Wise Traditions

What happens when what we believe—and what we actually do—don't quite line up? This week on the Wise Traditions podcast, pediatrician Dr. Lawrence Palevsky explores the concept of cognitive dissonance—what it is, why it's so common in modern life, and how it quietly shapes decisions around health, parenting, and trust in authority. Dr. Palevsky has spent decades encouraging parents to think critically, ask better questions, and reconnect with their own intuition. In this episode, he explains how cognitive dissonance shows up in everyday choices—from the foods people eat to the medical decisions they make—and why it can be so difficult to reconcile conflicting beliefs, even when the stakes are high. The conversation examines the tension many feel between what they've been told is "safe" or "normal" and what they instinctively sense may not be right. Dr. Palevsky discusses how fear, conditioning, and social pressure can keep individuals stuck—and what it takes to step outside that framework and begin thinking i