As of 2021, roughly 72 percent of Canadians lived in cities with populations of more than 100,000 — and that number continues to climb. Yet urban life comes with trade-offs: costly housing, less space, gridlock, poor air quality and relentless noise. Which prompts the question: Is city living at odds with our happiness?

This week on Happy Enough, Garvia speaks with Houssam Elokda, a community planner, housing expert, and managing principal at Happy Cities, a Vancouver-based consultancy that aims to improve city living. They explore why Canadians are flocking to cities in greater numbers, how that shift affects wellbeing and profile global examples of how design and policy choices can restore community trust and boost wellbeing in urban areas.

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“Laughter is the best medicine” isn’t a cliché—it’s biology. Research finds that laughter increases your endorphins, activates and calms your stress response system, improves your immune system, and, critically, connects you with the people you love. But these days, it can feel hard to overcome the bad news and find time for a good chuckle.

To dig into why laughter matters—and why we should make time for it—Garvia is joined by Chris Duffy, comedian and author of Humor Me: How Laughing More Can Make You Present, Creative, Connected, and Happy. They discuss laughter as a practice, how poking fun at ourselves and the world builds connection, and how cultivating humour can boost wellbeing, especially in hard times.

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In our society, ambition is viewed as a good thing. A force to be reckoned with, a badge of hard work and dedication. But does ambition come at the cost of happiness? It can leave us wanting more, never stopping to consider what “enough” even is. What if leaning into “good enough” is the secret to true happiness?

In this episode, Garvia sits down with Amil Niazi, writer, producer and author of Life After Ambition: A Good Enough Memoir. Amil talks about what ambition meant early in her career, the reckoning that followed, and how embracing “good enough” has made her life happier and healthier.

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As kids and young adults, friendship is front and centre. Then careers, marriages, and mortgages crowd it out — despite global research showing that friendship is one of the strongest predictors of wellbeing.

In this episode, Garvia speaks with Dr. Marisa Franco, psychologist, professor, and bestselling author of Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make–and Keep–Friends. She explains why our culture undervalues platonic relationships and why making friends gets harder as we get older. She also shares practical tips for meeting new people, turning acquaintances into close friends, and strengthening the bonds you already have.

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Heated Rivalry, the Canadian-made, R-rated TV show about two hockey superstars who fall in love, was a breakout hit in late 2025 with more than 10 million viewers per episode. People who love the series, based on the hit books by author Rachel Reid, are finding great joy and delight in a show that seems to depict a far kinder and more empathetic world than the one we see every day.

On today’s episode, The Globe and Mail’s happiness reporter Erin Anderssen joins Garvia to discuss why shared fandom feels so good, why Heated Rivalry has become a warm blanket for so many during stressful times, and why we shouldn’t be embarrassed to lean into the things that delight us.

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​​You know that feeling when the music just hits? You’re on the treadmill at the gym, your song comes on, and you feel like you could run through a wall. You hum a lullaby to a screaming baby, and they suddenly calm down. You hear a track you haven’t listened to in years, and in a heartbeat, you’re 16 again.

Today on Happy Enough, we’re exploring the powerful connection between music and happiness. Garvia talks with music therapist Jennifer Buchanan about what’s really happening in our brains and bodies when the right song plays—and how she’s used music therapy to help people in settings ranging from hospitals to detention centres.

And here's a link to Garvia's Happy Enough playlist.

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Garvia Bailey is back hosting season four of Happy Enough, a Globe and Mail podcast on happiness – and why it matters – in an era of stress and bad news. This season, we’ll discuss how music affects our well-being, why the hit TV show Heated Rivalry sparked joy for millions of fans, and how smarter design can make our cities and communities feel happier. The new season of Happy Enough launches on April 7th.

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Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, affects millions of people each year. But what causes it, who is most at risk, and is there anything you can do to avoid the winter blues? In this episode, Garvia talks with Dr. Raymond Lam, a psychiatrist and BC Leadership Chair in Depression Research at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Lam shares how daylight and weather can influence our mood, explains why Canadians are more likely to experience SAD, and gives practical tips to help you get through this harsh winter with your happiness intact.

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