Why Sleep, Singing, and Self-Compassion Might Be Better Than Any Biohack

Neuroscientist Dr. Sarah McKay on identity, burnout, and the power of doing something just for joy.

Before we hit record on our main episode about women’s brain health, I asked Dr. Sarah McKay five personal questions — and what followed was something I didn’t expect:

An unfiltered, deeply human conversation about identity, motherhood, sleep, and why sometimes the smartest thing you can do for your health is join a musical theatre group where no one puts you centre stage.

Sarah is a neuroscientist and author known for making brain science accessible, but what she shared here wasn’t a lecture. It was the kind of raw honesty that rarely makes it into interviews.

She spoke about the shock of early motherhood (“I didn’t like who I was becoming”), the guilt of not struggling outwardly when she was crumbling inwardly, and the surprising health habit that brought her back to life: community, laughter, and letting go of the need to “succeed” at everything.

She also shared the one thing she’s learning to do this year — maybe something you need to hear too: how to stop chasing the next goal and actually celebrate the one you just reached.

You’ll find no wellness clichés or productivity hacks here. Just a woman with a PhD and a big heart, talking about the kind of resilience that isn’t built in the lab — but in the everyday moments of being human.

Watch and read our full conversation below.

What's one small thing about you that makes you, uniquely you?

I think, based on what everyone always tells me, I call a spade a spade and I'm very real. What you see is typically what you get — transparency, for want of a better word.