Why You Should Pursue Pain Over Pleasure
Our brains are wired to repeat pleasurable activities. This suited us well when we, as a species, were hunter-gatherers. It was/is part of our fight or flight response. We don’t live in that world anymore, but are brains are wired for it. It’s a feedback loop. Our brains want to repeat the experiences that gave us pleasure. When we are mindful of what’s happening [in our brains] during these experiences, we can alter our actions to ensure healthy activation of our brain’s reward system.
There are four naturally occurring hormones that make us “happy;” dopamine, endorphins, serotonin, and oxytocin. Dopamine is our feel-good hormone, released when we sense pleasure…fast food, sugar, drugs, but also positive activities like exercise and sex. Endorphins are released when our body experiences stress or pain and it is a natural pain reliever, released to reduce the pain or stress on the body. Serotonin is known as the “happy” hormone. It is released during exercise and sunlight. It is believed to put you in a good mood and generally, make you feel happy. Lastly, oxytocin is the social hormone. Not only is it also released during exercise, but also when you interact with people you care about, whether hugs or intimacy. Our goal should be to manage healthy levels of each of these. In doing so, we reduce our stress and anxiety levels, we are happy and energized, and well postured to be resilient when difficult challenges arise.
In today’s world we are constantly tugged toward pleasure. And each time, even the anticipation of the pleasurable experience, we get inebriated by dopamine. Every time your phone dings, even just pulling your phone out of your pocket to see if you have notifications, the anticipation of them, dopamine. All the marketing ads you scroll past are even geared toward this anticipation. They target how their product would make you feel. And once you partake, you’re in…and you continue to complete the loop. Your brain learns to repeat those behaviors and that’s how addiction occurs. Your brain wants more and those high levels of dopamine are associated with increased anxiety, obesity and even insomnia.
Conversely, high levels of endorphins are associated with reduced stress and anxiety, better sleep and higher sense of self-worth. Every time you make the hard decision that causes emotional stress, every time you get in that workout or run, every time you take that ice bath, endorphins are released. And guess what, so is dopamine, at a healthy level. Even by consciously doing what you don’t want to do like go on that run at 4am. When you feel that sense of accomplishment, that’s a healthy dose of dopamine. I refuse to take a hot shower, only cold. It jump starts my day by releasing endorphins and a healthy level of dopamine because of the sense of accomplishment after doing something I didn’t want to do. The irony is not lost on me. The cold shower isn’t what my brain is craving, but the way it makes me feel when I’m done. So, literally, by pursuing the hard route, my brain is rewarding the behavior.
If you look at each of these feel-good hormones, they are all activated by physical activity. If you can establish a daily habit of physical activity, you will be on the road to balancing these hormones. If you constantly decide not to check your phone, constantly decide to fold the clothes or do the dishes when you don’t want to, repeatedly put the mundane and hard tasks you don’t want to do first at work, you will be on the road to a happier life. And the best part is, your brain starts wanting these experiences instead of the gratification experienced in the easier path. If you’re having difficulty taking the harder route, start meditating. In meditating, you practice non-reactivity, which helps in delaying gratification, thus helping you make the tougher decisions. Running is one of the best exercises you can do. Choose a race and get a training schedule. Never miss a day and watch the rest of your life fall into place. No one wants to run everyday so it’s perfect. You’re too busy? Great! That just means you have to be intentional with your time and your daily productivity will be better for it.
Resources
Harvard Health Publishing - https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/feel-good-hormones-how-they-affect-your-mind-mood-and-body
Hawai’i Medical Journal - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3104618/
Balkan Medical Journal - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6711252/#:~:text=Animal%20and%20human%20studies%20have,rats%20(4%2C5).
Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2077351/#:~:text=Several%20lines%20of%20research%20suggest,function%20in%20the%20human%20brain.
Brain Sciences - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8301978/
Samitivej Hospital - https://www.samitivejhospitals.com/article/detail/happiness-hormones
