So many of us say that we are looking for happiness. Our founding fathers put the pursuit of it in the Declaration of Independence along with ‘inalienable rights’ of life and liberty! But what does it really mean? Maybe in looking at how our brains experience positive feelings we can find a way to meaningful and lasting happiness—or at least some contentment.
Some think of the joy brought by fast cars, a great meal, or a swinging party as happiness. Others might give the simple contentment of a quiet morning, or quality time spent with loved ones as examples. Are they the same? Although their systems are interrelated, our brains treat them very differently.
Science has identified myriad brain chemicals relating to clinical depression, or a chronic lack of happiness. Two of the primary ones are dopamine and serotonin. These chemicals basically divide the ‘happiness’ we feel into the categories above—fleeting joy and longer-lasting contentment.
Dopamine is involved in those temporary pleasures mentioned above—all joyful or pleasurable experiences, from sex to eating an ice cream cone, release dopamine. Although it’s necessary for motivation, it’s also instrumental in harmful addictions. In fact, some scientists gauge the addictive qualities of a substance or action based on how much dopamine is released and how fast. That flood of dopamine has severe effects on one’s ability to feel other kinds of joy or pleasure – the brain adjusts to the overload by setting the baseline for pleasure well beyond most activities’ ability to deliver. That’s why recovering addicts have such a hard time finding pleasure naturally.
The end result is that you can, indeed, have too much of a good thing. It is impossible to feel that heightened level of joy and pleasure all the time. The pursuit of this kind of happiness can have a disastrous conclusion.
Though also linked to depression—or at least its treatment—the happiness derived from serotonin is very different from the fleeting joy of dopamine. In general, elevated serotonin levels correlate with longer-term emotional stability, contentment, and equilibrium. Low levels of serotonin or transmission issues are correlated to a bevvy of psychological disorders like OCD, myriad anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and others, in addition to depression. Most importantly, activities that increase serotonin naturally do not have the addiction and overload pitfalls of dopamine.
There are many ways to naturally increase your serotonin levels. Here at Lupine Solutions, we believe the first step is to look after your pillars of health: (1) sleep; (2) nutrition; (3) exercise; and (4) medication / disease treatment. Without that foundation, other efforts are often fruitless. Second, get any mental health treatment you could use. PTSD has documented effects on serotonin system. We are not mental health professionals…but can help you find a good one (Contact Us).
Once you have that taken care of, here are some tips to maximize the production of serotonin—which largely happens in your gut, believe it or not:
- Socialize – the release of oxytocin in intimate social situations can impact your serotonin function. Humans are social creatures; we need it.
- Get some sun – sunlight and similar light sources have an impact on serotonin production.
- Work out – working out stimulates the production of serotonin along with endorphins. Beware of overwork, though—working out also produces dopamine.
- Meditate – regular meditation practitioners have higher serotonin levels overall, and this difference is most pronounced after a meditation session.
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