These are just seven of the natural ways you can “hack” your happy hormones to set a more positive tone for your day
Preventing outcomes like burnout necessitates taking proactive steps to improve your mood. This is where the concept of hacking your happy hormones comes into play. You can also think of this practice as self-care, but with more intention behind it—that intention being to deliberately ignite the hormones that promote more positive feelings like happiness and pleasure. These happy hormones are dopamine, the pleasure hormone; oxytocin, the love hormone; serotonin, the mood-booster; and endorphins, the pain reliever.
There are many habits that trigger these four, such as shopping, substances, and social media, but it goes without saying that these can quickly turn into addictions. To help you stay healthy, we’ve listed down the seven practical ways you can naturally increase your levels of dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins.
Exercise
Besides the physical benefits, exercise is also proven to help boost your mood. The happy hormones at work as you exercise are endorphins, serotonin, and dopamine. Regular exercise can feel like a chore for some people, so we suggest going for those that you can enjoy, like gardening, playing sports with friends, and swimming. Just get your heart pumping and your body moving, and you’re set!
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Eating healthy
As hard as it is to accept, eating processed foods like ice cream or chocolate won’t help make you happy—at least not in the long term. Having a healthy, balanced diet directly corresponds with having a healthy gut, which is what provides approximately 95% of total body serotonin. Eating foods high in tyrosine, such as bananas and eggs, and tryptophan, such as chicken and soy, helps produce dopamine and serotonin as well.
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Spending time with loved ones
Laughter is indeed the best medicine for us as we are fundamentally social creatures. Research supports this as laughter therapy is seen as an effective strategy to stimulate dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins among people suffering from depression. Positive social bonding with people you love and trust can also produce oxytocin.
Meditation
Mindfulness-based interventions aren’t just good for reducing stress levels. According to research, meditation and other mindfulness practices like yoga can help increase dopamine and serotonin levels. Some simple meditation techniques you can try as a beginner include body scan meditations, sound baths, and walking meditations.
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Enjoying music
In the same way that sound baths as a meditative practice can boost your happy hormones, simply listening to or performing music you like can elevate your mood as well. The specific happy hormones associated with this activity are serotonin, endorphins, and dopamine.
Forest baths
Spending time outside amid sunshine and nature is another great way to hack your happy hormones. A specific method we recommend is forest bathing, which is a Japanese concept that says health and well-being can naturally be improved by basking in the air of wooded areas. Couple that with absorbing sun rays then you can increase your serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins levels naturally.
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Physical affection
Similar to how spending time with loved ones can increase your mood, showing affection physically can as well—and this isn’t limited to sexual intercourse. As research would suggest, hugging someone you love benefits your mood. According to a study, more frequent hugs between romantic partners can increase oxytocin levels. Meanwhile, there is also a documented increase in oxytocin levels after human-animal interactions, particularly among dog owners.
Featured Image: PIA JAUNCEY (via Instagram)
