The community for those who’ve forgotten what joy feels like.
For many people living with chronic pain or persistent symptoms, the real grief isn’t just the pain itself.
It’s what pain has pushed out of reach: spontaneity. Laughter. Creativity. Community.
The simple joy of being with others without needing to explain, fix, or justify anything.
You get used to surviving
To managing. To powering through.
To disappearing from your own life in quiet, subtle ways.
And when you look for support, you often find more of the same:
Serious protocols. Symptom charts. Crisis-mode conversations.
Or groups that unintentionally revolve around suffering, with little space left for lightness, imagination, or fun.
That’s why we created mindbodyJOY
A space not just to talk about what hurts — but to remember what feels good.
A space for play, laughter, and creative reconnection — even in the middle of ongoing pain.
A space where healing is allowed to feel human, hopeful, and even joyful.
We’re not here to fix one another.
We’re here to remember, together, that we’re not broken.
See how the community works
A note from the founder
In my work as a chronic symptom recovery coach, I’ve noticed a recurring theme: many clients feel profoundly alone.
They’ve shared with me that, over time, they’ve lost touch with joy, creativity, and social connection. And yet, once systematically reintroduced, reclaiming those elements always significantly accelerated their recovery and improved their mental health.
There are many pathways to healing—medical, alternative, mindbody—but I’ve noticed there’s nothing out there that focuses specifically on joy, creativity, and social reconnection as active and essential ingredients of healing. So I’m building it.
mindbodyJOY isn’t a treatment. It’s a space to gently remember what might have fallen through the cracks while trying to heal—a place where safety exists in the good company of curiosity, playfulness, and art.
This is a new idea. A growing one. And I’d be honored for you to help shape what it becomes.
Simone Holderbach
Chronic Symptom Recovery Coach & Founder of mindbodyJOY
Our mission
mindbodyJOY exists to support people living with chronic illness through joy, creativity, and connection. We believe joy is a skill that can be trained—and a catalyst for nervous system regulation. Rooted in neuroscience, positive psychology, and the essential role of human connection in wellbeing, we offer live, non-clinical community spaces centered on creative expression, play, and shared humanity. Our goal is to reduce loneliness and isolation by helping people gently reconnect with what makes life feel vibrant and meaningful—even in the midst of ongoing symptoms.
Ready to dip a toe back into joy?
Not sure where to start?
Take the Play Personality Quiz and get a few simple ideas for how your system naturally likes to access joy, even in hard seasons.
Or try the community free for 2 weeks. No pressure to share, speak, or perform—just gentle ways to show up as you are.