A Little Bit of Joy

I’m Joy, the Joy behind Joyous Health and Hello Joyous! I’m a mom to a wonderful 10-

year-old girl named Vienna, a wife, and a lifelong lover of all things natural health and

beauty (especially skincare).

My journey as a holistic nutritionist started almost 20 years ago, though I feel like I’ve been a student of nutrition my whole life. I was inspired by my own health challenges after healing my body from a hormonal imbalance. I knew I wanted to help other women do the same.

In the early years of my entrepreneurial path, I worked one-on-one with clients, created personalized wellness plans, and gave corporate wellness talks and public nutrition seminars. Along the way, I also wrote three bestselling cookbooks: Joyous Health, Joyous Detox, and The Joyous Cookbook.

Because I’ve always been very connected with my community, people often asked me what natural personal care products I was using. I loved sharing my DIY recipes and

clean beauty finds… and that curiosity eventually sparked something bigger - which

leads me to the next question!

How Joy came to natural skincare

Skincare and natural beauty have always been a passion of mine. When I turned 40,

my sensitive skin became increasingly reactive and I was diagnosed with rosacea. As a

nutritionist, my instinct was to address it naturally and search for the root cause rather

than rely on antibiotic creams or other quick fixes prescribed by dermatologists.

Hello Joyous Ultra-Moisturizing Body Butter in action at the Serenità Wellness Retreat!

For four years, I experimented with different supplements, diets, and protocols to support my skin health from the inside out. But even with all that effort—and using products I believed were “clean”—my skin continued to struggle. That’s when I took a closer look at my skincare routine. What I discovered was eye-opening: many products marketed as safe and gentle weren’t actually right for sensitive, reactive skin like mine.

It became clear that there was a real need for skincare that goes beyond flashy marketing claims—products that are truly supportive of the skin barrier and microbiome, and gentle enough for sensitive skin. Out of that realization, Hello Joyous was born.

The undeniable connection between what we eat, our gut, and our skin

Gut health is truly the foundation of skin health - our skin is often a reflection of what’s

happening inside the body. That said, caring for the outside is just as important as caring for the inside - you really can’t have one without the other.

Research from both human and animal studies shows that the gut microbiome influences much more than digestion - it impacts distant organs like the skin. Gut microbes can send signals that affect inflammation, oil production, skin structure, and overall resilience. When the gut is out of balance, the skin often shows it.

Non-negotiable foods for a healthy gut microbiome, and therefore, healthy skin!

Certain foods are non-negotiable for healthy skin because they nourish the gut

microbiome. These include fruits (dark berries are especially powerful), vegetables, nuts and seeds, healthy fats, and high-quality protein like eggs.

Variety is key when it comes to fruits and veggies, since a wide range of phytonutrients act as prebiotics to support gut microbes. Fermented foods - such as sauerkraut, pickles, apple cider vinegar, yogurt, and kefir - are also great for gut health. That said, they’re high in histamines, so if you notice more skin issues after eating them, it may help to cut back, as not everyone breaks down histamines efficiently.

We love your entrepreneurial spirit, and all the different hats you wear! You also

run Joyous Health, a hotspot for amazing recipes, blogs, and podcast episodes,

all centered on health, wellbeing, and nutrition. What has been the most fulfilling aspect of your business/ creations thus far?

Being able to provide my community with a wellness resource they can trust and then hearing their powerful stories of transformation has been incredibly fulfilling. You put this content out into what feels like outer space (well, cyberspace) and you hope someone resonates, so when people tell me how much their family loves my Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie for example, this makes me so happy.

Joy's most impactful and memorable podcast guests on the Joyous Health podcast

Oh my gosh, there have been so many memorable guests! I’ll pick two that really stand

out. One was Neil Pasricha, author of The Book of Awesome. He introduced me to the

“rose-bud-thorn” practice, which my family now does at dinner. We each share

something we’re grateful for (rose), something we’re looking forward to (bud), and

something that didn’t go our way (thorn). We always do the thorn second so we can end

on a positive note - it’s been such a great way to spark deeper conversations, especially

with our 10-year-old daughter Vienna.

Another was Melanie from Dalish Cosmetics. Her story of being bullied in high school

because of her looks brought me to tears, but her resilience and everything she has built since then are incredibly inspiring.

How does Joy nurture a healthy work-life balance in order to stay aligned and engaged in our passions and work, while still caring for her mind and body, taking time to rest, and preventing burnout?

One word: Home. I read, spend time with my family, workout in my basement gym, bake, and make dinner. Having this as a priority in my life has helped me prevent burnout. As much as I love to travel and go out, home is my happy place with my favourite people – my husband, Walker, and our daughter, Vienna.

Joy's Current Favourite Reads!

I read daily, but oddly enough, I don’t have one book that I would say is my favourite because it’s constantly changing. Right now, I’m reading the Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas, it’s a fairy-fantasy genre, and I’m on book 3, loving it! One of my fave authors is Kristin Hannah, who writes historical fiction, and I’ve read almost every single one of her books.

Websites: Joyous Health; Hello Joyous

Social: @joyoushealth; @hellojoyous_