188: Tiny Joys, Big Healing: Retraining the Brain for Hope

Dec 18, 2025

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If gratitude and grief seem to arrive hand in hand this season or hope feels costly, like putting your armor down in the middle of a battle… Nothing is wrong with you. Your brain is doing exactly what it was designed to do.

Dr. Alison sits down with researcher, author, trauma educator, and joy scholar Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald to explore the often misunderstood relationship between trauma and joy.

Drawing from neuroscience, trauma research, and lived experience, Dr MaryCatherine explains why joy can feel threatening after loss or prolonged stress.

Together, they unpack:

Why trauma responses are strength responses, not weaknesses
The “joy thieves” that quietly steal our capacity for delight
Why joy and grief are not opposites, and often show up together
How tiny moments can gently retrain your brain for joy
What neuroscientists call the hope circuit, and how to activate it

📖 Dr MaryCatherine's book, The Joy Reset: Six Ways Trauma Steals Happiness and How to Win it Back

📖 This Christmas, gift a loved one (or yourself!) Dr Alison’s latest book, The Best of You!

📥 Grab your 3 free Boundaries For Your Soul resources here

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📖 Find a full transcript and list of resources from this episode here

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