The Joy Reset: Rewiring our Brains and Discovering our Capacity to Cultivate Joy. With Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald
About this episode
Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald discusses how to cultivate joy and resilience through understanding trauma and neuroscience.
Todays encore episode is with Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald, Trauma researcher and Author of the book, "The Joy Reset: Six Ways Trauma Steals Happiness and How to Get It Back.” Her book isn’t just about finding joy; it’s about rewiring our brains and rediscovering our power to cultivate joy EVEN in the darkest moments of life. She describes the barriers that keep us from accessing joy—hypervigilance, emotional numbing, fear of loss, conditioning, guilt, and shame—and then defines ways to tap into positive emotions that can become the very foundation of psychological resilience. In our interview she shares some exercises that make joy, hope and gratitude both bite-sized and accessible and how they can show up even in our toughest moments. I love how she weaves neuroscience into her exploration of trauma and joy, explaining how our brains are biologically wired to both adapt to trauma and heal from it. And…good news…we ARE always biologically capable of joy. Quote from her website: "Joy does not exist only in the moments that are free of pain. In fact, the brightest, tiniest, most important pieces can only be found in the dark. I want to teach you how to harness…
Sponsors
Muse
More episodes of Untangle
- Learning to Cultivate Joy (and Resilience) inside of Grief. An Inspiring, Personal Story. With Marisa Renee Lee.
- Meditation Monday. Being Grateful. With Ashley Turner.
- What if These Micro-Retreats Could Help You Reduce Stress, Boost Creativity, Feel more Joy? (It works!) With Caroline Sylge
- How to Change: The Science of Getting From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. With Katy Milkman
- Why Can't We Let Go of Some Negative Emotions? With Dr. Shahrzad Jalali
- The Mid-Life Whisperer Shares How to Find Joy and Purpose (And to Love Yourself Before it's Too Late). With Dr. Ellen Albertson
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Untangle podcast page.