In this article, we will see how the happy hormones dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin, differ from each other and how to boost them to increase the ‘feel-good’ factor in our life.
“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.”- Dalai Lama.
“Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.”- Abraham Lincoln.
“The most important thing is to enjoy your life – to be happy – it’s all that matters.”- Audrey Hepburn.
I am sure we all have heard of these quotes at some point in our lives and thought of being happy from the moment. But is it that simple to be happy? Every soul deserves all the happiness in the world, and we all pursue happiness in one way or another. However, for many people, joy remains a great mystery. Especially when life knocks you down without reason, life can be painful and challenging when you cannot see positive things around. You feel despondent. At this stage, you search for things or moments that can make you feel content.
The Happy Hormones
The human body is made up of various chemicals and hormones, and it should not surprise you that our happiness and sadness depend upon our active hormones at a specific time. Yes, you can feel happy when your brain releases certain hormones.
Three main hormones or chemicals in your brain are responsible for the feeling of happiness. These hormones can be called “the happy hormones,” and they are dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin. You can naturally boost your level of happy hormones by eating healthy, exercising regularly, taking time for your hobbies, and doing things that make you happy.
These chemicals are evolved to do a job and cannot flow all the time for no reason. They reward you for your behavior or action on your life incidents and how to react to them. Their purpose is to keep you alive by simply directing you away from pain and towards pleasure.
In other words, happy hormones mean a happy you!!!! When you find an effective way to stimulate them, you keep repeating it and make it a ‘happy hormones habit’ for a happy and positive mood.
Here is what you need to know about dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin and how to boost them to lead a happier and more fulfilling life.
Dopamine
Dopamine induces pleasure and motivation and helps you feel alive and alert. It is a neurotransmitter that helps the brain send messages through the nervous system to different parts of your body and helps them communicate with each other.
Dopamine is a great feeling that you get when you succeed in meeting your needs. For example, when you eat your favorite food, listen to music, or dance, you feel pleasure and happiness around you. Before a happy event occurs, dopamine is also active; as a result, it functions with your brain to make you feel motivated and enthusiastic.
Serotonin
Serotonin, just like dopamine, is also a neurotransmitter. These happy hormones are mainly produced by our stomach or belly, i.e., gut. Serotonin is essential for sleep, brain function, mood, circadian rhythms, and digestion. It also helps to inhibit pain and fight depression and anxiety.
Serotonins evolve when you feel important. You cannot control the world or the importance it gives to you. But you can train your brain to feel content and important regardless of what others do. For example, people do respect you behind your back; imagine that instead of imagining the worst.
Your survival should not depend on getting attention or importance from others; you must create a habit of feeling important and boost your serotonin hormones.
Oxytocin
Oxytocin is the happy hormone that helps in building a feeling of trust. It gives you a good feeling when you are with someone you trust. Solid trust and bonds take time to build; thus, misplacing that trust does not promote the survival of oxytocin hormones.
Being social animals, we rely on social trust because social alliance promotes survival. You can build trust with others by making small steps over time. Negotiate expectations that both parties can meet and repeat again and again.
Hence trust builds stronger each time as the expectations are met. You can boost your oxytocin by enjoying the trust you have instead of concentrating on the trust you do not have.
How to boost your happy hormones
Although there are many ways to stimulate and boost your happy hormones, below are some naturally proven methods to do the same:
Eat healthy and right:
Having a well-balanced diet is good for overall well-being; start taking carbohydrates, proteins, and tryptophan-rich food. You can include foods with high tryptophan; an amino acid converted to serotonin in the body. It is mainly found in high-protein food like meat, fish, and poultry. Eat fresh vegetables and fruits regularly to promote happy hormones in your body.
Do some exercise:
One should exercise daily to increase your body’s dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin levels. Exercise, running, and brisk walking are some natural ways to boost happy hormones. Martial arts is also one of the boosters of oxytocin levels. Other exercises, such as yoga and weight training, have also been found to help with mood and brain health.
Natural therapy:
Walking in the morning and getting sunshine can also increase happiness, primarily attributed to the increase in serotonin. It is proven that bright light can be effective in helping to cheer up the mood.
Make time for your hobbies:
Healthy foods, exercises, and sunshine are not the only mood boosters. Music, dance, painting, writing, whatever you love to do can stimulate your happy hormones, and you will be in a much better place and mood.
The happy hormones, dopamine, serotonin, endorphins, and oxytocin all play a crucial role in your ability to feel good and lead a happy, fulfilling life. Many activities can boost your brain’s happiness; create your own list of activities and build happy hormones habits to find and enjoy the pleasure and satisfaction in your life.
Alright, I hope you enjoyed reading about the happy hormones – dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin. Now you also know how to use this information to boost the ‘feel-good’ factor in your life. I hope you will soon have a great happy hormone routine.
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Author Profile
- Sofia Ali is an analyst by profession who has a love for creativity and enjoys writing on different topics such as engineering, science, history, self-help, healthcare, and much more. Believes strongly in the law of attraction and wants to create a difference in this world with her thoughts.
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