You know about Vitamin A, Vitamin B,Vitamin C, and Vitamin D. I’m sure you do your best to eat a balanced diet ofall nutrients. But have you taken your daily dose of Vitamin J and Vitamin P?
“What?” youmay say. “Vitamin J and Vitamin P aren’t in my multivitamin, and my doctornever told me about them!”
The reason that you haven’t heard ofthem is because I made them up. Vitamin J stands for Joy, and Vitamin P standsfor Peace.
In my work with older adults, I’venoticed that these two key “vitamins” tip the balance for wellness in mind andbody. Here’s what you need to know, and how to get your daily dose.
I first learned about “The Daily DOSE” from Chris and Dudley Tower of Dynamic Living Institute. They taught me that to age well we must continually replenish our supply of four key hormones and neurotransmitters.
These are:
D = Dopamine
O = Oxytocin
S = Serotonin
E = Endorphins
Dopamine and serotonin naturallydecline with age. First, we’ll go over what these brain chemicals and hormonesdo for you, and how we can boost our production. Then I’ll show you how to makeit really simple to get Vitamin J and Vitamin P every day.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that istriggered by pleasure and reward. When our dopamine levels are optimal, we feelmentally alert and motivated.
Positive ways to release dopamineinclude setting and achieving goals, exercise, choosing a balanced diet, andmeditation. We release dopamine when we check off a task on our to-do list.Negative ways to release dopamine include excessive eating, drinking, shopping,and gambling.
The best way to produce and releasedopamine is to create a sense of meaningful purpose. At earlier stages of life,our daily activities provided plenty of opportunities to set and achieve goals –at work, raising a family, and making a home.
Our goals and purpose were oftenexternal. They were handed to us by the need to make a living and do what wasnecessary.
In later stages of life, we mustidentify our inner purpose. For many of us, it’s the first time we’ve had thefreedom to do so, and it can feel overwhelming.
It can be challenging to feelmotivated if we don’t need to work anymore and aren’t connected to volunteeringor family activities where we feel needed. Dopamine is what gets us out of bedand into the world each day.
To develop your sense of purpose,build on success. Find what you’re good at and do more of it! If you know thatyou’re good with kids, arrange your schedule to spend time helping them. If youknow you’re great at taking care of animals, volunteer with a shelter or serveas a foster home.
Celebrate what you do well. Celebrateyour small wins. Set a small goal that you know you can achieve and do it. Thenset a slightly bigger one – and do that.
Here’s a list of 10 morenatural ways to increase dopamine.
Oxytocin is sometimes called the “lovedrug” or “love hormone.” And yes, it is released through touch. We makeoxytocin when we snuggle with a human or animal, or even when we touchourselves.
It doesn’t need to be sexual orsensual touch. You can take a little extra time putting lotion on your body ormassage your own feet!
As you age, you may notice feweropportunities for touch. You may live alone or far away from family. The goodnews is that oxytocin is also released when we look into someone’s eyes, andwhen we feel compassion and empathy for others. We can feel compassion anytime,even in our minds, by simply thinking of loved ones.
To increase your daily dose ofoxytocin, give more hugs to others, yourself, and animals. Love and nurtureyour body. Even if you are not a “touchy” person, take a few extra seconds tomake eye contact and smile at others.
Serotonin is powerful and complex. Itregulates mood, appetite, metabolism, and bone formation. If you have gonethrough a crisis or depression, you may have been prescribed a medicine toregulate how your body uses serotonin.
One of the best ways to help your bodyregulate serotonin is to “go with your gut.” I mean this literally andfiguratively.
90% of the body’s serotonin is produced in your intestines. Ensuring that you have healthy digestion involves choosing whole foods, consuming probiotics, and reducing stress. Check out this video about serotonin, probiotics, and gut health.
Endorphins are released when weexercise or feel physically invigorated. The phrase “runner’s high” refers tothe feel-good sensations of endorphins. They provide natural pain relief.
I have a colleague who went through anexcruciating injury that still causes him a lot of pain. His daily exerciseallows him to manage the pain without drugs.
Aging does have its share of aches andpains. It may be harder to get the same intense exercise of the past, as wemust exercise around injuries or arthritis. As Margaret always encourages on Sixty and Me, find what you CAN do, suchas yoga or water aerobics, to get those endorphins.
Now that you know the basics of DOSE,let’s make it really simple.
First, good food, sleep, and exercisego a long way to healthy balances of these neurotransmitters and hormones. Ifyou like choosing whole foods and healthy lifestyle habits, it makes it easierto get your DOSE and age well.
Second, there are some things that areproven to help you balance your daily DOSE. These are:
- Meditation
- Music
- Laughter
- Snuggling
- Givingto others through service, gifts, or time
- Feelinglove and empathy
- Celebratingsmall wins
- Aromatherapy(or just enjoying good smells!)
- Flowers
- Beingin nature
Here are 10 More Ways to BoostGood Feelingsfrom Psychology Today.
Finally, and most importantly, do what brings you joy and peace! It doesn’t matter what other people do. I love to hike in the woods, but not everyone loves being in the woods with bugs and dirt.
I don’t like gardening, but otherpeople love it. I feel peaceful being by myself at home for long stretches oftime, but I have friends that need to socialize often to feel good.
You getyour daily DOSE of Vitamin J and Vitamin P when you do what makes you feeljoyful and peaceful.
It’s important to cultivate activitiesthat are physical and non-physical. I love walking outside. It gives me joy.Recently I had a foot injury, and on some days I could not walk at all. Imissed it, and I missed my dose of Vitamin J.
Even if we do everything possible tostay physically healthy as we age, we will have some inevitable obstacles tophysical activity. So, cultivate non-physical activities as well, such asreading, movies, meditation, singing, or listening to music.
- Make a list of 10 things that bring youjoy and peace. Include both physical and non-physical activities.
- Post the list somewhere visible.
- Do 1 thing every day!
What brings you joy and peace? How do you get your daily DOSE of Vitamin J and Vitamin P? What favorite activities could you do more of? Please share in the comments below.
