How to Increase Serotonin When Working From Home

Intro

We all crave balance in our lives especially when it comes to our mindset.

Until we achieve a happy mind, we are never at rest and will continue feeling the same till this is fixed.

The result of this is reduced productivity in any task that one might be up to.

If you might have felt a bit off and down while working at home, the answer can be found in your serotonin level.

With the need to improve your brain chemistry balance ever in need, human beings, therefore, need to increase and regulate their serotonin levels.

Here is all you might need to know about increasing and regulating your serotonin levels as one of the notable productivity hacks while working at home.

Serotonin 101

Before delving much into how we can increase and regulate our serotonin levels, there is a need to understand what serotonin is first.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter used by both the digestive system and the central nervous system. Notably, serotonin is one of the many regulatory hormones produced by the body with a myriad physical and mental functions.

Where It Comes From

Serotonin production happens throughout the day in your body.

As a naturally occurring hormone, serotonin is made from the protein tryptophan. This neurotransmitter is responsible for the transmission of signals around the body and brain.

The production site of serotonin determines where it is put in work.

For use in the brain, the body should produce enough serotonin in the brain. On the other hand, serotonin to be used outside the brain will be produced at the specific body part that requires it.

What It Does

There are myriad ways through which our bodies make use of the produced serotonin.

From sleep to mood, digestion, and blood clotting, all these activities require serotonin for optimal functionality.

There is a direct proportionality between serotonin levels and the moods people harbor within themselves. For many people, mood changes happen when people have lower serotonin levels.

According to scientists, people with adequate levels of serotonin will in most cases feel quite stable emotionally. Such people are more affiliated to better focus hence greater calmness and a happy mind.

While no study has proved a direct link between serotonin levels and depression, there remains quite a connection between the two. Notably, people with lower serotonin levels have been associated with depression hence validating the fact that serotonin is essential for our bodies.

Regulating Serotonin Levels

Both natural and medical treatment can be used in regulating serotonin levels in one’s body.

For people with extremely low serotonin levels, there is a need to consider increasing their serotonin levels. Before making any changes to your serotonin levels, there is a need to go for a checkup to ensure that it’s a safe option to consider.

After all, you wouldn’t wish to suffer from serotonin syndrome, the side effect of having too much serotonin in the body. the award winning life coaches from Make It Happen Coaching have stated that proper sleep will help with general life satisfaction.

Increasing Serotonin Naturally

There is a long catalog of ideas towards increasing serotonin levels when working at home. Notably, this includes some environmental and lifestyle changes to one’s home workspace. As a result, this impacts the production of serotonin in your body

Workspace Changes

To start with, the first step in increasing your serotonin levels is by making significant changes in your workplace. Also, it’s been proven to improve your mental health too. The following are some of the few things one can consider while making some workplace changes.

1. Exposure to natural light

There is an indirect proportionality between serotonin production and natural light. With exposure to bright natural light is disrupted, the production of hormones that positively impact one’s mood and wellbeing, such as serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine is hampered.

When one gets to work from home, there are zero to fewer chances of commuting. With a normal day job, one will step outside for at least a few minutes. Even if the interaction with the natural light is minimal, this takes one a long way towards observing a stable hormonal production.

While working at home, you might need to set yourself up to obtain much-needed exposure to natural light.

You might also need to consider having your workplace next to the window where you can access some natural lighting and fresh air for yourself.

More light on your window is among the productivity hacks that help keep your serotonin levels optimal, thanks to the recovery of the natural light exposure from a normal corporate office job.

If you cannot find space for your workspace at the window, you will need to take a few steps outdoors after a while. Through this, you will be chasing a similar effect hence improving your serotonin production. However, you might need to step out to the outdoors when the sun rays are not too strong.

2. Adjust your surroundings

Even when we recognize it not, human beings are wired to value beautiful space.

Paying attention to the feel of the room is therefore not negotiable when setting up a perfect workplace at home.

Choose a sturdy and comfortable set of ergonomics and furniture to get you through the day. Notably, discomfort from the furniture used will in most cases result in stress and fatigue.

The following are some of the characteristics of an ideal home workplace.

Distractions free
Adequate storage space for a clear workbench
Great set of pleasing furniture in a well-arranged house
Seclusion from noise
Use of calming and neutral colors for your workspace
Some beautiful artwork to help you feel relaxed

Invest time in getting to find out the optimal arrangement for your home workspace.

Here you can move the desk around to find where it fits best. You need not underestimate the importance of beauty and aesthetics.

Even though functionality remains the number one priority, the beauty and comfort of a workspace make it easy to work and achieve one’s work-related goals easily.

As per the research conducted, findings show that there is a relationship between chronic stress and serotonin production and intake.

A person suffering from chronic stress or anxiety will in most cases not absorb enough serotonin. This can be fixed when one concentrates on reducing the potential for stress in your home workspace by paying extra attention to the design and feel of the workspace.

