Happy Hormones
published: August 31st, 2008
Happy Hormones
image: yoshiko 314
Like most things, there are two states of happiness. Those that are circumstantial and those that are induced. Circumstantial can be seen as fortuitous and not really the result of any conscious process on the part of the individual. Induced is where the individual has actually taken the time and made the effort to engineer the state at a conscious level.
Serendipity may well characterise the journey that leads to the first state. It is a state of happy chance and good fortune on the part of the individual and is, I suspect, given the nature of our contemporary world, an increasingly rare phenomenon.
Take the simplest route to induced happiness, exercise regularly and as vigorously as you can. Why? Because your body secretes endorphins which are known euphemistically as ‘happy hormones’ and raise your sense of well-being. It is a quick fix and places you in the driving seat. Try to avoid making major decisions without doing some form of exercise beforehand, whether it be a brisk walk or a full on aerobic workout at the gym.
The release of endorphins into your bloodstream will colour your critical faculties and enhance your mood generally and is far more likely to result in your decisions or meditations being positive.
Some people love the esoteric, so here’s something for you to try for size.
Two agents, serotonin and melatonin influence us in subtle yet powerful ways. They can be seen as precursors to various states ranging from tiredness to euphoria. Psychedelic drugs, the things that hippies championed and claimed lead to altered states of perception, have been found to trigger serotonin release. Serotonin is also known as a happy hormone and is cited as a cure, among other things, for depression.
Drugs such as the psychedelics are referred to as the lazy man’s way to enlightenment. And this is true, enhanced perceptions, awareness, understandings and ‘heightened consciousness’ are accessible through the effects of the drugs. The thing is that the perceptions are soon forgotten because they are artificially triggered altered states and for most people are a meaningless splash in a pool of well-being.
In esoteric lore the pineal gland is often ascribed as the seat of the third eye, a name to describe enlightened perception. The pineal gland, a small organ at the centre of the brain, releases melatonin which also regulates serotonin secretions, this in response to varying intensities of light. Dimming light leads to sleep, brightening light leads to awakening and so on.
The antecedent to these chemical releases is the mediator tryptophan which is a naturally occurring amino acid that has to be sourced externally, the body doesn’t produce it. Various foods are rich in tryptophan, certain fruits are good sources.
Here’s where it gets really interesting. Siddhartha Gautama was meditating in his usual spot beneath a bo tree, a fig, when he received enlightenment or was awakened (became Buddha). The fig is a rich source of tryptophan and being within the emanation of the bo tree would more than likely have enhanced the process of an individual upon a conscious development journey.
When exposed to bright light, melatonin levels decrease which causes an increase in serotonin secretions. Illumination or enlightenment is the way in which an elevated level of consciousness is described, with the caveat that such a state is transcendental to language and can only be suggested or hinted at.
Curiously the cartoon character Popeye is also, knowingly or unknowingly, a reference to the pineal gland or third eye becoming active. Popeye’s method was to transfer himself from mediocrity to superhuman by eating spinach - another of the superfoods - which triggered a sequence of extraordinary transformations that made him temporarily invincible, capable, strong and so on.
The art for the personal developer is to be able to access these different states in a conscious and self electing way rather than to be subject to the whims and vagaries of a world beyond your control.
The study of these bits of esoterica is extremely rewarding and opens up a huge territory here for those of you who are looking for clues.