"There's a lot of research showing that laughter has an impact on illness. It releases endorphins and relieves pain." ~Janice Hein
"As to you, your scent – it's like a drug to me. You're like my own personal brand of heroin." ~Edward Cullen, Twilight"Romantic love is an addiction," said Helen Fisher, a biological anthropologist. "My guess is that our modern addictions -- nicotine, drugs, sex, gambling -- are simply hijacking this ancient brain pathway that evolved millions of years ago, that evolved for romantic love. ... The brain system evolved to focus your energy on an individual and start the mating process."
What are endorphins and what do they do?
They
chemicals that are released in your brain under certain conditions.
Endorphins are an opiate, and effect your brain in the same way that
morphine
does. It is the chemical
responsible for "natural high".
More
commonly it is known as the ''feel-good'' chemical, the reason we feel
happy. But there are many different ways of influencing the level of
endorphins in our bodies, some healthy, and some not so much. You might
be surprised...
Healthy ones: Exercise, sex, playing with pets, favorite colors, activities, sunlight, spending time with friends and family, repetitive motions
(such as knitting or sewing), singing, dancing, bath, eating spicy food, nature, laughing, crying, tickling, vibrations.
Unhealthy: Arguing, reliving
confrontations over and
over in your head, picking at hangnails,
pimples, scabs, excessive exercise, repetitive obsessive
compulsive behavior, sugar,
caffeine,
alcohol, causing yourself
physical pain, being late, rushing to meet a deadline.
Sound
familiar? If you are engaging in any of these, it is
because the endorphin chemicals in your brain are low,
and
you are subconsciously trying to increase it. Our bodies
know what they need, but they do not always know the right way to get
it.
The term endorphin rush
has been adopted in popular speech to refer to feelings of exhilaration
brought on by pain, danger, or stress. Immediately after injury,
endorphins allow animals to feel a sense of power and control over
themselves that allows them to persist with activity for an extended
time.
Now that we got that part out of the way, let's think.
If
endorphins are a natural drug in our bodies, why is the fact that we
can get addicted to it so surprising? Almost any of the activities I
mentioned above is open to addiction. Anything overdone, even the most
healthiest thing ever, can become harmful. Love, sex, exercise, coffee
to name a few obvious ones.
As for exercise, intense workouts cause an increase in endorphin levels. Our bodies make endorphins whenever we exert ourselves, and the higher levels probably help us better tolerate physical pain and discomfort, perhaps they help with emotional pain, too?
What about love addictions?
From looking at the brain scans of the broken-hearted, researchers found
that recovering from a break-up is like a kicking an addiction to a
drug.
"Nobody gets out of love alive," Fisher said. "You turn into a menace or
a pest when you've been rejected. That's when people stalk or commit
suicide. ... There's a very powerful brain system that has a dramatic
effect on your entire life."
It
seems quite interesting that such opposite emotions such as love and
anger, generate the same chemical response in our body? Curious.
So
which emotion do we seek? Love is complicated. It carries
responsibilities, fears, expectations. But its opposite? Fast, easy. And
has the same effect. Curious. It is always easier to go for the lower
emotion. Always easier to kneel down than to reach up.
Let's
not confuse between what is right and what is easy. Let's not be lazy
and always reach for the top. And learn how to find happiness in its
most natural and pure ways.
http://www.recoverfromdepression.com/endorphins.htm
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/addicted-love-brain/story?id=11110866&page=2
http://www.sexual-addiction.net/what_is_sexual_addiction.php
http://www.womenfitness.net/exercise_addiction.htm
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/addicted-love-brain/story?id=11110866
Posts
October 20, 2010 at 6:02 AM
so if its like a drug, is love bad then and should be illigal..? :)
November 4, 2010 at 12:34 PM
I like this endorphins...and without love, you can take more endorphines doing sport :P
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