"As this year draws to a close, I find myself reflecting on just how hard it has been. I've written openly about my own anxiety and anhedonia-the difficulty experiencing pleasure-shaped by a challenging childhood and intensified by profound life changes. In the past two years, both of my parents died ( good grief, indeed), while a wave of new grandchildren arrived-deeply joyful events that were also destabilizing and demanding. These parallel experiences reminded me, once again, that I teach what I most need to learn."
"At the same time, we are living in a culture saturated with anger, grievance, and revenge addiction-a very real phenomenon fueled by hate speech, polarization, and outrage-driven media. Add to that the endless barrage of high-stimulation, engagement-maximizing (anti) social media, and it becomes clear: our emotional and nervous systems are under siege. This is why rebooting our pleasure brains is no longer a luxury-it is an urgent act of self- and collective care."
Chronic stress, cultural overload, and high-stimulation media dysregulate brain systems and make emotional balance difficult. Pleasure functions as a regulatory, grounding force that supports emotional wisdom and resilience. Loss, caregiving, and life transitions can intensify anxiety and anhedonia while also offering opportunities for growth and learning. Sustainable well-being emerges from being—presence and acceptance—rather than relentless doing or white-knuckled resolutions. Authenticity and willingness to take relational risks foster connection, intimacy, and genuine pleasure. Habit change succeeds when pleasure practices are nourishing, accessible, and integrated into daily life rather than enforced through shame-driven cycles.
#pleasure-brain-restoration #chronic-stress-regulation #presence-and-acceptance #authenticity-and-intimacy
Read at Psychology Today
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