The Science of Happiness

Shuka Kalantari

Learn research-tested strategies for a happier, more meaningful life, drawing on the science of compassion, gratitude, mindfulness, and awe. Hosted by award-winning psychologist Dacher Keltner. Co-produced by PRX and UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center.

  • 22 minutes 17 seconds
    How to Keep Your Humanity

    Discover what happens to our well-being when we respond to suffering with compassion, collective action, and why choosing to care can help us hold on to our shared humanity.

    Summary: In the face of widespread suffering, many of us struggle with how to respond without becoming overwhelmed or numb. Drawing on research and real-world experience, this episode of The Science of Happiness examines the psychological impact of bearing witness, acting in alignment with our values, and showing up for others—even when it’s hard. We look at how compassion, agency, and a sense of common humanity can both strengthen resilience and carry real emotional costs, and why people continue to act anyway.

    Take our 5-minute survey https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Pause and name what’s happening: Take a moment to notice what you’re feeling as you witness suffering or injustice—anger, grief, numbness, confusion. Naming the emotion helps calm the stress response and keeps you from shutting down or looking away.
    2. Reconnect with common humanity: Remind yourself: there are no “good people” and “bad people”—there are people. 
    3. Clarify your values on paper: Write down one to three values that matter most to you right now (for example: compassion, integrity, dignity, justice). Studies show that writing values down lowers stress and makes it more likely you’ll act in alignment with them.
    4. Gently ask yourself: “What does a person like me—with these values—do in a situation like this?” Consider what access, safety, or influence you may have, and what constraints you face. Acting with integrity looks different for everyone, and this step helps you choose a response that is both values-aligned and realistic.
    5. Choose a safe, doable action: Action doesn’t have to be loud or risky. It might be writing, speaking up in a meeting, supporting someone directly, or adding your voice to a collective effort. Even small actions strengthen agency and social connection.
    6. Reflect and reconnect: After you act, check in with yourself. Notice any sense of alignment, relief, meaning, grief, or fear. Acting with integrity won’t erase pain, but it helps protect mental health and shapes who we become over time.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Guests:

    DR. FEROZE SIDHWA is a trauma, and critical care surgeon in California. He has also worked as a physician in Haiti, Ukraine and Palestine. 

    Learn more about Dr. Feroze Sidhwa here: https://www.ferozesidhwa.org/

    DR. AKIVA LEBOWITZ is a physician and critical care specialist.

    Learn more about Dr. Akiva Lebowitz here: https://akivaforbrookline.com/

    DR. SUNITA SAH is a social scientist, author, and psychologist.

    Learn more about Dr. Sunita Sah here: https://www.sunitasah.com/

    Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at [email protected] or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

    Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/48wz2vru

    29 January 2026, 11:00 am
  • 6 minutes 58 seconds
    Happiness Break: Finding Calm in Uncertainty

    Psychologist and stress expert Elissa Epel leads us in a gentle, science-backed practice to calm our nervous systems and meet uncertainty with greater ease and acceptance.

    We want to hear from you! Take our quick 5-minute survey to tell us what you love, what you want more of, and how we can make the show even more inspiring and useful. Everyone who completes the survey can enter a drawing to win a copy of The Science of Happiness Workbook: 10 Practices for a Meaningful Life. Click the survey link in the show notes wherever you’re listening, or go directly to: https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Settle in: Find a quiet, comfortable place to sit. Close your eyes or soften your gaze, and begin breathing in through your nose with long, slow exhales through pursed lips.
    2. Scan your body: Gently move your attention from the top of your head down to your toes, noticing areas of tension with a kind, curious awareness.
    3. Breathe into tension: Wherever you feel tightness, breathe into that area and soften it with each exhale, allowing your nervous system to relax just a little more.
    4. Notice uncertainty: Turn your attention to your thoughts and feelings. Ask yourself what feels uncertain right now, and name any emotions that arise without trying to change them.
    5. Ask yourself: What is on my mind right now? Am I thinking about the past, the future, or am I right here in the present?” What do I feel most uncertain about right now? What expectations might I be holding? Am I striving to control something? What feelings do I have right now?
    6. Release control: Notice where you may be holding expectations or trying to control the future, and gently practice letting go, reminding yourself that uncertainty is part of life.
    7. Rest in the present: Lean back, relax your shoulders, and focus on the safety and ease of this moment, repeating a phrase like “Things are exactly as they are right now.”

