Increase Your Happy Hormones

Our bodies work in miraculous ways to keep our physical and mental states regulated. I have listed out some easy ways to aid your brain and nervous system into an overall state of wellbeing. Regulating all of these hormones could prevent serious disease and health problems. Here are some simple tasks you can do everyday to promote our so-called “happy hormone” activity.

Dopamine is made in our nervous system, sending messages from nerve to nerve. Dopamine is unique because it plays a large part in individuals’ critical thinking and how we feel pleasure. In other words, it plays a part in how we feel satisfaction and motivation. The best way to trigger dopamine is to accomplish something that has reinforcement or a reward. One simple activity is writing what you wish to get done or even a grocery store list and crossing each one off once accomplished. 

Serotonin is also a neurotransmitter. It is most common in the digestive system but is all throughout the blood and nervous system. This hormone can not cross over from blood to brain so our brains must make what it needs/uses. One suggestion I have found reappearing is to eat foods with the amino acid, tryptophan. Light therapy and sunlight are two big serotonin boosters. Serotonin is nicknamed the mood stabilizer for notoriously being linked to anxiety and insomnia. 

Oxytocin is another happy hormone produced in the brain and throughout our bloodstreams. It is nicknamed the love hormone. This is probably because one of its main actions is present in childbirth, lactation and sperm transport/production. Oxytocin is controlled by positive feedback. This can be present throughout our lives in trust and relationships. Levels of oxytocin can be boosted through giving or receiving a hug or compliment. 
Lastly, endorphins play a huge role in pain and stress levels. Harvard Health gives endorphins the nickname “the natural painkiller.” They are released in the brain and are peptide hormones. This type of hormone helps regulate physiological functions related to growth, appetite, and energy. Harvard Health suggests exercise, acupuncture, sex, and laughter. Laughter plays a large role in the levels of serotonin and dopamine as well.

Next time you wake up in a funk or just seem to lose your motivation throughout the day, write a list then cross it all off, eat a food rich in amino acids, give a hug, and laugh a little. Increasing your happy hormones can improve your state of mind and body along with even preventing longer term problems.