What if wellbeing isn’t something you achieve, but instead something you practice?

In this guest episode of The Secret Formula of Femininity, Dr. Nicole Monteiro is joined by former mentor, Dr. Siddharth Ashvin Shah, MD, MPH | Founder & President of Greenleaf Integrative (greenleafintegrative.com), for a rich, grounded conversation on laughter and joy as intentional wellbeing practices, not fleeting emotions or personality traits.

Together, they explore how wellbeing can be operationalized through daily competencies — including emotional flexibility, nervous system regulation, and the capacity for joy, especially in high-stress, high-responsibility lives.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Why laughter is a regulatory practice, not a reaction
• How joy supports emotional resilience and stress recovery
• The difference between happiness, pleasure, and embodied joy
• Why modern wellbeing frameworks often miss the relational and collective dimension
• How laughter shifts the nervous system out of survival mode
• Simple ways to practice joy without forcing positivity

This episode is for anyone who:

• feels burned out by “doing all the right things”

• struggles to feel lightness even when life is good

• wants a more embodied, sustainable approach to wellbeing

Reflection Question:

When was the last time you practiced joy — not waited for it?

Follow Dr. Shah's work at greenleafintegrative.com

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Links to the breath work demonstrations referenced in the episode:

Guided meditations & Yoga nidra by Dr. Shah - https://bio.to/greenleaf-integrative

Laughter yoga led by Nisha Gautam - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYtG-i2TJJY&t=10s

ABC News features laughter with Dr. Shah - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLrTOBiiwgU

Professional wellbeing consulting by Dr. Shah - https://www.greenleafintegrative.com/