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Happiness Break Guide:

    ELISSA EPEL, PH.D, is a Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, at University of California, San Francisco.

    Learn more about Elissa Epel here: https://www.elissaepel.com/

    Related Happiness Break episodes:

    Loving Kindness Meditation: https://tinyurl.com/2kr4fjz5

    Embodying Resilience: https://tinyurl.com/46383mhx

    A Meditation for When You Feel Uneasy: https://tinyurl.com/4utrkyh5

    Follow us on Instagram: @ScienceOfHappinessPod

    We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at [email protected] or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

    Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/2x4pe95j

    22 January 2026, 11:00 am
  • 22 minutes 9 seconds
    How Qigong Can Calm Your Mind and Body

    Studies show qigong can strengthen your body and mind, and reduce cortisol levels. We explore this Chinese meditative movement practice that dates back over 4,000 years.

    Summary: After a period of intense stress, loss, and physical disconnection, one guest turns to qigong—a gentle, meditative movement practice rooted in traditional Chinese medicine—to reconnect with their body and calm their nervous system. This episode of The Science of Happiness explores the growing scientific evidence behind qigong, revealing how mindful movement can support both physical health and psychological well-being.

    We want to hear from you! Take our 5-minute survey to enter a drawing to win a copy of The Science of Happiness Workbook: 10 Practices for a Meaningful Life. Tell us what you love, what you want more of, and how we can make the show even more inspiring and useful. Click the survey link in the show notes wherever you’re listening, or go directly to: https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    One Way To Do This Practice:

    1. Stand and settle: Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees soft, arms relaxed by your sides. Take a moment to feel the ground beneath your feet and let your body arrive.
    2. Ground through your feet: Gently rock or sway in small circles, slowly shifting your weight to notice different parts of your feet making contact with the floor. Let your balance find its own rhythm.
    3. Breathe slowly and naturally: Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth, allowing your breath to deepen without forcing it. Imagine your breath moving through your whole body, not just your chest.
    4. Begin gentle, flowing movements: Move your arms and torso in smooth, continuous motions—circling, swaying, or softly lifting and lowering your hands. Keep your movements relaxed and fluid rather than stiff or controlled.
    5. Soften your body and attention: Release unnecessary tension in your jaw, shoulders, and hands. Place your attention on how the movements feel from head to toe, letting your mind stay with sensation rather than thoughts.
    6. Close with stillness: After 10–15 minutes, return to standing quietly. Notice any changes in your energy, mood, or sense of grounding before stepping back into your day.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Guests:

    ACE BORAL is an Oakland-based chef.

    PETER WAYNE is an Associate Professor of Medicine, and serves as the Director for the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, jointly based at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

    Learn more about Peter’s work: https://tinyurl.com/342xndna

    Related The Science of Happiness episodes:  

    Breathe Away Anxiety (Cyclic Sighing): https://tinyurl.com/3u7vsrr5

    The Science of Synchronized Movement: https://tinyurl.com/n4bcrb5j

    Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at [email protected] or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

    Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/yyxnsfy9

    15 January 2026, 11:00 am
  • 8 minutes 4 seconds
    Happiness Break: An Affirmation Practice for the New Year

    This New Year, affirm the wonderful qualities you already possess with this meditative writing practice with Chris Murchison called "I Am."

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Settle your body and breath: Find a comfortable seat. Close your eyes or soften your gaze. Take a few slow, deep breaths. Feeling your belly and lungs expand. Bringing your attention into the present moment.
    2. Notice what’s here: Briefly tune in to what’s moving through you right now: thoughts, emotions, sensations in your body, and the space around you. There’s nothing to change—just notice.
    3. Begin with “I am…”: Open your eyes and place your pen at the top of the page. Write the words “I am…” and complete the sentence with whatever feels true at this moment.
    4. Keep writing continuously for one minute: On each new line, write “I am…” again and complete it. Keep your pen moving for a full minute. Don’t edit, judge, or overthink. Just let the words come.
    5. Pause and reflect: Put your pen down. Read what you’ve written. Notice where you started, how your responses shifted, and where you ended. Look for patterns, themes, or surprises.
    6. Carry it forward: Take a few mindful breaths. Consider how this clearer sense of your present self might shape how you move into the next moment with more awareness and care.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Happiness Break Guide:

    CHRIS MURCHISON is an artist and meditation teacher.

    Check out Chris’s website: https://chrismurchison.com/

    Follow Chris on Instagram: https://tinyurl.com/4nyjahj4

    Related Happiness Break episodes:

    The Healing Power of Your Own Touch: https://tinyurl.com/y4ze59h8

    A Self-Compassion Meditation For Burnout: https://tinyurl.com/485y3b4y

    How to Be Your Own Best Friend: https://tinyurl.com/y5kbecej

    Related Science of Happiness episodes:

    How to Stick to Your Resolutions in 2024: https://tinyurl.com/mub9z9z4

    How Holding Yourself Can Reduce Stress: https://tinyurl.com/2hvhkwe6

    How To Show Up For Yourself: https://tinyurl.com/56ktb9xc

    Follow us on Instagram: @ScienceOfHappinessPod

    We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at [email protected] or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

    Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/2d595rz3

    8 January 2026, 11:00 am
  • 19 minutes 18 seconds
    How Stories Shape Belonging

    Learn how the stories we tell and hear shape our relationships, values, and sense of belonging.

    Summary: Storytelling is more than entertainment. It shapes how we think, feel, and relate to others. In this episode of The Science of Happiness, we dive into how immersive narratives calm stress, inspire reflection, and foster compassion across differences. We also explore how stories of resilience, joy, and tradition leave lasting impressions that influence our relationships and sense of self.

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Choose a meaningful story: Bring to mind a personal memory, family tradition, or moment that carries emotion, care, or learning.
    2. Settle the body first: Take a few slow breaths and notice your posture, helping your nervous system feel steady and present.
    3. Recall sensory details: Gently remember what you saw, heard, smelled, or felt in the moment, letting the story come alive without forcing it.
    4. Notice what matters: As the story unfolds, pay attention to themes of connection, care, resilience, or joy that stand out to you.
    5. Reflect on its meaning: Ask yourself what this story has shaped in you—how it influences your values, relationships, or sense of belonging.
    6. Share or carry it forward: If it feels right, share the story with someone you trust, write it down, or hold it quietly as a reminder of connection and continuity.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Guests:

    SAFA SULEIMAN is an elementary school teacher and author of the new children’s book Hilwa’s Gifts

    Learn more about Safa here: https://www.safasuleiman.com/

    MELANIE GREEN is a social psychologist at the University at Buffalo who has published widely on narrative persuasion and the power of storytelling.

    See more on Melanie’s work here: https://tinyurl.com/e5fd8bu5

    Related The Science of Happiness episodes:  

    How Thinking About Your Ancestors Can Help You Thrive: https://tinyurl.com/4u6vzs2w
    Are You Following Your Inner Compass: https://tinyurl.com/y2bh8vvj
    How To Show Up For Yourself: https://tinyurl.com/56ktb9xc

    Related Happiness Breaks:

    A Meditation on Love and Interconnectedness: https://tinyurl.com/ye6baxv3
    Our Deep Interconnectedness: https://tinyurl.com/jthxkpjd
    Pause to Look at the Sky: https://tinyurl.com/4jttkbw3

    Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at [email protected] or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

    Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/2tkvdyr8

    1 January 2026, 11:00 am
  • 9 minutes 1 second
    Happiness Break: Una meditación para enraizar, con Diana Parra (español)

    También tenemos esta meditación en Español.

