Chemistry That Is Controlling Your Behaviour & How To Fix It

11 Tháng 2, 2023 Vlady H

To comprehend the relationship between mood and brain, an understanding of how the brain functions is necessary. Neurotransmitters are responsible for communication between different parts of the brain, which in turn influence our mood, behaviour and emotions. Many external factors like relationships and climate can play a part in impacting our mood; while three chemicals such as serotonin, dopamine and adrenaline are also decisive.

You should also know that a chemical imbalance in your brain occurs when you produce too few or too much neurotransmitters. Left uncorrected, this can lead to mood disorders or mental health conditions. However, the reasons for mental health issues developing in some people versus not others go much deeper than brain chemicals.

Learn about three different types of neurotransmitters, and how to get more feel-good chemicals in your life, naturally.

Serotonin - the mood regulator

Serotonin plays an important role in regulating your mood.

What are the effects of serotonin on your mood?

Besides regulating your sleep cycle, serotonin also helps regulate your appetite and other processes in your body. It is responsible for your feelings of happiness and wellbeing. Dopamine, although more famous as the ‘happy hormone’, is also a ‘feel good’ chemical that your body needs.

In addition to feeling emotionally stable and calm, you will also have greater levels of energy and focus when you have adequate levels of serotonin.

Low serotonin levels can cause the following symptoms:

Sleeping problems
Having a bad feeling about yourself
Sexual desire decreases
Feeling low
Problems with memory
Food cravings for sweets

Researchers say that low levels of serotonin contribute to depression, as well as anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

How to boost your serotonin levels?!

You can boost your serotonin levels naturally by doing the following:

Exposure to sunlight
Exercising regularly
Meditation and counselling
Supplementing Lion’s Mane Mushroom Extract

Lion’s Mane Mushroom contains compounds called Hericenones and Erinacines, which has been shown to increase the production of nerve growth factor (NGF) in the brain. NGF is a protein that promotes the growth and survival of nerve cells, including those that produce serotonin.

One study, published in the Journal of Medicinal Food, found that participants who took a Lion’s Mane Mushroom supplement for four weeks had an increase in NGF levels and an improvement in mild cognitive impairment. Another study, published in the journal Phytotherapy Research, found that taking a Lion’s Mane Mushroom extract improved symptoms of anxiety and depression in people with major depressive disorder. [1], [2], [3]

The feel-good hormone, dopamine!

A neurotransmitter called dopamine acts like a reward in the brain when we do things we love, such as eating our favorite food. It is important for memory and motor skills.

The effects of dopamine include:

pleasure
motivation
satisfaction

Feel-good chemicals: how to boost them

You can boost your dopamine levels by eating foods high in L-Tyrosine (the protein needed to make dopamine) and exercisig daily, getting enough sleep, spending time doing things that make you feel good, such as practicing meditation or getting a massage..

Processed foods, foods high in fat, sugar, and caffeine should be avoided

Is it possible to get too much dopamine?

Having an imbalance of dopamine in the brain is a real possibility. Low amounts are connected to some mental health issues, and too much can result in unhealthy conduct like intense competitiveness, hostility or lacking the ability to resist temptation. People may become hooked on certain activities such as consumption, wagering, sex, alcohol consumption or drug use; and it is believed that the dopamine rush they experience when engaging in these activities has a hand in it.

Reishi Mushroom (a.k.a. Ganoderma Lucidum) may balance you dopamine level and even prevent Parkinson's disease (PD) [4]

Adrenaline

A fight or flight response is triggered by adrenaline, or epinephrine. During dangerous or stressful situations, it helps you respond quickly. When you sense excitement, danger, fear, or a potential threat, your brain releases adrenaline, which helps you react quickly. In a situation like skydiving, for example, when your body is likely to be 'full of adrenaline', you might experience a combination of all of those emotions.

When adrenaline gets released quickly, it’s known as an ‘adrenaline rush’. When this happens, you might notice the following symptoms:

sweating
rapid breathing
rapid heartbeat
feeling jittery or nervous
Strengthening and improving performance
Pain perception decreases.

Is it possible to get too much adrenaline?

In terms of self-limiting adrenaline production, the body does quite well. When the ‘threat’ or emotion passes, adrenaline production stops. The overproduction of adrenaline, however, can create chemical imbalances in some medical conditions, such as sleep apnea or adrenal tumours.

When you are stressed and worried, your body releases adrenaline when it does not need to. For instance, if you want to go to sleep at night but are stressed out about tomorrow. Stress is both irritating and uncomfortable, and it can adversely affect your health if it persists.

Activating your parasympathetic nervous system, also known as the 'rest-and-digest system', can help relieve these feelings by overriding your body's 'fight or flight' response during stressful times. Here are some ways to do it: