Chelsea Matisz, PhD, MSc

Scientist | Writer | Speaker

Biography

I study and communicate ideas that are at the intersection of human health, behaviour, neuroscience, and the gut-brain connection.

My background spans evolutionary biology, immunology, parasitology, gastrointestinal science, psychedelics & cannabinoids, neuroscience & behavioural neuroscience, and health research.

I’m equally interested in how many of these facets of research can be applied to better understand how we make decisions, form beliefs, navigate uncertainty, create connections, and build meaningful lives.

Over the years I’ve contributed to research, public conversations, media discussions, and talks exploring topics like neurodiversity, motivation, health, communication, and evidence-informed decision making.

This website is a home for my work, writing, media appearances, and ongoing projects.

CURRENT INTERESTS

About this talk

Modern life is full of convenience, connection, and the promise of more time. So why do so many of us feel depleted?

This talk is where that examination begins.

Drawing on evolutionary biology, gastrointestinal physiology, and the neuroscience of the gut-brain axis, The Ancestral Paradox traces how modern life; its stressors, its foods, and its pace collides with ancient systems that were never designed to absorb it. Exhaustion, disconnection, and cognitive fog are not personal failures. They are signals. And they lead, with surprising consistency, back to the gut.

The ideas in this video are one piece of a much larger investigation: into how our biology shapes not just our bodies, but our behaviour, our cognition, our relationships — and ultimately, the texture of the modern experience itself.