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/4rjmambm

    26 December 2025, 11:00 am
  • 8 minutes 17 seconds
    Happiness Break: A Meditation to Inspire a Sense of Purpose

    Take a few minutes to reflect on someone who inspires you, and how you can embody the values you admire in them.

    You can also listen to this episode in Spanish here: https://tinyurl.com/4rjmambm

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Find a quiet moment and settle your body: Sit or stand somewhere you feel safe and comfortable. Take a few slow breaths and let your body soften, releasing the noise of the day.
    2. Bring to mind someone who embodies “moral beauty”: Think of a person whose kindness, courage, humility, or integrity has genuinely inspired you. Choose one specific moment when their character moved you.
    3. Visualize an act that inspired you: Recall exactly what the person did. Picture the scene, their actions, their choices. Notice why this moment stood out as meaningful or brave or good.
    4. Notice how your body responds: As you hold this image, tune into your body: warmth, openness, tenderness, or even tears. Allow yourself to feel the emotional impact of their moral beauty.
    5. Reflect on why this matters to you: Ask yourself: What does this moment reveal about the values that matter most to me? What purpose does it awaken? What did this person teach me about how I want to live?
    6. Choose one small aligned action for today: Identify one thing you can do—big or small—that expresses the value or purpose this person embodies. Carry that intention with you into the rest of your day.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Happiness Break Guide:

    DIANA PARRA is professor at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. She is also a registered mindfulness and yoga teacher who focuses on sharing these practices with the Latino immigrant community in St Louis.

    Learn more about Diana Parra’s work: https://tinyurl.com/4acc7nsv

    Related Happiness Break episodes:

    Loving Kindness Meditation: https://tinyurl.com/2kr4fjz5

    How to Do Good for the Environment (And Yourself): https://tinyurl.com/5b26zwkx

    Related Science of Happiness episodes:

    Why We Should Seek Beauty: https://tinyurl.com/yn7ry59j

    We want to hear from you! Take our quick 5-minute survey to tell us what you love, what you want more of, and how we can make the show even more inspiring and useful. Everyone who completes the survey can enter a drawing to win a copy of The Science of Happiness Workbook: 10 Practices for a Meaningful Life. Click the survey link in the show notes wherever you’re listening, or go directly to: https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    Follow us on Instagram: @ScienceOfHappinessPod

    We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at [email protected] or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

    Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/4945b59w

    25 December 2025, 11:00 am
  • 21 minutes 13 seconds
    The Power of a Collective Pause

    Explore how students are using simple mindful breathing practices to navigate stress, stay grounded, and support their classmates.

    Summary: Classrooms often are confronted with difficult topics that can leave students overwhelmed and anxious. In this episode of The Science of Happiness, we highlight how college student Evelyn Mata brought calm to herself and peers during an Immigration Studies class through simple collective breathing practices. 

    How to Do Box Breathing:

    1. Sit comfortably: Find a quiet spot and focus on your breath, keeping a relaxed posture. 
    2. Inhale (4 counts): Breathe in slowly through your nose, letting the air fill your belly and chest. Keep the pace steady, not strained for a count of four. 
    3. Hold (4 counts): Pause gently at the top of the inhale. This isn’t a tense hold, just a moment of stillness to let the body register calm. Hold your breath for four slow counts. 
    4. Exhale (4 counts): Release the breath through your nose or mouth in a smooth, even flow. Imagine tension leaving the body as the breath moves out for a count of four, emptying your lungs. 
    5. Hold (4 counts): Let yourself rest briefly in the empty space before the next inhale. This completes the “box.”
    6. Repeat: Continue this cycle for several minutes, or for 3-4 rounds, until you feel calmer. Stop sooner if you feel lightheaded; return to natural breathing when you’re done.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Guests: 

    EVELYN MATA is an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley, studying Psychology and Public Policy.

    DR. PABLO GONZALEZ is a professor in the Ethnic Studies department at UC Berkeley.

