Post : Let’s be happy today πŸ˜ƒ! 4 ways to elevate your happy hormones.

Hello everyone ! Happy weekend πŸ˜ƒπŸ€—

I think God has given us the most efficient machine, our body, within which lies the solutions of every stress and issues. so, it is entirely up to us whether we run this machine efficiently and enjoy its benefits or be gloomy under stress and end up in a diseased state.

The happy hormones include Dopamine, Seratonin, Endorphins and Oxytocin run within the bloodstreams produced from various glands, acting as pleasure and happiness messengers which lifts our mood. They are neurotransmitters produced by the central nervous system which regulates our mood, sleep, memory, motor movements, digestion, appetite and learning ability.

Each of them have its own relevance within our body’s mechanism.

Dopamine or reward hormone: It is linked to the brain’s reward system. Whenever we complete a task or a goal, we feel accomplished, rewarded, pleasure, all because of this hormone. This hormone mainly releases during mind activity like meditation, playing an instrument, performing a task, exercise or doing something creative.

Serotonin: This hormone is derived from amino acid tryptophan which regulates the mood and emotions. Whenever we help others or share with others, we get a feeling of contentment and pleasure, it is due to this hormone.

Endorphins or Natural painkiller: It is produced in response to pain or discomfort/ stress to ease the situation. It is produced after heavy workouts, eating spicy food, having sex or laughing.

Oxytocin or love hormone: It produces the calming effect and is released during social bonding. It is linked to reproduction. Hugging, cuddling, kissing between parents and newborn, partner, family members, friends,pets are all due to this hormone.

4 simple ways to elevate your happy hormones every day:

1.Plan the day: Always get up from the bed with a sense of gratitude and a positive note for being around with your loved ones. Plan your day with short term practical goals and task to proceed through the day. So, that when you complete each of the tasks, you pat yourself, feel rewarded and contented. Do take out time to laugh out with your partner or a friend.

2.Mind activity: Certain activities stimulate the mind like meditating, listening to the music of your choice, cooking a meal, playing an instrument, exercising, going for outdoor activities and being creative with a hobby. So, never forget to devote some time to yourself in spite of the daily grind to get your daily dose of happy hormones release.

3.Eating: Certain food directly stimulates the release of dopamine and serotonin. Like dopamine is made from tyrosine which is present in bananas, avocados, apples, oats, beans and leafy vegetables. Similarly, serotonin is released while eating bananas, walnuts, dairy products and also carbohydrate. Exposure to sunlight also helps in releasing serotonin.

4.Social Bonding: Bondings with loved ones, spending time with friends, relatives also releases these hormones. Helping and sharing with others gives the much-needed boost to happy hormones. Do enjoy hugging your partner, loved ones, friends, cuddling a child.
In the case of children too, as parents, always let them share and help their siblings, friends very often, Make them play with their friends outside so that they get to learn social bonding.

All these small steps during the day and every day would ensure the release of the steady flow of happy hormones in the body. So, whether there are stress, problems or trouble in our daily life, we can overcome them with ease.

Thanks for reading.

Much love to all πŸ’

Post : Meditation minimizes Inflammation πŸ™Œ

Hello everyone ! Hope everybody is doing great πŸ™πŸ»

We know by now that chronic inflammation is the commonest cause of various disease state in the body. Inflammation is a natural attempt of our body ‘s immune system to fight against a certain state like infections, injury or toxins which can harm the body. It is a defence system.

When cell damages, your body releases chemicals in the form of antibodies and protein to combat the threat and increases the blood supply to the damaged area to fasten the healing. This usually lasts for a few days and is called acute inflammation. But when the response lingers for a long time can be harmful to the body. In the chronic inflammatory state, the body goes into a constant state of threat. This is the state responsible for many diseases ranging from cancers, asthma, heart diseases, stroke, diabetes and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Chronic inflammation is influenced mainly by chronic stress, anxiety, prolonged infection, injury, autoimmune diseases (like type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, Psoriasis and many more), long exposure to toxins and lifestyle factors like smoking, obesity, alcoholism.

Physically, maintaining the health of the body by eating an anti-inflammatory healthy diet (antioxidant-rich ), exercise, Yoga, sleep helps the body greatly to prevent and defend from the inflammatory state.
But then, this is not enough, our environment, our thoughts, feelings, emotions are equally important for healthy mental health, responsible to prevent and defend the body from the inflammatory state. So, how do we maintain a sound, calm mind in spite of all the day to day triggers of stress from our daily grind?

Several types of research have found that meditation-like mindful practises does reduce inflammation by impacting in the brain ‘s functional connectivity. Stress reduction mindfulness practices have shown a marked reduction in inflammatory biomarkers like C reactive proteins.

Learning and practising meditation isn’t rocket science. We don’t need a special session under an expert or Guru to learn to meditate. It is simply a state with the least distraction and freeing the mind from the clutter of thoughts. It is making an effort to put our mind in a relaxed, calm and β€œnothing” state. There are loads of books, reading materials and videos on Youtube and other channels of guiding and teaching you to meditate. But for me, self learning and adopting my method to relax my mind and meditate , works better. Just devote some time for yourself everyday, away from all distractions.

Mindfulness too greatly helps the mind to free from the thoughts clutter. Like meditation, you don’t need to go to a “no thought” state. Instead, you remain fully aware of your surrounding, yet not being reactive to it. It is a basic human ability to be fully present at the moment. Like being simply aware of your breaths, or simply focussing on whatever task you are performing at the moment.

To conclude, whether you may meditate or learn to practise mindfulness, the main purpose is to clear your mind from unnecessary thoughts clutter. This helps your mind greatly from going into chronic stress and overthinking. Maintaining a calm and relaxed mind not only prevent unnecessary inflammation but nurture the physical body and is also self healing.

Thanks for reading.

Blessings and much love to all πŸ’