Episode description

In this episode, we're working on our element Hope… and resilience as well! We're still adventuring through The Roots of Resilience (laid out in one of Dr. Emmons books, The Chemistry of Calm). We're talking about the sixth root, "Cultivating a Good Heart." What does this have to do with mental health?! A lot actually. We're not just a brain wandering around all alone. We're more than that. And this root opens up the rest of our body, and the world around us, so that we can not only improve our mental health, but connect with meaning and purpose, and tap into our joy, hope, and resilience. We'll get into some specifics with the factors of self-acceptance, loving-kindness, and compassion as foundational strategies to cultivate a good heart. Expect to learn some insights from neuroscience and traditional wisdom on the heart's central role in emotional processing and connection, along with key practices to cultivate kindness and compassion towards ourselves and others. 

Joy Lab and Natural Mental Health are community-supported. When you buy through the links below, we may earn a commission. That support keeps the Joy Lab podcast free for all!  

Sources & Notes:

• Joy Lab Program: Take the next leap in your wellbeing journey with step-by-step practices to help you build and maintain the elements of joy in your life. Your Joy Lab membership also includes our NMH Community!
• NMH Community: Access lots of extra resilience-boosting resources (like our Sleeping Well Workshop) & you'll join a group of inspiring folks who play an integral role in keeping this podcast going... which means powerful resources stay accessible to everyone. 
• Free Resilience Quiz and free Mini-Course: Based on decades of clinical experience, we've created a model of resilience that is both helpful and practical.
• Chemistry of Calm (Dr. Emmons' book referenced in this series)
• Annual Research Review: Positive adjustment to adversity -Trajectories of minimal-impact resilience and emergent resilience
• The Effects of Mindfulness Meditation on Hope and Stress
• The role of Hope in subsequent health and well-being for older adults: An outcome-wide longitudinal approach
• More on those snails/slugs:
• RNA from Trained Aplysia Can Induce an Epigenetic Engram for Long-Term Sensitization in Untrained Aplysia 
• Reinstatement of long-term memory following erasure of its behavioral and synaptic expression in Aplysia
• Joy Lab Podcast ep #26: Self-Compassion: Don't Believe Everything You Think (about yourself)
• The Three Kindnesses. Here are the three patterns of kindness to notice:
• Notice someone acting kindly to another person.
• Notice someone acting kindly to you.
• Notice when you act kindly to someone else.
• Hopelessness and Risk of Mortality and Incidence of Myocardial Infarction and Cancer
• Shop:
• Fullscript (partner store): This is where you can find high-quality supplements and wellness products. Except for our CBD Gummies, any product links mentioned in the show notes below will require an account. Sign up for your free Fullscript account,
• Resilient Remedies: This is where you can find our line of trusted, high-quality CBD gummies.
• Subscribe to our Newsletter: Join us over at NaturalMentalHealth.com for exclusive emails, updates, and additional strategies.
• Check out our favorite resilience-boosting reads here.

Full transcript available here.

Please remember that this content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice and is not a replacement for advice and treatment from a medical professional. Please consult your doctor or other qualified health professional before beginning any diet change, supplement, or lifestyle program. Please see our terms for more information.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call the NAMI HelpLine: 1-800-950-6264 available Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m., ET. OR text "HelpLine" to 62640 or email NAMI at helpline@nami.org. Visit NAMI for more. You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.