Russ Harris

Hi, I’m Russ… doctor, therapist, father, trainer of health professionals, and author of The Happiness Trap. I started my career as a newly-graduated doctor back in 1989, and soon discovered that most of my patients were expressing a significant degree of dissatisfaction in life; stress, anxiety and unhappiness were widespread. Read more

Despite the fact that I had a successful career with a dream job, good income and high status, I was depressed, anxious, and overweight. I felt my life lacked a sense of meaning and purpose, and at times I was even suicidal. I just couldn’t understand why I felt this way. I had achieved all the goals that society says tells us will make us feel happy. But it wasn’t working. And I wanted to know why. One thing was for sure, simplistic stories that it was all due to an unhappy childhood or too much negative thinking or a chemical imbalance in my brain were definitely not the answer.

So I set off on a journey to find out a) what makes people unhappy, and b) far more importantly, what creates genuine and lasting happiness. And I can tell you, that journey took me down a lot of blind alleys and dead ends. But eventually, it lead me to ACT – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. The moment I discovered this therapy, I fell deeply in love with it. It had a huge and profound impact on my life. Almost instantly, I began to develop a deep sense of purpose and meaning.