Happiness and You (Dopamine)

Hi Reader! Hope you're doing good?

I was checking up on happiness and how it relates to the body and brain, chemically. I found some interesting stuffs that I'll love to share.

There are four chemical substances that are related to happiness in the body: Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin and Endorphins (DOSE). There could be more than four but these four are major.

My interest today is on Dopamine.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter which influences "reward-motivated behavior " in relation to happiness. By reward-motivated behavior, it is responsible for the excitement one feels when there's a task to be done with a reward attached. This reward can be a goal to be attained or landmark to be set. It's just like something good is coming out from carrying out a task or action, or something new and exciting will be learnt or gained after undergoing an experience or completing a task. You know how good, happy and excited you feel in a situation like this? The brain releases dopamine when you experience such feeling and not only does dopamine influences this type of feeling, it also pushes you to take actions that will accomplish the task.

Some symptoms of dopamine deficiency include: 

low motivation, procrastination, altered sleep patterns, poor memory and lack of concentration/inability to focus, addictive behaviours, mood swings, depression.

To boost your dopamine levels, here are some useful points:

1. Meditation helps boost dopamine levels;

2. Regular exercise;

3. Listening to music (even anticipation of music will do);

4. Get creative and discover new exciting things. Taking up something creative, especially something you love doing can boost dopamine levels. Setting short term and long term goals and gradually working to achieve your goals helps increase dopamine levels;

5. Celebrate your successes. By this, I mean you should take record of goals and targets you had set and accomplished, remember them and feel happy about them. Also let that feeling motivate you to set new targets and go about making them happen;

6. Eat foods that are rich in tyrosine. Tyrosine is the building block of dopamine. Tyrosine-rich foods include: Avocados, bananas, milk, green tea, beef, chicken, eggs, watermelon, yoghurt, etc.;

7. Get enough sleep;

8. Take LESS of fatty foods and sugar rich foods. Eat right and healthy foods;

9. Decrease stress, especially chronic stress which decreases dopamine levels;

10. Dopamine supplements helps too;

11. Avoid getting addicted to alcohol, drugs, sex, pornography, etc. They seem to give a good feeling due to dopamine production, but at the long run, have negative effects on dopamine levels. Other natural means, some of which are listed above is better.

Stay Happy!