Brain biohacking is the term used to describe a conscious influence on the improvement of brain function and physiological processes that occur in it. It can be an amazing boost for many of us wanting to better use the capabilities of our own brain. Knowledge in this area in recent years, regarding influencing areas such as motivation, happiness, pleasure, well-being, willingness to act or concentration is becoming more widely available and common. That’s why we would like for you to get along with this topic with us, to unlock your brain inner potential!
Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters are carriers that transport certain information from one place to another inside our nervous system. They are responsible, among others, for emotions, stress response, motor skills (i.e. movement), or needs that we have and feel. In the article, we present the four most important ones from the point of view of efficiency and professional issues.
Dopamine
The most important role of dopamine from the point of view of your efficiency is the fact that it is responsible for such issues as the level of energy you have, the well-being that currently accompanies you as well as issues of motivation to act and carry out the next steps as part of the day plan or ongoing projects.
How to identify its shortage?
If for some time you notice:
- Lack of willingness to act, let’s call it such helplessness and senselessness to do the things that you should do – so-called procrastination
- You feel fatigued, and you can’t focus your attention
- You are drawn to stimulants such as coffee, alcohol, drugs, cigarettes and energy drinks (you need to stimulate yourself)
- You can’t put an idea into action and start acting
- You notice a decrease in libido
- You lack any kind of satisfaction
Most likely, your body does not have enough dopamine. So how do you deal with it and support its natural production?
It is not a doubtful fact that you should first look for a solution in trying some physical activity. Everyone who has ever practiced any sport or trains regularly knows how great influence it carries in counteracting the above-mentioned problems.
The second important factor to look at is diet. The healthier the better, but let’s be realistic, it doesn’t always work out because of the children, job, responsibilities or personal projects. Good organization of your nutrition in this matter can do the trick and should be approached as a kind of project to be implemented.
Serotonin
It is mainly responsible for the feeling of happiness, satisfaction with love, serenity, pleasure in life, falling asleep and waking up at night, but also a decrease in satisfaction with favorite activities (if its level goes too low). How to identify its deficiency?
If for some time you have noticed that:
- You have more depressive thoughts
- It’s hard for you to fall asleep, you wake up several times at night
- You don’t feel satisfaction from life, your activities
- You do not feel happy and content
- You are drawn to sweets and processed foods such as chocolate and chips
GABA
Responsible for sedation, focusing attention on a given activity, and regulating falling asleep. It has soothing properties and allows you to freely gather your thoughts together.
We can identify its shortages in the case of e.g.
- Intrusive thoughts when trying to relax
- Inability to Focus properly
- An unreasonable feeling of being overwhelmed
- Falling asleep only when the TV is on
- Problems with falling asleep caused by dozens of thoughts popping up in your head
Acetylcholine
Responsible for short-term memory, concentration, the focus of attention e.g. during a conversation and overall perception
We can identify shortages in the case of e.g.
- Problems with short term concentration
- Low creativity
- Problem finding words for the context in conversation
- Holes in memory
- Reduced spatial orientation
- After reading the page in the book, you don’t remember what you have just read
Neurotransmitters balance
Well-being is directly related to the level of each of the neurotransmitters in our body. In the article, we have highlighted the 4 most important but it should be remembered that there are many more of those. It is worth remembering that dopamine, serotonin, and acetylcholine are stimulating in nature, i.e. they stimulate us to different behaviors, emotions, decisions, feelings, etc. GABA is a rather soothing type of neurotransmitter and it makes us calmer.
Just like a deficiency of serotonin will make us more bored, less satisfied, and even notorious negative thoughts will appear in our heads. For example, in the case of a large amount of dopamine, we will have a greater sense of agility in carrying out tasks, taking more risk than usual, or a greater willingness to act. Whereas GABA will support relaxation processes and facilitate falling asleep. If, then, you have noticed at least 2 aspects regarding given neurotransmitter deficiencies and this is a quite common feeling, most likely then during a given period you lack a sufficient amount of the neurotransmitter corresponding to these problems.
How to regulate and support the body
The most important regulator for the brain and its regeneration and regulation of the function of neurotransmitters should be a regular activity, a properly tailored nutrition style for the work you do, and your options to be as healthy as possible as far as possible. There are also additional methods of helping the body in the form of proper supplementation for brain support to regulate neurotransmitters levels together to improve the comfort of work, life, and functioning. However, it should be selected individually and for one needs and problems.
Example supplement created for improving neurotransmitters balance is Mastermind from Apollo Hegemony
We have known for a long time that the production of dopamine can be influenced by various factors such as drinking coffee or using other stimulants. Food will also be a very important factor! Chocolate, sweets, or your favourite food can quickly cause the secretion of dopamine. The key aspect is to maintain a given neurotransmitter at an appropriate level and in balance with other neurotransmitters. Similarly, when it comes to serotonin, eating chocolate can improve your mood for a while. It is important to try to strive for balance and avoid too much deviation from the norm, where, for example, we could have even depressive states.
