How to Release Endorphins

Endorphins are a group of peptide hormones that occur naturally in the brain that, when released, increase your body's threshold for pain and affect the way you feel emotionally. Endorphins are chemically very much like morphine. There are a few things you can do to possibly release endorphins and increase your mood.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Exercise
• Soothing music
• Spicy food
• Sunlight
• Healthy sex life
• Laughter
• Tears
• Sweets

1. Exercise hard. Most athletes will tell you of a "runner's high" that they sometimes feel when they push their bodies to the limit. Endorphins are released when you are involved in strenuous exercise that allows your body to go beyond physical pain and its limitations and it may leave you with a euphoric high.

2. Listen to soothing music such as classical and instrumental selections. It has been found that thirty minutes of listening to this kind of music has released endorphins that have an effect equal to that of the muscle relaxer pill known as Valium.

3. Eat some spicy food. Spicy food can trigger the brain to release endorphins because it thinks the mouth is on fire and needs chemical relief to the brain.

4. Spend some time in the sun. Overexposure to light can also cause a release of endorphins.

5. Have a healthy sex life. Intense pleasure causes the same effect as intense pain when it comes to endorphins.

6. Laugh and cry. Some people claim that laughing hard for ten minutes can give at least two hours of pain-free sleep to those affected by painful illnesses. Some researchers claim that the body releases endorphins to release pain while experiencing the emotion that causes tears.

7. Eat something sweet or have something chocolate. These items stimulate your brain's pleasure pathways and cause the release of endorphins. Unfortunately when the short-lived sugar rush is over, so is the effect of endorphins and you will be left feeling tired and worn out.

Tips & Warnings

• In addition to a change in mood, some scientists say that endorphins make our immune system stronger, lower blood pressure and could even slow down our body's aging process.
• Sometimes the release of endorphins can change your mood, but sometimes it has no affect at all.

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[seesayleki]

on 6/15/2009 DrTalk, there is truth in being scratched and feeling good. My dad/mom used to scratch my back or my head when I was being put to sleep, and it always made me very sleepy and relaxed and just plain happy.

I swim to make myself happy, as well as pray. Both put a focus on one thing, and help you concentrate on whats important or what helps.

I'd be very, VERY careful about the sweets and spicy thing, though. That's my current problem. Eating when your depressed can help every on and awhile, but it can be addicting and lead to weight problems. Try to balance the exercise rule with the eating ones.

[DrTalk]

on 5/19/2008 Oops...LOL. Let's try that again huh?

I think this may be of some relevance to the topic. I know of 3 points on my body that when stimulated by scratching produce an amazing effect of euphoria. One is a spot on my back almost directly in the center and no bigger than 1.5" in diameter. The other two are on my head. One spot on the crown, and one spot at the top of the forehead/slightly to the left.

Ever since childhood, I had always found it incredibly soothing to have my back scratched. If I was too hyper to sleep at bedtime, my Mom would scratch my back for about 15 minutes and *BOOM*... out like a light. This remains to this very day. The area of my upper forehead however seems to have an even more powerful effect. After only a few minutes of scratching, I experience a sensation of something washing over me. I can't quite describe the feeling, but it results in an eff

[DrTalk]

on 5/19/2008 I've