ENDORPHINS—OUR NATURAL PAINKILLER
Last week I posted on Dopamine (Dopamine—The Pleasure Hormone), and two weeks ago on Serotonin (Serotonin—Our Natural Antidepressant). These are two of four feel-good hormones that affect our mind, mood and body. This week I’m featuring a third: endorphins, a hormone your body releases as our natural painkiller plus promotes happiness.
Dopamine is also a pleasure hormone, but endorphins function differently. Endorphins relieve pain naturally. When they attach to your brain’s reward center, dopamine is then released. Endorphins naturally sooth the runner’s aching muscles, then dopamine gets released to produce the well-known runner’s high. (You can also get this exercise “high” from swimming, hiking, powerwalking or dancing.)
I’m sharing excerpts from the 3rd of Stephanie Watson’s July 20, 2021 Harvard Medical School online articles on feel-good hormones, Endorphins: The brain’s natural pain reliever.
Endorphins can release stress and create a feeling of well-being.
Endorphins are the body’s natural painkillers. They are released by the hypothalamus and pituitary gland in response to pain or stress, this group of peptide hormones both relieves pain and creates a general feeling of well-being.
The name of these hormones comes from the term “endogenous morphine.” “Endogenous” because they’re produced in our bodies. Morphine refers to the opioid painkiller whose actions they mimic.
About 20 different types of endorphins exist. The best studied of these is beta-endorphin, which is the one associated with the runner’s high. We also release them when we laugh, fall in love, have sex, and even eat a delicious meal.
How to release endorphins
You can increase your body’s endorphin release by engaging in these activities:
- Exercise. A moderately intense pace, whether you’re walking fast or doing another form of aerobic activity, seems to be best for releasing endorphins.
- Acupuncture. An effective way to release endorphins is with pressure points. Placing fine needles into the skin at specific points around the body triggers the release of them.
- Meditation. Breathing deeply and focusing your brain calms your mind and eases pain.
- Sex. These hormones are the reason for that blissful feeling many of us get after having sex. Experts believe that endorphins promote the release of other hormones that are involved in feelings of love.
- Playing music. When you sing, dance, or bang on a drum, you do more than entertain others. You also release a rush of endorphins, which research suggests might increase tolerance to pain.
- A good belly laugh can do wonders for your state of mind. Along with releasing endorphins, laughter alters levels of serotonin and dopamine.
- Ultraviolet light. It’s no wonder that some people feel happy when they spend time outdoors in the sun. Ultraviolet light stimulates the release of beta-endorphins in the skin.