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When she moved back to Jordan, molecular biologist Rana Dajani realized that children there didn't read for pleasure. So she started a reading program at her local mosque. Since then, her reading program has reached more than 10,000 kids in Jordan and has spread across the Middle East.

cello player

After a 40 year career as a psychologist, Francine Toder decided to start playing the cello. The experience convinced her that music – and in fact all the arts – may be the best way to stimulate the brain and improve well-being late in life.

Man alone in a tunnel

David Morris spent three years reporting in Iraq before an improvised explosive device forced him to return home. The attack haunted him, and kicked off a bout with PTSD that would take years to recover from. 

Touching glass in a rainstorm

Psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk is studying the healing power of helping people with post traumatic stress disorder focus less on telling their stories, and more on how their stories feel — how they sound, look, or smell.

"Stories I Tell Myself" book cover

Juan Thompson was 41 when his father committed suicide. But for him, the grieving process had an extra layer of complication, because his dad was the acclaimed writer and gonzo journalist, Hunter S. Thompson.

In the shadows, reflecting on violence.

In 2011, Mac McClelland was reporting on reconstruction in Haiti when she witnessed another woman's traumatic flashback. Just seeing the horror in that woman's face was enough to traumatize Mac.

reflecting on a bus

Journalist Jim Rendon tells producer Rehman Tungekar that resilence in the face of trauma is actually quite common.

Magic Kingdom

John Jeremiah Sullivan reads an abridged version of his essay, "You Blow My Mind. Hey, Mickey!" about getting high at Disney World.

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