    Learn more about Pablo here: https://ethnicstudies.berkeley.edu/people/pablo-gonzalez

    Related The Science of Happiness episodes:  

    Breathe Away Anxiety (Cyclic Sighing): https://tinyurl.com/3u7vsrr5

    How To Tune Out The Noise: https://tinyurl.com/4hhekjuh 

    What To Do When Stress Takes Over: https://tinyurl.com/mskvfmv4

    Related Happiness Breaks:

    Make Uncertainty Part of the Process: https://tinyurl.com/234u5ds7

    A Meditation for When You Feel Uneasy: https://tinyurl.com/4x27ut3p

    A Mindful Breath Meditation, With Dacher Keltner: https://tinyurl.com/mr9d22kr

    Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at [email protected] or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

    Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/4wz4vbc3

    18 December 2025, 11:00 am
  • 10 minutes 7 seconds
    Happiness Break: How Connecting With Ancestors Deepens Belonging

    Through a gentle ancestral meditation, discover how grounding in your roots can open the door to healing, meaning, and a deeper sense of belonging.

    How To Do This Practice: 

    1. Settle Into Your Body: Notice whether you’re sitting, standing, or walking, and gently bring your attention to the natural rhythm of your breath.
    2. Ground Yourself Through the Earth: Feel the weight of your body supported by the ground beneath you, and let any thoughts drift by like passing clouds.
    3. Sense the Ancestors in Nature: Expand your awareness to the sky, the earth, trees, and mountains, imagining them as ancestors who have been here long before you.
    4. Connect With Your Heartbeat: Place a hand on your heart if it feels comfortable, noticing the steady drumbeat within you—a rhythm shared across generations.
    5. Cultivate Compassion for Your Lineage: Envision compassion as a color or texture in your chest and let it gently radiate outward, offering it to your ancestors and to yourself.
    6. Offer a Wish for Healing: Bring to mind a simple wish for the easing of suffering—your own or others’—and breathe it through your body from sky to earth before slowly opening your eyes.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Happiness Break Guide: 

    SARÁ KING is a neuroscientist, medical anthropologist and educator at UC San Diego.

    Learn more about Sará King here: https://www.eomega.org/people/sara-king

    Related Happiness Break episodes:

    Where Did You Come From: https://tinyurl.com/2y9uyjj6

    How To Tune Into Water’s Restorative Power: https://tinyurl.com/2k6ybzrs

    A Meditation to Connect With Your Roots: https://tinyurl.com/ycy9xazc

    Related Science of Happiness episodes:

    Are You Following Your Inner Compass: https://tinyurl.com/y2bh8vvj

    How Water Heals: https://tinyurl.com/utuhrnh3

    Who’s Always There for You: https://tinyurl.com/yt3ejj6w

    We want to hear from you! Take our quick 5-minute survey to tell us what you love, what you want more of, and how we can make the show even more inspiring and useful. Everyone who completes the survey can enter a drawing to win a copy of The Science of Happiness Workbook: 10 Practices for a Meaningful Life. Click the survey link in the show notes wherever you’re listening, or go directly to: https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    Follow us on Instagram: @ScienceOfHappinessPod

    We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at [email protected] or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

    Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/mrsnwvrm

    11 December 2025, 11:00 am
  • 19 minutes 21 seconds
    How to Feel Better About Yourself

    Self-compassion reduces our feelings of shame and self-doubt. We explore a practice to help quiet our inner critic with kindness.

    Summary: What does your inner critic sound like? Many of us carry echoes of past misunderstandings, pressures, or expectations. Voices that show up as shame, self-judgment, or the belief that we’re not doing enough. This episode explores a self-compassionate writing practice that helps interrupt those patterns by noticing how we talk to ourselves and learning to respond with more kindness. 

