Meaningful Happiness with Dr. Scott Conkright

The Quiet Science of Feeling: How Peace and Happiness Share One Nervous System


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What if peace and happiness aren’t opposites, but two tempos of the same life force? We follow that question from the body’s first language—movement and breath—into the quiet work of integration, where your nervous system learns to trust its own rhythm again. Along the way, we introduce “ladolescence,” a stage beyond performance where joy becomes contribution, peace becomes belonging, and your days feel less like moods to manage and more like music to conduct.

We begin with the body’s memory: the quickening of curiosity, the soft landing of safety, and the early messages that taught many of us to dim our energy to stay loved. Then we offer a simple, daily practice—place a hand on your heart, breathe, and ask, “Is my energy rising or resting?” That small act of naming starts to reunite what got split, making peace the feeling of life force fully received and happiness the feeling of life force fully expressed.

From there, we map the nine core affects from Tomkins—interest, joy, surprise, distress, fear, anger, shame, disgust, and dissmell—and show how they shape connection under the words. You’ll learn why mutual interest accelerates bonding, how shared laughter builds trust, why clean anger protects dignity, how shame can melt into closeness when held with kindness, and how early warning signals like dissmell can prevent deeper ruptures. We show how our brains run simple scripts to seek more good feelings, reduce painful ones, and be recognized—and how wisdom is moving from being driven by feelings to being guided by them.

By the end, you’ll have a grounded framework for emotional health, attachment, and nervous system regulation that helps you relate more honestly to yourself and more safely with others. If you’re ready to stop performing and start integrating—inside your body and between you and the people you love—this conversation offers tools you can use today.

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Meaningful Happiness with Dr. Scott ConkrightBy Scott Conkright