Feeling small, scared, or checked-out lately? You're not imagining it . . . and you’re also not failing because of it. In this Season 5 premiere of feelgoodery, Kyle Buchanan breaks down why the brain defaults to passivity when bad news keeps piling up (AI anxiety, rising costs, the state of the world), and gives five practical, science-backed ways to climb out of it - from the gut-brain connection to a tough love talk, and a perspective shift that might make all the difference.

In this episode:

• Why feeling powerless right now isn't a personal failing - the psychology passivity
• The "control what you can control" method: small, immediate actions that retrain your brain out of shutdown mode
• How your gut microbiome influences anxiety and mood via the vagus nerve, and what a Stanford fermented-food study found
• The real cost of staying small and scared, and why empaths especially need to hear this one
• The reminder that might make all the difference
• Today’s feelgood thing, and why 5HTP might be something to consider

Studies mentioned:

• Learned Helplessness at Fifty: Insights From Neuroscience Maier & Seligman's reinterpretation of their own landmark theory, showing passivity is the brain's default response, not something learned
• Gut-microbiota-targeted diets modulate human immune status — the Stanford (Sonnenburg Lab) fermented-food trial, published in Cell
• Fermented Foods, Neuroticism, and Social Anxiety: An Interaction Model — the ~700-person survey on fermented food intake and social anxiety

New here? feelgoodery is your weekly space for feeling good without pretending everything's fine - nutrition, mindset, and real strategies for showing up for yourself, hosted by Kyle Buchanan (Broadcaster, Speaker, Certified Nutritional Practitioner, Resident Wellness contributor on Canada’s The Morning Show & host of The Exhale on SiriusXM) , and his live-studio dog Sam.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and isn't a substitute for professional medical advice. If you're in a state of despair or depression, please reach out to a qualified mental health professional.

Follow along: Instagram @itskyleb | New episodes weekly