#389 The Happiness Conversation

Is happiness the same as joy? Or ecstasy (the feeling, not the drug)? Is excitement a version of happiness? What about contentment? The absence of anxiety? What about ‘bliss’? What’s that? Is happiness sustainable? Temporary? What role does our mind play? And what about relationships, career and money, what’s their role? Is there a biological component? Are some people genetically predisposed to be more or less happy because of their unique brain chemistry? Can we manipulate our ‘happy hormones’ in a healthy way? And why did walking through the jungle on a tropical island, hand-in-hand with a six-foot-four dude make me so uncomfortable and then happy, all on the same day (true story)?