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Ever feel clenched from the neck down and wired from the neck up? We’re wrapping our Your Brain on Joy mini‑series with a deep dive into endorphins—the body’s natural painkillers—and why real relief often looks sweaty, tear‑stained, and gloriously un‑aesthetic. We unpack how endorphins buffer stress, change your experience of pain, and help you keep going when life gets heavy, plus why hustle culture glorifies the chase while overlooking the chemistry of release.

Joy doesn’t always wait for perfect conditions. It often meets you mid‑mess, right after a deep cry or a hard sprint, when your nervous system finally exhales.
We tie the whole joy system together—dopamine to pursue joy, serotonin to sustain it, oxytocin to share it, and endorphins to survive into it—so you can stop white‑knuckling and start letting joy flow. Ask yourself where you’re holding tension and what release would look like today. If a relief list helps, start with move, laugh, cry, breathe, spice, cold touch. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs permission to let it out, and leave a review to tell us which endorphin boost you’ll try first.

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Visit @choosejoyypodcast on Instagram and X for more.

Send us a Text! We want to hear your questions, thoughts, and dilemmas to discuss during our “Chels Chats”- join the conversation 🤍

EPISODE 26--Your Brain on Joy but this is one where we pop some Oxytocin. What if the deepest joy isn’t loud at all, but quiet, warm, and rooted in feeling safe with yourself and others? We go all-in on oxytocin—the bonding hormone behind trust, belonging, and the calm that lets joy stay—showing why presence beats productivity when it comes to feeling connected. Instead of glorifying hustle, we slow down to explore how emotional safety fuels happiness, why proximity isn’t the same as intimacy, and how “connection” outperforms “attachment” for lasting relationships.

You’ll leave with practical, human ways to boost oxytocin: longer hugs with consent, meaningful conversations where you listen without fixing, honest eye contact, unrecorded acts of kindness, deliberate laughter, and brave, bounded vulnerability. We also share reflection prompts to locate where you feel safe, with whom you feel most like yourself, and where you could soften. If you’ve felt lonely in a crowded life, this is your invitation to trade chaos for care, urgency for presence, and quick highs for gentle joy.

If this resonated, share it with someone who “gets you,” subscribe for the series finale next week, and text us your trial-and-error stories so we can include your voice in our Chels chat wrap-up. Your presence here matters—choose connection, and choose joy.

Don't forget to text us to be featured on the next episode of Chels Chats!

Visit @choosejoyypodcast on Instagram and X for more.

Send us a Text! We want to hear your questions, thoughts, and dilemmas to discuss during our “Chels Chats”- join the conversation 🤍

Welcome to Your Brain on Joy- a mini-series breaking down the four neurotransmitters as if they were prescriptions for feeling better.

Ever feel like life only rewards you when you push harder? We flip that script by exploring serotonin—the chemistry of steadiness, safety, and quiet confidence—and how it differs from dopamine’s chase for the next win. Instead of glorifying the grind, we dig into how contentment forms the ground you can grow from, especially when your nervous system is asking for support.

We talk through clear signs that serotonin is running low and why that doesn’t mean you’re ungrateful or negative. Then we map out simple, science-aligned habits that help serotonin rise and build trust within yourself.

If this resonates, share it with a friend who’s tired of the hustle hamster wheel, and subscribe so you never miss a new chapter of Your Brain on Joy. Leave a review with one small routine you’re committing to this week—we’d love to cheer you on.

Don't forget to text us to be featured on the next episode of Chels Chats!

Visit @choosejoyypodcast on Instagram and X for more.