Better Psychology Management for Dummies around four natural happiness chemicals!

 

Image courtesy:

https://www.parkinsonsnsw.org.au/four-happy-hormones/

Better Psychology Management for Dummies around four natural happiness chemicals!

 

(First Draft - The blog will be edited as more clarity emerges!)

 

Objective: This is an attempt to increase the role of symbiosis between the life style and the key  psychological chemicals.  Research in this area is still on. But,let us attempt to benefit from low hanging fruits right away. I am no expert, this is the quick research summary from the Internet University.

Hope, this reading will trigger something positive for the reader!

 

Desired benefits of this report:

 

1. Seek better understanding of self and others on their behavior plus and minus, improvement needs and potential help they can seek and you can give.

2.  Better self management: Understand, bring reform in life style, seek correction and balancing, optimize opportunities for well being

3. Key activities planning for optimization and balancing.

4. Seek professional help on key priorities as needed.

 

 

Bottom line: (This was my motivation to write this blog)

1. Watch your diet, balance your diet. Watch your water intake.

2. Exposure to sun, nature, good light, air.

3. Regular exercise, yoga

4. Regular Meditation. Reflect on the day, at the beginning and at the end. Reflect on life at intervals. Keep diary to enhance reflection.

5. Breathe! Pranayama!

6. Music, Dance

7. Socialization, relations, fellowship.

8. Balance rest and sleep with activities

9. Have fun, as much you work! Celebrate life in general

10. Seek touch, intimacy. If can’t have sex, substitute with massage, hugging, intimacy with pets, strangers, etc. etc.

11. Become real! Understand your illusions, fantasies and day dreams as a trigger to become further real. Let go off fear, guilt, lack of self esteem, greed etc.

12. Cultivate kindness, benevolence, love. Keep in touch with less privileged and help genuinely.

13. Watch and manage your cravings and  addictions, mood swings, impulses.

14. Watch and manage your stress. Approach life as a game of games, focus is to play, play well, play your best, leave the rest.

15. Seek to understand your Chakras and balance as needed.  This leads to best balance between body, mind, heart and spirit.

16. Have a sense of purpose, both short term and long term.

17. Be useful to self and the rest. Seek a sense of accomplishment for self.

18. Cultivate hobbies you like, master one or some.

19. Balance the opposites in all aspects, eg. Aim improvements, but surrender to imperfection.  Cultivate a sense of humor. Balance aggression and humility.

20. Seek professional help (clinical, psychological, mentoring, training) than struggling to cope up with your issues. Have faith and seek better life you deserve.

The four happiness chemicals:

1. Dopamine:

Key Property: Pathway to pleasure, feeling good,  (Slow release when compared to Endorphin)

Benefit: Provides intense feeling of reward. Allows to feel pleasure, satisfaction and motivation. Memory, Learning & attention, mood, sleep,  movement, heart rate, kidney function, blood vessel function, sleep, pain processing, lactation

Typical Triggers: Sex, shopping, fresh smells; Achieving something; Problem solving: Eureka! Alcohol and other drugs stimulate dopamine, hence addiction

Downside of Imbalance: Too much: Craving, Addiction, Aggression, Impulsiveness Too less: Stiffness, Parkinson disease, down mood, No motivation

Imbalance: Depression, Schezophrenia, ADHD, movement issues, digestion issue like constipation and reflux, addiction, pneumonia, trouble sleeping, slow movement, slow speech, feeling tired, unmotivated, low libido, hallucinations

Natural Management:

Eat healthy diet.

Food: Avacado, Banana, Pumpkin, Sesame seeds, Soy, Dairy food, poultry,

Meditation

Do something enjoyable, and feel good. It can be positive loop, even addictive

Achieve something

Do something fun: Eat nice food, have sex, win a game, earn money (stock market!),

Dopamine detox to manage addiction: avoid pleasure triggers like junk food, social media, Enjoy healthy pleasures only. 

2. Endorphin:

Key Property: Stress release and a sense of well being (Fast release, when compared to Dopamine)

Benefit: 

Natural pain killers

Reduce pain and discomfort

Increase pleasure

Reduce stress, depression, anxiety

Attenuate inflammation

Improve mood

Boost self Esteem

Healthy immune system

Memory & Cognitive function

Typical Triggers:

Naturally produced during pleasurable activities: exercise, sex, laughing. Also produced in some painful activities like twisting ankle

Downside of Imbalance:

Shortage: Pain, aches. Increased risk of anxiety and depression, moodiness, addiction, trouble sleeping. People with migrane can have low endorphin

Endorphin rush addiction on some activities: Example withdrawl syndrome of mountain climbers

 People self harming for the rush of endorphins

Natural Management:

Food: Chocolate

Exercise, aerobics, Runner’s high

Acupuncture

Meditation

Playing music. Listening to music

Dance

Interaction with friends

Watching favorite TV shows, Comedy Shows

Ultravoilet light

Laugh

Fall in love

Delicious meal

Sex

3. Oxytocin:

Key Property: Bond with loved ones (love drug), Feeling safe with others, trusting

Benefit:

Facilitate child birth, lactation

Decrease stress and anxiety

Positive impact on social behavior: Relaxation, trust, psychological stability

Typical Triggers:

Motherhood

Has a positive feedback loop to produce more.

Social isolation is a concern.

Downside of Imbalance:

Low: Depression, post partum depression

Too much oxytocin: benign prostatic hyerlasia for men, leading to difficulty in passing urine

Low oxytocin: autism, autistic spectrum disorders, poor social functions, depressive symptoms

Natural Management:

Fall in love (motherly or otherwise)

Cuddling, sex, act of touch like hugging, massage

Exercise

Martial arts

Music, singing in a group adding element of bonding

Give someone a compliment

Communicating with others, even strangers

Be kind

4. Serotonin:

Key Property: Natural mood booster and stabilizer

Benefit:

Feeling of euphoria, stave off depression

Feeling respected by others

Pride, one up feeling leads to serotonin

Serotonin regulates sleep and wake

Helps thinking, maintaining mood

Controls sexual desire

Can control OCD, panic disorder, PTSD

Typical Triggers:

Sunlight

Exercise

Tryptophan rich food

Downside of Imbalance:

Too less: Anxiety and Depression, lack of cooperation and altruism, sleep disorder, digestive problems, phobias, suicidal thoughts & behaviors

Too much: Serotonin syndrome which can be life threatening: Twitching muscles, shivering, restlessness, agitation, fast heartbeat, temperature, headache, confusion, dilated pupils, goose bumps,

Reduced sex drive if too much serotonin

Natural Management:

Food: Complex carbohydrates like veggies, fruits, legumes, whole grains.

Nuts, eggs, cheese, red meat, turkey, salmon, tofu, pineapple

Work out, Bright light, sun exposure,

 (Further work on this pending)