Have you ever struggled with impulsivity, addiction or lack of motivation? Most people are familiar with these struggles, and one of the causes is dopamine dysregulation. In this article, I’ll share an overview of how dopamine works, what happens when dopamine gets out of balance, and what a healthy dopamine system requires.
Why do so many people struggle with dopamine these days?
In a world where almost anything is available with a bit of money and access to the internet, it’s challenging to live with moderation. The issue with this is that our mind-body isn’t designed for excess. It’s not designed for limitless food, constant overstimulation, or artificial highs. Our dopamine systems are trying to keep up with the pace of today’s world, but this pace isn’t designed for health and wellbeing.
Another aspect to consider is neurodivergence, like ADHD, which can cause a person to be more susceptible to dopamine dysregulation.
Despite all of this, there are ways we can live in today’s world while taking care of our minds and bodies. Understanding how dopamine works is one step in that direction.
What is the purpose of dopamine?
Dopamine is a messenger chemical in the brain, and if we were to translate its chemical message into words, it would sound something like: “This will bring you pleasure, go after it.” For example, you see a chocolate bar as you’re standing in the grocery store lane, and you get this sudden thought: “That chocolate tastes so good. Go for it!” That is a burst of dopamine.
Dopamine levels rise when we experience something pleasurable or rewarding, and even when we crave, desire or anticipate something pleasurable. After every dopamine peak, there is a natural drop in dopamine levels. (The lows are necessary to motivate us to pursue the highs.) The more pleasurable something feels, the higher the dopamine peak. The higher the peak, the lower the low will be. Something that has an intense high, like cocaine, will have a correspondingly intense drop in dopamine afterwards.
Dopamine is drive. From an evolutionary perspective, the function of pleasure and craving is to motivate us to take action that supports survival and procreation. This is why money and sex cause some of the biggest dopamine peaks.
How does dopamine get dysregulated?
Dopamine off-kilter causes a lot of problems. When our dopamine baseline is too low, we lack motivation. Too much dopamine, on the other hand, leads to addiction and sometimes even to delusions and psychosis. I’d argue that most people are addicted to something; some of the most common addictions are nicotine, alcohol, social media, sugar, porn, gambling and video games.
But what causes dopamine to get out of balance? Dopamine peaks that are too high or too rapid are more likely to cause addiction. A rapid peak means there is less time between the craving and the desire being fulfilled. For example, getting an instant meal at a fast-food restaurant is more addictive than going to the grocery store to buy ingredients and then cooking for an hour before eating a meal. A meal with sugar will cause a bigger spike in dopamine than a meal without sugar, and therefore will be more addictive. Something that is pleasant and surprising is more addictive than something pleasant and expected (this might explain the fascination with rakes in the Bridgerton series, or why gambling is so addictive).
This doesn’t mean that there is anything unhealthy about ‘feeling good’ or enjoying the pleasures of life. There’s a saying that goes like this: “Addiction is a progressive narrowing of the things that bring you pleasure. Enlightenment is a progressive expansion of the things that bring you pleasure.”
Our dopamine system gets skewed when we seek the highs without being able to tolerate the lows or when we’re unable to tolerate the craving. Someone who is unable to tolerate difficult emotions, temporary physical stress (such as exercise), or boredom, is much more susceptible to addiction. Luckily, distress tolerance and self-discpline are skills that can be improved through practice and that protect us from dopamine dysregulation. For example, instead of relieving an urge immediately, let’s say the urge to scroll on social media, pause for a while and just allow the discomfort of not giving into the urge.
On the other hand, if our dopamine baseline is too low and we feel no motivation or passion for anything (as is frequently the case with people going through depression or burn-out), we need to find healthy ways of boosting our dopamine. Which brings us to the next question:
What does a healthy dopamine system require?
If we assume that there’s no physical condition, like Parkinson’s Disease that impacts our dopamine system significantly, then we can influence our dopamine system directly through lifestyle:
- One of the most effective ways to regulate dopamine levels is to improve our sleep. Sufficient sleep restores our baseline dopamine levels.
- Besides sleep, our dopamine system can also be regulated through non-sleep deep rest (aka yoga nidra): for example, lying on the sofa for 10-20 minutes deeply relaxing while staying awake.
- Healthy nutrition: Some foods are beneficial for our dopamine pathways, like eating plenty of protein, or more surprisingly, dark chocolate (with 70% cocoa). While other foods, such as sugar or excessive caffeine, tend to have dopamine dysregulating effects.
- 5-30 minutes of morning sunlight. Of course, in Finland, sunlight is not always available in the morning, but even staring at a cloudy sky after sunrise helps. Many people also notice benefits from using a bright light first thing in the morning, especially now as the days grow darker.
- Exercise: regular, frequent movement has a significant effect on our dopamine baseline, and is one of the easiest ways of increasing motivation throughout the day.
- Setting realistic goals and achieving them: For example, saying “tonight I will clean the kitchen” and completing the goal increases your baseline motivation more than planning to clean the entire house and not getting it done.
Besides leading a healthy lifestyle, you can also regulate your dopamine by seeking healthier, less addictive dopamine boosts. What are some things that bring you pleasure in a non-obsessive way? For example, decorating your home in a way that brings you pleasure, listening to music, having an interesting conversation, exploring a new place, or dancing are some ideas. Why not create your own personalized dopamine menu, with a selection of guilt-free activities that spark your motivation, lift your mood, and help you get activated?