Feel It to Heal It IT: From Grief to Gratitude and a Joyful Living.

Beginning A New Life.  At 26, Dr. Peggy DeLong lost her fiancé to cancer. Six weeks later, her father died suddenly of a heart attack. Two devastating losses. One after another. But that grief would eventually shape her life's work as she became a leading psychologist. In this deeply human conversation, psychologist and author Dr. Peggy DeLong, known as “The Gratitude Psychologist,” shares what happens when we stop running from painful emotions and finally allow ourselves to feel them. We explore why we cannot heal what we don't feel, and why labeling emotions as “negative” can actually distance us from what they are trying to tell us. Peggy challenges another popular idea: that happiness is simply a choice. We talk about what real healing asks of us when we are grieving, numb, exhausted, or afraid that if we surrender to our pain, we may never climb back out. The conversation moves from grief to gratitude, exploring nature and awe as sources of healing, how to practice gratitude without slipping into toxic positivity, and Peggy's practical Prioritize, Plan, Practice, Prosper framework for bringing more meaning and joy into everyday life. We also take the conversation into the workplace, examining burnout, emotional wellbeing, and why the joy of people inside an organization may matter far more to performance than leaders realize. Ultimately, this is a conversation about something bigger than gratitude…Life! TIMELINE: 1:06 — Feel it to heal it: the necessity of allowing yourself to feel emotional pain  1:36 — Personal loss: fiance's death and choosing to face grief head-on  3:50 — Discovering the power of gratitude through a cup of hazelnut coffee  6:46 — The danger of masking pain: emotional numbing and losing access to joy  8:56 — Ambiguous and disenfranchised grief: losses society doesn't acknowledge  11:52 — Healing methods: journaling, bereavement groups, and grief walks  13:59 — Healed by the mountains: nature's capacity to contain grief  16:33 — How to reach out to and support someone who is grieving  21:14 — Grief in the workplace: supporting colleagues within corporate boundaries  26:33 — The neuroscience of gratitude: reticular activating system, serotonin, and dopamine   Watch the Podcast on YouTube.   CONTACT DR. PEGGY DeLONG: Website    LinkedIn     YouTube     Instagram   Books     CONTACT DR. ARDESHIR MEHRAN: Dr. Mehran Website LinkedIn Therapy Testimonials Podcasts Blogs YouTube Bestselling Book