Joy Lab | strengthen your mental health with the science of joy

Ever feel like you're stuck in a fog—disconnected, unmotivated, and just… dull? You're not alone. In this episode, we explore emotional inertia—that heavy, stuck feeling that makes it hard to shake off negativity and truly engage with life. We'll break down how our brains get trapped in these patterns, why rumination keeps us cycling through the same emotions, and why some of us struggle to feel joy at all. Most importantly, we'll share simple, science-backed strategies to help you reconnect with your emotions, boost resilience, and start feeling alive again.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab : 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.
• Understanding Minor Depression And Low Resilience [Joy Lab ep. 204]
• Refilling Your Tank and Growing Your Inner Strength [Joy Lab ep. 203]
• Bylsma L. M. (2021). Emotion context insensitivity in depression: Toward an integrated and contextualized approach. Psychophysiology, 58(2), e13715. https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.13715
• Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

Feel like you have too much to do and not enough time to do it all? That feeling is sometimes called "time poverty." We'll talk more about that and how our perception of time is often distorted by chronic stress. We'll even dig into that buzzy-term "adrenal fatigue" and the importance of finding the sweet spot of stress and busyness. Most of all, we'll cover some practical tips for shifting from autopilot to mindful awareness, helping you to step out of busyness while also identifying what truly feels like time well spent.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab : 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.
• Annie Dillard's website.
• Jonathan Gershuny: "Work not leisure, is now the signifier of dominant social status."
• Closing poem excerpt: Max Ehrmann, "Desiderata"

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

In this episode, we dive deep into the pesky world of rumination—the habit of replaying worries, regrets, or anxieties in your mind. Learn the science behind the default mode network (DMN) and understand how it sparks these thought loops. We'll share some personal anecdotes and provide practical strategies to manage rumination, from engaging in focused tasks and reframing your thoughts to simply ignoring those relentless midnight musings.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.
• Benning, S. D., & Ait Oumeziane, B. (2017). Reduced positive emotion and underarousal are uniquely associated with subclinical depression symptoms: Evidence from psychophysiology, self-report, and symptom clusters. Psychophysiology, 54(7), 1010–1030. https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.12853

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

We'll dive into some key differences between minor depression and low resilience in this episode. We discuss how low resilience can feel similar to minor depression, with symptoms such as exhaustion, lack of motivation, and brain fog. Practical strategies for boosting resilience and lifting your mood are shared, like identifying factors that deplete your resilience, engaging in tactile and enjoyable activities, moving your body, and having positive social interactions.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.
• Rodríguez, M. R., Nuevo, R., Chatterji, S., & Ayuso-Mateos, J. L. (2012). Definitions and factors associated with subthreshold depressive conditions: a systematic review. BMC psychiatry, 12, 181. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-12-181

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

Ever feel like your tank is empty or you can't recover after a setback? In this episode, we'll get into our Element of resilience, exploring what can deplete our resilience, how we can refill our tank, and how we can even grow the size of that tank to hold more of that resilience fuel.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

When you're feeling in a rut or in a bad mood, do you tend to focus on eliminating negative emotions or inviting more positive ones in? If you swing toward the negative, well then welcome to the club! This is a common approach. The problem is that it misses half the picture and doesn't support our resilience. We'll talk about the challenges of letting in positive experiences and the psychological effects that can hinder this, such as avoidance of positivity and the contrast effect. What's the solution to this? Well, it's actually much of the work we do here at Joy Lab. Stay with us for each episode and join the Joy Lab program to build this skill of letting in more of the good.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

What do balance and perfectionism have in common? Nothing really, but interestingly, we often conflate the two. In this episode, we'll talk more about what balance (or equanimity) is and isn't while we debunk common myths about balance-- particularly as it relates to perfectionism. A key takeaway is that balance is not a static, end state but rather a dynamic process much like navigating a boat through ever-changing waves. We'll offer some practical, actionable strategies that you can take right now to embrace your balance.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab : 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.

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

Do you feel burned out? If so, you're not alone. This burnout visualization practice can help you identify the stressors that may be contributing to your burnout and also the sources of nourishment that already exist for you. During the meditation, you'll visualize and contrast a relaxed, obligation-free day with a busy workday. By observing bodily sensations and emotional responses without judgment, you can identify specific stressors and gain some insight on how you might shift your perspective about them or even change them so they don't deplete you as much. This episode follows last episode's discussion on burnout and depression. Listen to that episode before or after this one if you missed it.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.
• Last episode: Are you burned out or depressed?

Full transcript 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

Do you feel burned out? Or, maybe it feels like depression. Which begs the question, what's the difference between the two? Burnout and depression have a lot of similarities, but also a lot of differences. We'll highlight the nuances between burnout and clinical depression and also touch on the extensive impact of burnout across various forms of labor, from professional roles to caregiving. Listen in for valuable strategies to combat burnout and stay tuned for a guided meditation in the next episode to help tap into your resilience and navigate stress in healthier ways.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.

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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

Do you feel like your attention is fractured? Maybe you move through the day scattered, only to realize that you missed some good stuff along the way. In this episode, we'll talk about the practice of savoring, a simple skill that can help us regain control of our attention amidst the constant distractions of modern life.

About: The Joy Lab Podcast is an Ambie-nominated podcast that blends science and soul to help you cope better with stress, anxiety, and depression. It's hosted by integrative psychiatrist Dr. Henry Emmons and holistic mental health researcher Dr. Aimee Prasek.

The podcast is best paired with the Joy Lab App.

Bonus: spread some joy and keep this podcast ad-free by donating (Joy Lab is powered by the nonprofit Pathways North and your donations are tax-deductible).

Listen & follow the Joy Lab Podcast on your favorite listening app:

Spotify | Apple | YouTube

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts!

Sources and Notes:

• Joy Lab: 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.
• Intentional Systemic Mindfulness
• Finan, P. H., et al. (2023). Effects of Savoring Meditation on Positive Emotions and Pain-Related Brain Function: A Mechanistic Randomized Controlled Trial in People With Rheumatoid Arthritis. medRxiv. Access 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 [email protected].

Visit NAMI for more.

You can also call or text SAMHSA at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org