How Does The ‘Happy Hormone’ Work To Keep Us Motivated?

Have you ever noticed how your mood instantly changes when you excel at a difficult task or how frustrated you are when you have to work extra hours? While we humans attribute it to stress, happiness, or a culmination of other emotions, but scientifically, it’s due to the regulation of dopamine, the happy hormone. According to nutritionist Rashi Chowdhary, “Dopamine is that little molecule in your brain that gives you the sense of motivation.” She said that this hormone is associated with everything from our mood right now to how we would feel an hour later.

Rashi explained that we all have come across people who don’t have a goal in life or have given up for whatever reason, and on the other hand, there are people who have this infectious energy to get things done and keep moving no matter what. The difference between these two behavioural traits is the level of dopamine. The expert said, “Your dopamine levels can rise and drop based on various actions, what you eat, how you move, even your thoughts on a day to day basis.”

A post shared by Rashi Chowdhary (@rashichowdhary)

She informed our baseline level, or the amount of dopamine that is constantly circulating in our body and is in charge of maintaining our general mood. There is a phasic release of dopamine, which you experience in peaks after specific occurrences. She added that our brain is responsible for the release of this happy hormone whenever we achieve a goal or a task we set for ourselves. We feel a certain level of satisfaction from it, and we know that it helps you stay highly motivated for our long-term objectives while keeping us extremely focused and productive.

Rashi Chowdhary lists six small and simple things that can actually raise our dopamine levels:

1. Ticking off the last thing on the to-do-list
2. Listening to your favourite song on loop
3. Wearing an outfit you have saved for a long time
4. Being able to ace your workout routine
5. When you start getting the morning sunlight
6. Talking openly with your therapist

The expert suggested that repeating these small actions will keep us in a good cycle that inspires us to strive more each time.