    How To Do This Practice: 

    1. Choose something you feel ashamed about or critical of: Pick a moment or pattern that brings up self-blame, embarrassment, or disappointment. It doesn’t need to be huge, just something that regularly activates your inner critic.
    2. Describe the situation honestly and without judgment: Write down what happened and how it made you feel. Let the tone be neutral, like you’re simply acknowledging what’s true. No harsh labels, no minimizing.
    3. Imagine someone who loves you speaking to you: This could be a close friend, mentor, future self, or the voice you’d naturally use when comforting someone you care about. Let that tone guide the rest of the letter.
    4. Write to yourself with compassion, acceptance, and understanding: Recognize the difficulty, normalize the feelings, offer reassurance and warmth, acknowledge your strengths and intentions. Treat yourself the way you’d treat someone who came to you hurting.
    5. Reframe your struggle in a kinder, more accurate way: Gently question the harsh story you usually tell yourself. Identify what was actually happening beneath the shame— survival instincts, past patterns, symptoms, fear, or overwhelm. Offer yourself a more truthful, generous narrative.
    6. Set the letter aside then come back and read it: After a little time (an hour or a day), return to what you wrote. Notice how it feels to receive your own compassion. Let the warmth land. Over time, rereading and rewriting letters like this can shift your inner voice toward kindness and authenticity.

    Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

    Today’s Guests: 

    RENÉ BROOKS is the creator of the blog Black Girl, Lost Keys. She draws on her personal experiences to coach and assist adults with ADHD.

    Visit René’s Blog: https://blackgirllostkeys.com/

    SERENA CHEN is the Chair of the Psychology department at UC Berkeley. Her research is focused on self-compassion, wellbeing, and social interaction.

    Learn more about Serena and her work: https://tinyurl.com/mry3vx3v

    Related The Science of Happiness episodes:  

    Why Compassion Requires Vulnerability: https://tinyurl.com/yxw4uhpf

    Related Happiness Breaks:

    Fierce Self-Compassion Break: https://tinyurl.com/yk9yzh9u

    Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at [email protected] or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

    Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/et2spbbp

    4 December 2025, 11:00 am
  • 5 minutes
    Happiness Break: A Meditation for When Gratitude Feels Hard

    When gratitude feels distant, gently notice what’s here now— creating space for both heaviness and small moments of appreciation.

    How To Do This Practice:

    1. Get Comfortable: Sit upright or lie down. Whatever feels most supportive. Then soften your gaze or close your eyes.
    2. Take Three Slow Breaths: Let your body begin to settle. Feel the tension release a little more with each exhale.
    3. Notice How You’re Feeling: Without changing anything, simply acknowledge what’s present—tiredness, frustration, numbness, ease—whatever it is.
    4. Make Space for What’s Hard: Recognize that the world can feel heavy. It’s okay to hold grief, anger, or stress. You don't have to push it away.
    5. Gently Notice the Present Moment: Shift your attention to something neutral: your breath, your feet on the floor, the air on your skin. Just observe.
    6. Look for One Small Thing to Appreciate: Ask: Is there anything, however small, I can be thankful for right now? A warm cup of coffee, a slower breath, the fact that you showed up.

    Today’s Happiness Break Guide:

    DACHER KELTNER is the host of The Science of Happiness podcast and is a co-instructor of the Greater Good Science Center’s popular online course of the same name. He’s also a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.

    Related Happiness Break episodes:

    A Meditation on Original Love: https://tinyurl.com/5u298cv4
    Loving Kindness Meditation: https://tinyurl.com/2kr4fjz5
    Who Takes Care of You: https://tinyurl.com/5xmfkf73

    Related Science of Happiness episodes:

    Nine Steps to Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/vb7kk5ky

    How to Show Up For Yourself: https://tinyurl.com/56ktb9xc

    Who’s Always There for You: https://tinyurl.com/yt3ejj6w

    We want to hear from you! Take our quick 5-minute survey to tell us what you love, what you want more of, and how we can make the show even more inspiring and useful. Everyone who completes the survey can enter a drawing to win a copy of The Science of Happiness Workbook: 10 Practices for a Meaningful Life. Click the survey link in the show notes wherever you’re listening, or go directly to: https://tinyurl.com/happyhappysurvey. Thank you for helping us make the podcast even better!

    Follow us on Instagram: @ScienceOfHappinessPod

    We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at [email protected] or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

    Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

    Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/f6xa56mx

    27 November 2025, 11:00 am
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