I am filling up my serotonin tank again here in south of Italy after 4 months in London. "Serotonin, which is the molecule of will power, of delaying gratification. Decreased serotonin activity can lead to an inability to create and act on well-formed plans." - Alex Korb Ph.D.

With adequate serotonin levels in the brain and its proper functioning, you will be positive, happy, confident, flexible, and easy-going. If you’re feeling pessimistic, sad, distrustful, unconfident, or ready to have a panic attack, then you may need to fill up your serotonin tank consciously.

Prolonged physical or emotional stress produce adrenaline and cortisol, which interfere with serotonin. While anti-depressants are often the medical mainstream’s choice for increasing serotonin, they often have undesirable side effects like low libido and low energy.

So I've done some research, and here is how to increase Serotonin - The happy hormone / Molecule of will power naturally.

1. Sunlight

Early morning sunlight is more intense and this can boost your body’s production of melatonin in the evening. Serotonin converts to melatonin for a great night’s sleep. Getting outside for a 20-minute walk in the early morning sunlight can boost your mood and improve your sleep!

2. Massage

Get massages and other forms of body work – We’ve heard about the healing power of touch, but now research backs it up! A study conducted by the Touch Research Institutes at the University of Miami School of Medicine shows that massage increases serotonin by 28% and decreases cortisol (the stress hormone) by 31%.

Depressed mothers is particularly concerning, because their depression can affect the baby's activity of various neurotransmitters, including serotonin. The women received massages twice a week from their partners for four months, and their serotonin levels increased by 30%.

Another study looked at massage on babies of depressed mothers. They massaged 1-3 month old infants twice a week for 15 minutes for 6 weeks. The infants' serotonin jumped 34%. Other studies have shown that massage helps migraine sufferers to boost their serotonin and reduce their headaches. In addition, women suffering from breast cancer also saw large serotonin increases from massage.

3. Exercise

Researchers have found that exercise boosts serotonin. Even gentle exercise like walking can boost your immunity and mood.

4. Diet

Get enough vitamin B6 – since you must acquire this very important vitamin from your foods (or supplements), here are some vitamin B6-rich options: spinach, turnip greens, garlic, cauliflower, mustard greens, celery, fish (especially tuna, halibut, salmon, cod and snapper), poultry (chicken and turkey) and lean beef tenderloin.

B vitamins play a critical role in brain health and in the manufacture of all your neurotransmitters including serotonin. Vitamins B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin) and B6 (pyridoxine) as well as vitamin D, folic acid and selenium plus calcium, and magnesium are needed to make serotonin.

Eat high-protein carbohydrates like Amaranth, buckwheat, millet and quinoa and seeds with grain-like taste and properties. Small amounts of the right carbohydrates are critical to boosting serotonin.

For protein meals: focus on digestion and food combining – Eating foods that are high in protein – and specifically have a higher percentage of tryptophan (like turkey, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds), will provide much needed tryptophan, the precursor to serotonin.

But beware: because research shows that eating protein with carbohydrates actually works against your ability to make serotonin.

Eating a high animal protein diet does not help create more serotonin. In fact, it can actually make things worse. This is because tryptophan completes with other amino acids to reach your brain. Unfortunately tryptophan looses in this contest.

You’ll find that eating seeds is a better solution to increase serotonin. Quinoa, for example, is an excellent plant source of protein that also has those important B Vitamins. Unlike animal protein it is also an alkaline-forming food.

Include fermented foods and drinks in your diet – Fermented foods and drinks greatly assist in digestion and assimilation of all the important nutrients you need for serotonin.

Eliminate sugar or at least drastically reduce sugar from your diet. If you have low serotonin, you may have intense cravings for sugar. This is your body’s way of trying to increase serotonin because eating sugar produces insulin, which helps tryptophan go into your brain. However, too much sugar can eventually cause addiction to sugar, insulin resistance, hypoglycemia and type 2 diabetes.

5. Remembering happy events or imagining happy events

Write down what you feel grateful about yourself and your life every day. Your mind might distract you from this activity, but just put your mind to it until you really feel it, and see what happens next.

6. Emotional healing

Emotional stress is actually a big one. Meditation is not the cure for emotional healing, but it helps you to connect with your higher self rather than reacting from your ego's pain body of inner child and becoming ego's thoughts or the feelings.

Thoughts and feelings are there for reasons and wanting to express until they have been heard, seen, felt, accepted and loved by yourself. I've been through a lot of philosophical perspective and spiritual practices, and my current mentor is Jamie Catto. I recommend him to anybody who wants to have deeper understanding of yourself and take your life into light!

7. Radical unconditional love

Last but not least! I was surprised at how much difference it made when I learned to love myself for hating myself. Rather than trying to love myself all the time, I simply loved however I felt, even if it was not positive. Soon it became more easy to love myself unconditionally.

Accepting what is, even if it's not pleasant, is an essential first step to changing it. Loving what is speeds up the process of change even more. This activity is often difficult for people. I recommend practicing it until you have a fluid ease with loving hate.

Blessings!

xoxo

Serotonin - The happy hormone / Molecule of will power

Saori Ito

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