What are Natural Mood Enhancers?
There are many natural mood enhancers continually at your disposal, regardless of your budget, time constraints, or location. Mostly it’s about using your bodies natural mechanisms – like endorphins – and fine-tuning your remedy according to your individual needs. I am not a doctor, but as someone with health problems who avoids pharmaceutical options and endless doctor’s appointments, I’ve got quite a lot of experience with elevating my moods naturally. This extends well beyond herbal supplements and vitamins. Here are some options to get you started:
Herbal remedies – St. John’s Wart has been a fairly popular self-prescribed remedy for mood enhancement since 1996 when the results of a study came out in the British Medical Journal indicating that St. John’s Wart is an effective antidepressant for mild cases of depression. Dosage recommendations vary, obviously, but 900mg to 1,800mg appears common. Read and follow the bottle label carefully. This should not be taken if you are pregnant or taking MAOI antidepressants. St. John’s Wart is also shown to make skin more sensitive to ultraviolet light. Since the study of herbal remedies is limited yet continues to grow, I recommend making it a point to follow the informational development of herbal medicine.
Specific food choices – Polyunsaturated fatty acids of the Omega-3 category that come from fish, wild game, and leafy greens are believed to assist in elevated mood and energy because they lower the acute phase response in the cytokine system, which negatively effects serotonin levels. Chocolate and hot chili peppers are also well known for offering a boost of endorphins, which are neurotransmitters in the brain meant to reduce pain and stress.
Meditation – Meditation can apply to a lot of different things, it doesn’t have to be restricted to sitting cross-legged and controlling your breathing while attempting to clear your mind. If the traditional idea of mediation is not really working for you, try other meditative acts like Yoga, Tai Chi, and gardening. Your mind will feel focused, light, and clear of emotional baggage.
Relaxed stimulation – Lethargy is a common side effect of feeling “down” or “blue”, and one of the easiest things you can do to get yourself started in the direction of feeling better is to choose an activity that is relaxing yet stimulating. Reading for pleasure, drinking a hot cup of tea, writing a letter, sewing, or even baking if you feel up to it. It may be a small step, but it is a step in the right direction.
Exercise – It has been proven time and time again that getting active is one of the best things a person can do to improve his or her moods as well as his or her overall health. Physical activity gets your endorphins pumping, generating a feeling of euphoria. In the very least, it will distract you from your feelings and help your body stay healthy. Try bicycling, an exercise class, or running and exert yourself according to your level.
Get creative – Painting, creating collages, drawing, writing, and various other creative activities are known to have therapeutic qualities. There’s a whole field – art therapy – committed to the arts as a creative outlet. Don’t worry about how "good" your work is or if anyone will like it. Just do what feels right and enjoy the release of your tension and poor mood.
Masturbation or sex – This subject is pretty taboo for a lot of people, so the idea may make you uncomfortable, but there have been studies showing that masturbation and sex can enhance a person’s mood. It works similarly to exercise in that it releases endorphins. Makes sense, right?
Feeling blue? While antidepressants are a good solution for some people, others want to try and stabilise their moods naturally, without resorting to addictive or pharmaceutical solutions. Natural mood enhancers, or herbal remedies that can help boost serotonin and other “feel-good” chemicals in the brain, have been shown to be of tremendous help in alleviating stress and anxiety, and making people feel calmer and more relaxed. With complementary and alternative medicine becoming more and more popular, keeping stress at bay the natural way has become an option for many. That’s why nutritional supplements which can help stabilise moods and lift depression have fast become a logical choice for people with mild depression, or who need a little extra help in times of stress.
