They say that whoever does not learn from the mistakes of the past is condemned to repeat them. However, everything seems to indicate that some people find it easier to deal with their mistakes and others find it difficult.
If you get very stressed and can’t get out of that anxiety loop, it’s probably because you have maladaptive coping strategies, but also because your brain is not well equipped to deal with the tension that is often linked to failures.
Serotonin, the neurotransmitter that determines your reaction when things go wrong
Researchers at the University of Oxford recruited more than 50 people, half of whom were given a drug to increase their serotonin levels. Then, they asked them to perform a series of tasks to assess learning and ability to control behavior.
The results showed that people with high levels of that neurotransmitter had reduced sensitivity to external punitive outcomes (like losing in a game). That is, their mistakes and failures did not affect them much. Instead, they preserved sensitivity to rewards (such as winning at the game).
Likewise, high levels of serotonin benefit verbal memory and improve behavioral self-control, promoting a decrease in impulsivity and more cautious decision-making. All of this means that serotonin shapes our behavior, especially when we are in negative environments.
Therefore, lower levels of serotonin, such as those found in people with depression, would predispose us to focus excessively on negative aspects and become much more stressed when faced with errors, which would make it difficult to self-control to make adaptive decisions.
How to increase serotonin naturally?
Known as the “happiness hormone”, serotonin plays a relevant role in our mood. However, it not only influences whether we feel better or worse, it also intervenes in emotions such as fear and anger, as well as our response to stress, memory and addictions.
In practice, everything seems to indicate that serotonin:
- Attenuates our emotional response to stressful situations
- Prevents us from giving disproportionate importance to setbacks
- Reduces impulsiveness and the tendency to rush
- Encourages more reasoned decision making
- Facilitates self-control even in stressful circumstances
It should be clarified that, just as each behavior is regulated by multiple serotonin receptors, each serotonin receptor is also expressed in multiple regions of the brain, which is why it probably contributes to modulating multiple behavioral processes.
For example, it is known that anxiety is regulated mainly by the 5-HT 1A and 5-HT 2C receptors , among others, but the 5-HT 2C receptor not only regulates anxiety but also reward processing, locomotion, appetite and energy balance.
This means that a rather complex mechanism is actually hidden behind this neurotransmitter. However, there are different ways to naturally increase serotonin levels, as explained by Harvard University:
- Do exercise. When you ride a bike or lift weights, your body releases more tryptophan, the amino acid that the brain uses to produce serotonin. That’s one of the reasons why we feel that kind of emotional high after an intense workout.
- Sunbathe. Phototherapy is one of the main treatments for seasonal affective disorder, the winter blues that can be triggered by a drop in serotonin levels. Therefore, exposing yourself to the sun, always with caution and protecting your skin, is another way to increase serotonin.
- Choose foods rich in tryptophan. High-protein foods, like turkey, are high in tryptophan, but our bodies don’t convert it to serotonin very efficiently. And when you eat turkey along with other protein-rich foods, they are broken down into amino acids, which compete with tryptophan to cross the blood-brain barrier and reach the brain. As a result, less tryptophan enters. Therefore, the ideal is to obtain it from complex carbohydrates. Pumpkin, sesame and sunflower seeds are rich in tryptophan, as are lentils, chickpeas, beans, brown rice, oats, almonds, spinach and peanuts. When you eat those carbohydrates, your body produces insulin, which helps your muscles absorb more amino acids, giving tryptophan more opportunities to reach the brain and exert its modulating effect.
Of course, serotonin is not “magic.” Mastering stress coping strategies will help you better deal with situations that overwhelm you. But if your brain is already positively predisposed, everything will be easier: you will be able to process negative things better, instead of getting stuck in them.
References:
Colwell, M. J. et. Al. (2024) Direct serotonin release in humans shapes aversive learning and inhibition. Nature Communications; 15: 6617.
Berger, M. et. Al. (2009) The Expanded Biology of Serotonin. Annu Rev Med; 60: 355–366.
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