut, and how to handle digestive distress that’s triggered by stress without getting pulled down wellness-culture rabbit holes—particularly if you have a history of disordered eating. The full version of this episode (with 9 tips for coping) is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.  

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comWell+Good head of content Faye McCray returns to discuss the wellness trends she's most excited about—and the ones she plans to skip. Plus: a food-related wellness trend that's less about diet culture and more about taste and culinary tradition.Faye is Head of Content at Well+Good. She is an author, executive leader, journalist and attorney with a passion for brand building and storytelling. For nearly a decade, she practiced law in competitive, fast-paced environments while building her own platform as a notable freelance writer and author. Faye founded and helmed Weemagine, a website devoted to inspiring creativity in children, before leading acquisitions and engagement for a leading tax publication. During Faye’s tenure, the social media platforms increased by over 200%, video content received over 500% more views, and podcast downloads increased to almost a half a million downloads and secured multiple advertisers.Most recently, Faye led mental health content and diverse and underrepresented audience strategies for a billion-dollar publisher that hosts over 100 million monthly views. Faye led the rebrand, relaunch, and double-digit % YoY growth strategy for their mental health strategy and efforts to increase audience for the entire portfolio of brands. Faye was honored on the Cynopsis Digital List for innovation and leadership in digital media.Faye is also a notable public speaker appearing on a number of media outlets and podcasts as well as numerous conferences and events including Reuters, ViVE, Ad Week, and many more. Her bylines have been featured in Authority Magazine, Huff Post, Parade, AARP Magazine and many more. She is a graduate of Binghamton University, (B.A.), the Johns Hopkins University, (M.A., magna cum laude), and Howard University School of Law. Most importantly, Faye is a married mom of three beautiful sons, a two-year old calico cat and a six month old Bernedoodle. Find her work at wellandgood.com.If you like this conversation, subscribe to hear lots more like it!Support the podcast by becoming a paid subscriber, and unlock great perks like bonus episodes, subscriber-only Q&As, early access to regular episodes, community threads, and much more. Learn more and sign up at rethinkingwellness.substack.com.Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore.If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.

Well+Good head of content Faye McCray joins us to discuss 2024 wellness trends, including new options for postpartum care, AI in fitness, medical testing, wellness real estate, and more. We talk about the upsides and downsides of these trends, why Christy is skeptical of most of them, the unmet social needs they’re responding to, and how you can set boundaries around trends to avoid wellness traps.Faye is Head of Content at Well+Good. She is an author, executive leader, journalist and attorney with a passion for brand building and storytelling. For nearly a decade, she practiced law in competitive, fast-paced environments while building her own platform as a notable freelance writer and author. Faye founded and helmed Weemagine, a website devoted to inspiring creativity in children, before leading acquisitions and engagement for a leading tax publication. During Faye’s tenure, the social media platforms increased by over 200%, video content received over 500% more views, and podcast downloads increased to almost a half a million downloads and secured multiple advertisers.Most recently, Faye led mental health content and diverse and underrepresented audience strategies for a billion-dollar publisher that hosts over 100 million monthly views. Faye led the rebrand, relaunch, and double-digit % YoY growth strategy for their mental health strategy and efforts to increase audience for the entire portfolio of brands. Faye was honored on the Cynopsis Digital List for innovation and leadership in digital media.Faye is also a notable public speaker appearing on a number of media outlets and podcasts as well as numerous conferences and events including Reuters, ViVE, Ad Week, and many more. Her bylines have been featured in Authority Magazine, Huff Post, Parade, AARP Magazine and many more. She is a graduate of Binghamton University, (B.A.), the Johns Hopkins University, (M.A., magna cum laude), and Howard University School of Law. Most importantly, Faye is a married mom of three beautiful sons, a two-year old calico cat and a six month old Bernedoodle. Find her work at wellandgood.com.If you like this conversation, subscribe to hear lots more like it!Support the podcast by becoming a paid subscriber, and unlock great perks like bonus episodes, subscriber-only Q&As, early access to regular episodes, community threads, and much more. Learn more and sign up at rethinkingwellness.substack.com.Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore.If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comA critical look at Netflix’s latest food-fearmongering documentary series.The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest!Get show notes and references here.Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, come check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.