If we “trick” our bodies into steering the hormone production in the way we wish, we can gain a great control over our bodies and moods.
We can attain these tricks in a number of ways :
Force yourself into a relaxed and focused mode: for example by sitting or being calm. This limits the release of cortisol and adrenaline, and makes us more self-conscious. As a side benefit of box-breathing, you will lower your blood pressure and heart rate, which in turn translates into a sensation of calmness and wellbeing.
Yoga sessions and meditation help against depression, releasing serotonin and lowering levels of monoamine oxidase.
Sex and physical activity. Are you excited to read this?
There is a host of hormones you can control by exercising and even more while having sex. Insulin, cortisol and adrenaline, serotonin, HGH (the Human Growth Hormone), vasopressin and way too many to be listed here without becoming unbearably boring (I can’t read this aloud, can you?).
Take-away snippet: physical activity is good, sex even more.
Write this down somewhere!
Proper diet is a paramount for so many-a-reason, but since we are talking about it, um, yes: diet is also massively involved into hormonal balance.
Scream for 10 seconds to get an immediate burst of adrenaline. Clenching your fists -or actually any other muscles- will make this practice even more effective.
Evening routine: expose yourself to warm light, instead of the blueish light of LCDs, smart-phones, etc. It will favor the release of melatonin, a sleep-regulating hormone. This is because blue-light-sensitive photo-receptors on the eye’s retina transmit impulse to the hypothalamus, which in turn holds back the release of melatonin and a number of other hormones, many of which affect our circadian rhythm.
Morning routine: expose yourself for 30 seconds to the brightest light you can get hold of . Same as above, but in this case we want to signal our body (yeah, you guessed it, through hormones) that day has come, and it needs to wake up. The smell of freshly brewed coffee is also rumored to help the process.
Smile forcefully (yes, with your full face! Go on!) for 30 seconds straight. No need to watch yourself in a mirror, we already know you will look silly. But if you are in an urgent need of serotonin, your smile is your ace in the sleeve.
Note how all these conscious actions command our body to generate mood changes, which we could not hope to elicit directly.