The fifth pillar of health is Emotional & Spiritual Health. The pursuit of happiness is a fundamental drive shared by all living organisms, from single cells to the largest blue whales. For over a century, it was believed that happiness was experienced primarily at the brain level, leading to the development of psychology as a field to understand mental malfunctions. However, recent research has shown that this is not entirely true; every cell in the human body seeks happiness and compensates under conditions of adversity.
5.1 Emotional Health
We’ve all heard stories about positive thinking and mind over matter. Every cell in our body is a living organism that behaves as if it has a mind of its own. The 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology was awarded to J.C. Hall, M. Rosbash, and M.W. Young for their research on how our circadian clock functions at the cellular level. The 2019 Nobel Prize was given to W.G. Kaelin, G.L. Semenza, and P.J. Ratcliffe for their work demonstrating how cells respond to the level of oxygen in our blood.
Hormones play a crucial role in determining our emotional health, while emotions influence the functioning of our endocrine glands, which release hormones. This interdependence significantly impacts our health, and science has only just begun to scratch the surface of understanding it. There is still much more to learn.
Placebo and Nocebo Effects
The placebo effect has been known for over a century, and the entire field of homeopathy relies on it. “Placebo” in Latin means “I shall be acceptable or pleasing.” When we take a pill believing it to be medicine, we can experience healing, even if the pill is just sugar. Clearly, it is not the sugar that cures the illness but the conscious belief that healing will occur. The reverse of this is known as the nocebo effect, which has only recently garnered significant attention from researchers. “Nocebo” in Latin means “I shall cause harm.” Negative thoughts can be as powerful as positive ones in affecting our bodies, but in the opposite direction. If you believe something bad will happen, it’s quite likely that it will. The concept of a curse, or “shrap” in Hindu mythology, operates on this principle. Happy people tend to have happy thoughts, which lead to healthy bodies, while sorrow and self-pity often result in poor health.
Concept of Rasas
In our younger days, we learned about the concept of various rasas (moods) in Hindi literature:
- Shanti: Peace
- Bhakti: Devotion
- Karuna: Pathos
- Hasya: Laughter
- Sringaar: Love, Romance, Beauty
- Veer: Courage and Bravery
- Adbhut: Wonderment
- Raudra: Anger
- Bhayanak: Fear
- Vibhatsya: Hatred
We now understand that these emotions impact the functioning of our hormonal glands, which release different hormones into the bloodstream, affecting our physical health. This is essentially what is meant by the power of positive and negative thinking.
Research Findings
It is widely accepted now that laughter is the best medicine. We’ve heard this time and again, but what we may not realize is that every single emotion has an impact on our body—every feeling has physical consequences. Here are some examples, all proven by various studies:
- – When we are in love, even water tastes sweet. Love is also a potent painkiller and can improve memory.
- – Anger leads to insomnia by increasing blood circulation to the lymph nodes and heart, which prevents sleep. It also results in high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and a weakened immune system.
- – Powerlessness makes everything feel heavy.
- – Loneliness and sadness can make people feel cold, increase appetite, and lead to weight gain.
- – Feeling offended can cause acne.
- – Disgust can upset the stomach.
- – A fit of giggles can reduce stress hormone levels.
- – Laughter reduces the risk of heart attacks by lowering stress hormones.
- – Jealousy, a mix of anger, stress, and fear, increases adrenaline levels increasing heart rate, and blood pressure while weakening the immune system.
- – Crying expels stress chemicals (except those triggered by cutting onions). Suppressing tears can ruin digestion and weaken the immune system.
- – Fear makes us pale by redirecting blood to the muscles for a fight-or-flight response.
- – Praising your partner can lower cholesterol levels.
- – Shame increases the stress hormone cortisol, which can constrict arteries and raise heart rate.
- – Arguing produces more cytokines, which can slow down the healing process. High levels of cytokines can lead to cancer, heart disease, and arthritis.
- – Short-term stress can strengthen the immune system and help fight cancer, but chronic stress can impair memory and lead to diabetes and heart disease.
Happiness Chemicals
There are four primary chemicals in our body that affect happiness: dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins.
Dopamine
This is the “feel-good” hormone, released when we eat desired food or engage in sex. However, it’s more accurate to say that dopamine is involved with anticipation rather than the actual feeling of happiness. It boosts mood, motivation, and attention and helps regulate emotional responses. It is often described as a striving emotion.
Oxytocin
This is the neurochemical that enables us to be social creatures. It fosters empathy, helping us feel close and bonded to others when released. Oxytocin is produced in the hypothalamus and stored in the pituitary gland.
Serotonin
This is the hormone that helps regulate mood and social behavior, appetite and digestion, sleep, memory and sexual desire and function. A link is also suspected between serotonin and depression. Eighty percent of serotonin exists in the gut, and is governed by one’s state of hunger (yes, this is why you’re hungry).
Endorphins
These act as analgesics, reducing the perception of pain or discomfort. This explains their association with the “fight or flight” response. When pursuing happiness, endorphins help you “power through.” For example, they enable runners to push further and harder towards their goals.
Some of the natural ways to boost Happiness hormones are:
Listening to Music
- Eating Carbs
- Spending Time with loved ones
- Physical Exercise and Yoga
- Pranayama
- Meditation
- Prayers
- Helping others through social work
(I’ve let the secret out—now you know why I run these health blogs.)
Geeta’s Teachings
The entire discussion in the Geeta about the three types of personalities (gunas)—Satwic (purity), Rajsic (passion), and Tamsic (inertia)—makes sense. Chapter 14 of the Bhagavad Geeta is devoted to this subject. Similarly, in Ayurveda, people are classified into three main types: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Western medicine now recognizes that people can be divided into three types based on their gut microbiome. While these classifications are not identical, they illustrate that the differentiation among types of people is gaining acceptance. Our gut-brain connection is now well recognized, with the gut even being called the second brain.
Our diet and lifestyle affect the hormonal balance in our body, which in turn influences our psyche and actions. This concept is covered to some extent in all religious scriptures. I quote here verse 5 from Chapter 14 of the Geeta:
“Sattva (purity), Rajas (passion) and Tamas (inertia) – these gunas (qualities), O Arjun, are born of Prakrti (nature) and they bind the indestructible soul (consciousness within us) to the body”.
This is my favorite subject, and as you can see, I am passionate about it, having spent 14 years under the tutelage of Swami Chinmayananda.
Share and get 15% off!
Simply share this product on one of the following social networks and you will unlock 15% off!