Adjust your surroundings

3. Work outside the home

One of the productivity hacks towards regulating stress and avoiding isolation is socializing.

When one spends too much time isolated, their serotonin levels as well as other mental processes are affected negatively. Therefore, there is a need to prevent isolation by making a regular day for working away from your normal home office.

For people who feel isolated and lonely, you can consider working away from home about twice a week. This can be achieved by renting a temporary place at the co-working space, getting to a library, or even working at a less distraction prone café.

With this, it is easier to fight off the negative effects of lonely working times at your home workspace.

Another creative solution one could opt-in for is pairing with people with similar goals or people who also work from home to share workspaces. Here one can choose specific dates through which the joint tasking might be done.

This productivity hack will keep you in the bracket of socializing like any other human being without the need for a public workspace.

Work Habit Changes

Regulating and increasing serotonin levels in our bodies goes beyond the workplace to work habits we adopt. The following are some of the work habits that stand out:

1. Lowering stress

Not enough emphasis can be put on the fact that high stress wreaks havoc on your productivity as a result of hormonal and mental functioning imbalances.

The higher the stress levels, the higher the long-term effects on someone working from home. Therefore, there is a need to handle work-related stress which in most cases looks different depending on the exact work situation you are exposed to.

To achieve this, some might disconnect from the work for some while, take regular breaks, or even fire unreasonable clients. We all know about our stressors! Take a step towards actively reducing them for an improved workday. With reduced stress comes a normal serotonin level hence a better mental state.

2. Setting goals

There is great joy and fulfillment when we set and achieve our goals.

With unreasonable goals, one can hardly ever manage to attain them, hence missing out greatly on this mental boost. Our work goals are the guiding path towards our actions, both long and short term.

With the appropriate goals, it guarantees that one keeps themselves on track by actively defining their priorities.

Unrealistic goals do create a volatile situation that can easily explode, hence causing destruction of all that one has achieved. You need not achieve burnout frequently since it puts you in some tight and stressful situations.

Here, the point is to stay on track so that the goals you have set remain achievable and easily manageable. You need to break down large goals into smaller and reasonable work goals. Additionally, you need not forsake goals altogether. Set SMART goals for extra productivity, extra motivation, and a sense of accomplishment when you accomplish the goals.

Lifestyle Changes

Lifestyle changes that we adopt greatly determine the production of serotonin in our bodies. While there are a lot of claims about what’s functional and what’s not, the following lifestyle changes are a sure way to turn around your home working experience and boost your serotonin levels.

Lifestyle Changes

1. Daily exercises

One of the best ways to increase serotonin production is indulging in exercises. Myriad studies have shown that exercise improves one’s mood, helping one achieve the much needed emotional wellbeing.

The reason behind this is that exercises trigger the secretion of tryptophan which is transformed by the body to serotonin.

Aerobics has been the best exercise for the improved production of serotonin. Unlike other exercises such as weight lighting, aerobics have an increased heart rate that plays the greatest role in serotonin production.

While starting an exercise routine is intimidating, you need not do complicated workouts for great results. A ten minute cardio in the morning is a great way to turn a life around. A curated exercise plan might also help in the improvement of serotonin production.

2. Eating right

Yet another factor affecting serotonin production and absorption is our diet.

While there is no quick way to boost serotonin production through meals, evidence shows that consuming foods rich in tryptophan will help increase the production of serotonin. While carbs offer you the much-needed energy to propel you through work, taking some protein-rich foods will help boost serotonin production.

Consider making your breakfast contain lots of proteins. This means food such as beans, dairy, chicken, eggs, fish, and nuts to name a few should be in plenty in your breakfast meal.

3. Meditation

According to research conducted, serotonin levels will always spike high when the body has lower cortisol levels. Notably, cortisol is the stress hormone. Therefore, there is a need to practice meditation from time to time to help get rid of the high-stress levels. A ten to thirty minutes meditation session might turn around your serotonin production.

4. Massage

With similar benefits like that of meditation, massage can be used to increase one's production of serotonin in the body. Notably, massage increases not only serotonin levels in our bodies but also dopamine levels hence helping reduce stress and anxiety.

Increasing Serotonin Medically

There are myriad ways through which we can improve serotonin levels medically. However, you will need to visit the doctor before considering any. Some of them include;

SSRIs

This refers to a medication known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, which increases the serotonin levels in one’s body. Here, one receives a prescription after diagnosis by a doctor for the controlled medication.

Serotonin supplements

There exist myriad supplements out there that are associated with an increase in serotonin levels in our bodies. However, there is a need to obtain supplements that will increase the serotonin levels of the brain rather than that of the digestive system.

One of the best supplements to achieve this is pure tryptophan supplements St. John’s Wort and 5-HTP.

One might also check on probiotics as a viable option to increase the production of serotonin in the body.

Final Thought