174. Dr. Dave Rabin: Why Being Human Feels Harder Than It Should in 2026
6/18/20261 hr 1 min
A lot of people are trying to do the right things. They are learning more, tracking their health, working on their stress, trying to be more present, and using the tools they have been told should help. But if the advice is available, the science is clearer than ever, and the tools are right in front of us, why do so many people still feel overwhelmed, burned out, disconnected, or unable to make those changes stick?
In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Dave Rabin to talk about one of the biggest missing pieces in how we understand stress, healing, and what it actually takes to feel better in the modern world. We get into the questions so many people are quietly carrying: why being human feels harder than it should, why knowing what to do does not always mean your body can follow through, and what it may take to finally turn information into something your body can actually use.
What's Discussed:
(04:28) What Dr. Rabin realized Western medicine left out of his training.
(07:01) Why trauma may be understood differently when viewed through the lens of learning.
(13:42) What parents need to know about screens, discomfort, and regulation.
(21:54) Why stillness is so difficult for many people today.
(27:44) How productivity became tied to worth, and what the body loses when recovery is ignored.
(33:25) Why emotional wounds can be harder to address when they are invisible.
(45:47) Why connection and community may matter more to longevity than many people realize.
Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Logevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12.
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Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah:
Website: drshah.com
Clinic: next-health.com
Instagram: darshanshahmd
Learn more about Dr. Dave Rabin:
Website: drdave.io
Instagram: @drdavidrabin
The Board of Medicine: boardofmedicine.org
The Psychedelic Report podcast: podcast/the-psychedelic-report/
Dr. Rabin's new book: ASimpleGuideToBeingAlive.com
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsDarshan Shah· Host0:00
Before we get started with this episode, I'd like to invite all of you to the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit happening in Nashville, Tennessee at the Conrad Hotel on Saturday, September 12th, 2026. This is an all-day summit where you're gonna be hearing from some of the best speakers in longevity medicine, including Dr. Vonda Wright, Dr. Luisa Nicola, many of the podcast guests that you've heard here on the Extend podcast. And of course, I'm gonna be there curating the entire day. We also have incredible vendors coming, so you can try the latest technologies in health, wellness, and longevity. Go to next-health.com/summit and buy your ticket today. We only have 400 spots, and they're going quickly. That's next-health.com/summit. I look forward to seeing you all there. [instrumental music] Welcome to Extend with me, Dr. Darshan Shah, a podcast dedicated to cutting-edge science, research tools and protocols designed to help you extend your health span. Having become one of the youngest doctors in the country at the age of 21, and trained and board-certified at the Mayo Clinic, I've accumulated three decades of practice as a board-certified surgeon and longevity expert. Over that time, I've discovered that a mere 20% of health knowledge yields 80% of the results when it comes to your health span. We are living in a new era where we are creating a new healthcare system, no longer focused on disease management, but achieving optimal health and vitality. Join me as I interview world-renowned experts, offering you a step-by-step guide to proactively avoid disease, and most importantly,