Matters of the Heart: Healing Your Relationship with Yourself and Those You Love

Thema Bryant, Ph.D.

Feb 2025 · Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Thema Bryant, Ph.D.

About this audiobook

A groundbreaking, heart-centered road map for everyone who seeks greater fulfillment in their relationships—with family, friends, romantic partners, and themselves

As a psychologist and minister with more than twenty years of experience, Dr. Thema understands how challenging it can be to create and cultivate healthy relationships—and how critical it is for our well-being. Matters of the Heart draws on the wisdom of science, sacredness, and lived experience to help readers tend to the garden of their hearts and build their best relational lives.
Love is not a level playing field, and improving your relationship with yourself, which includes healing trauma and setting boundaries, is often the first step toward leveling the field. Dr. Thema shares evidence-informed practices, traits, and skills that can enhance your relationships overall, as well as solutions to challenges within common relationship dynamics. With her wise and compassionate guidance, delve into:

• hot topics such as control issues, emotional unavailability, and releasing someone who doesn’t love you
• practical activation activities to apply what you learn from each chapter
• case studies that illuminate the process of healing and growing your heart
• how to shift your mindset and patterns around romance
• and so much more

One of the major predictors of wellness is the nature of our relationships. Our culture is in a mental health crisis, exacerbated by the loneliness of the digital age and realities of post-pandemic society. Whether you are trying to level up a happy relationship or rebuild trust after an unhappy one, Matters of the Heart will empower you to connect to yourself and to others, heal your heart, and thrive in all areas of your life.

About the author

Dr. Thema Bryant is a licensed psychologist, ordained minister, and professor of psychology at Pepperdine University. Dr. Thema was the 2023 president of the American Psychological Association and advocates for mental health and wellness locally, nationally, and globally. She is a past president of the Society for the Psychology of Women and a past American Psychological Association representative to the United Nations. She has appeared as a mental health expert on CNN, Headline News, CBS Mornings, NPR, VH1, OWN, and BET. Dr. Thema, who hosts The Homecoming Podcast, earned her doctorate from Duke University and completed her postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical Center.