Happy Chemicals
This week, I was gathering some self-care ideas to enter December with that have helped me personally in the past. All of them do as advertised: reduce stress, boost our mood and morale, and increase our overall energy and happiness levels. As I was curating my list, the psychology student in me started pondering a new spin on these self-care techniques. While self-care has a positive effect on our bodies and our headspace, it also is really important in releasing chemicals and hormones in our brain that contribute to our positive headspace. While I won’t get too technical, self-care can help us release natural “happy chemicals” in our body, benefitting our brain and neural networks as well. Our bodies have a plethora of natural happy hormones and chemicals that make us feel good in our daily lives. Self-care embodies a large umbrella, so there are many ways to trigger the release of these hormones and feel our best! Some of the most common “happy chemicals” are listed below, as well as a couple ideas as to how to release the effects of these hormones.
Serotonin
Serotonin plays a big role in regulating our mood, as well as our sleep, digestion, memory, learning abilities, and appetite.
Ways to release:
Eat a fulfilling and healthy meal
Move your body
Soak in enough daylight
Meditate
Oxytocin
Oxytocin is crucial in building trust, practicing empathy, and fostering strong bonds in relationships. This is sometimes referred to as the “love hormone” or “love chemical”.
Ways to release:
Do something nice for a loved one or a stranger
Hug a loved one
Spend quality time with the people you love and care about
Endorphins
Endorphins are really important because they are our bodies natural pain relievers. Our bodies naturally produce these hormones when we feel stress or discomfort.
Ways to release:
Watch or read a feel-good story or comedy
Try a massage, or relaxing yoga class
Take a hot bath
Try acupuncture, if it works for you
Dopamine
Dopamine is really important from a neuroscience perspective, as it is crucial in our brain’s reward system. This is sometimes referred to as the “feel-good hormone” or “feel-good chemical”.
Ways to release:
Seek out and try new experiences
Embrace your creativity and participate in a creative activity
Listen to your favorite music
Accomplish something important to you, no matter how big or small the task
