Health - Phasic and Tonic dopamine drives

[ValiantSalvatore]

I found a more natural solution to clearing symptoms of depression like exercises and eating whole-grained foods and taking care of my dopamine levels, although some of my lectures currently are so hard, I am drinking loads of coffee. As I still have some issues with suicidal feelings and I noticed that healthy eating (although can be fking expensive), is one key aspect to staying mentally healthy. 

How can I naturally create a more phasic dopamine drive? Is coffee that bad when it keeps me of suicidal feelings, as this is neccessary otherwise so much trauma is coming up I sometimes can't focus and the tonic dopamine drives.  I sometimes crave sugar and heavy dopamine giving substances like coffee and marijuhana although I cold turkey quitted marijuhana, I can use music as a dopamine drive and I usually dance a bit in my room, although it feels embarrassing as I often have a camera on and I never danced in my room to my music. To create some phasic dopamine drive, just beign "hardcore" and doing push-ups etc. can be boring. 

Any idea on what foods I can use in my diet? I have a larger cooking arsenal now and some ideas around health any input is appreciated! I never thought dopamine would play such a huge role.

TLDR; Questions: I believe I have a low base dopamine drive (I crave it a lot)

How can I appreciate my tonic dopamine drives more?
How can I naturally create a more phasic dopamine drive?
How can I prevent dopamine craves, as I often crave huge surges of dopamine and then crash, what can I do including ideas for exercise? 
Any ideas for studying? I am using a 7 blend mushroom coffee for some BDNF and NGF factors, I am not an expert yet at biology, I appreciate any health tip as well as technical advice! 

What I eat mostly organic brands:

Whole-grained everything!
Cream-cheese
Salmon
Chicken of any sorts(higher quality)
Apples
Bio-Yoghurt
Nuts: Cashew mostly
Spinnach (from freezer)
Legmues/Vegetables: also from freezer (high quality etc.)
Chicken
Blueberries
Strawberries

I have the issue of beign injured and boredom. Can food counter-act boredom lol, I really do not like eating. Any mindset tips that helped you to appreciate food more and you stayed with your health goals etc?

Mineralwater seems to help me a lot sometimes, any tips with drinks besides drinking water?

Edited November 3, 2022 by ValiantSalvatore

[Michael569]

On 03/11/2022 at 2:06 PM, ValiantSalvatore said:

I have the issue of beign injured and boredom

There we go, this is your main problem Addition to not being bored. If you can fix this and be ok with doing boring activities and getting "high" on boring things like reading academic textbooks or walking in the forest, you will get your dopamine back. 

A good way I found to practice this is to go to gym without headphones, without caffeine, preworkouts, creatine or any stimulation. Just go and exercise and embrace the lack of stimulation. You can retrain your mind to enjoy it. 

Another way is to force yourself to read more especially something that would be in a category "Important but Boring" 

Forget about exogenous substances, herbs and mushrooms. This is a mindset problem, not a biochemistry problem. BDNF and NGF agonists (mushrooms are neither btw) aren't going to cut that unless you suffer deficiency which would be even hard to test for and statistically very unlikely for a young guy unless you suffer chronic depression or dementia. 

 Reflect on what it is that you are trying to achieve with the stimulation. Shortcuts? Avoidance of negative feelings? Avoidance of hard work? 

Finally, is it possible that your life could be missing a deeper spark? A purpose? Something you are going for, that drives you and pulls you out of the bed in the morning? 

Good luck. Enjoy being bored to death  

P.S. your diet seems fine. I wouldn't say this is a diet related issue although I'd need more information about portion sizes and meal prep to be able to tell for sure. Lack of protein and carbohydrate in general can reduce motivation in people as well as caloric deficient diets. 

Edited November 4, 2022 by Michael569

[ValiantSalvatore]

@Michael569 Yeah, I can eat a lot and usually I exercise and I would approx eat 4-5 meals a day (3 "big meals" ideally), which can be bothersome to others, as I seem like a glutton although my body.(more vatta-dosha-dosha-vatta in case these papers interest you fire/wind mesmomorphic for a bit of armchair philosohpy with science I bet)

I dunno I have issues with my sex drive as when I exercise everything is healthy as I naturally crave sex a lot and I sort of feel it's energy mostly in a meditative way as long as it does not bother others to much, yet I cancled my gym membership and foused on buying utensiles for studying, so I have to wait. As I am changing gyms. I never thought I have to go through such hell and I am still stuck, needing to operate my knee. So my goal was to focus on eating joint friendly food. Yes, I avoid negative feelings partially with coffee as my bodies ANS is triggered heavily because of my scar basically at every in and out breath. For example during a panic attack I cried for my mother and remembered stuff, where I was in the hospital as a child as I was operated at birth, and I had to go ther for post-examinations. It was one of the top clinics. Even now when I breath normally I feel a lot of love my mother has provided my during that age and it makes me cry and remember a lot of good "inner child" experiences...

The rush in dopamine definitely helps with suicidal feelings and I simply can't exercise as much as I crave intense exercise. I do some push-ups here and there. So I notice what feels good! Doing my best definitely going to push some now!

Subjectively I feel more resillent when I drink mushroom coffee and mix it in my food and, especially when I mix it (did it once so far) I notice how sort of the placebo effects kicks in I dunno I tested some supplements, I like organic mushroom powders so far. With Lions mane, reishi and other mushrooms that are typically common, although they are farmed organically. As far as I can tell. I wrote down my goal in a holistic health book to feel more whole and to train holistically, I skimmed the book. Let's say I presume my neurons can draw more loose ends and tie them? As I think mushrooms are more brain focused and nervous system focused. My vision is consistently alternating, so I don't have a fixed position currently, as I don't find a functional way to create and even print out my vision and correct some mistakes. I definitely avoid hard work, as I noticed not having a wu-wei mindset doing what you love can kill you with burn-out I love working a lot up to 12h a day even, if you include exercises and I do breaks and chill and stuff, the point is my life is sort of dwindling because of injuries and mental health issues. 

Coffee I drink it a lot as hunger subsides, buying a lot of crackers and snacks that are healthy and whole, I feel over-stimulated as I am not stimulated enough and I notice the drawbacks hard from dropping coffee, even marijuhana currently. With exercise this stuff get's out of my pheremon system?... quiet quickly if my intution is correct. Walking meditation is great to enjoy more tonic dopamine drives, I crave and yearn for knowing a lot and I like meditating on headphones. As a trigger practice, so I am unsure sometimes. 

1 hour ago, Michael569 said:

Good luck. Enjoy being bored to death  

Yeah, this is painful although my ears are bombared with music in the gym mostly, in nature it's a bit harder as I like to train outside sometimes without headphones and I focus, my workouts are usally also faster done. 

In that seems I seem to be doing good, sometimes I am to good at self-deception it seems... found some new ideas also in my holistic health book! Thanks for answering!

1 hour ago, Michael569 said:

P.S. your diet seems fine. I wouldn't say this is a diet related issue although I'd need more information about portion sizes and meal prep to be able to tell for sure. Lack of protein and carbohydrate in general can reduce motivation in people as well as caloric deficient diets. 

Yes, a have a variable type diet (equatorial and polar are the other) so I usually feel apparently a lot what I eat, eating salmon/tuna/(chicken if good meat), cheese without pastorized milk. I often am in a caloric deficiet, as I could eat for 50€ a day with my body size, and it's annyoing I already eat whole grains and mix breed into my morning eggs with salmon to have more glykogen? and glucose? available... eating fruits and yoghurt in between can be an issue, so I would need some ideas, although I have to structurally integrate some stuff first I think.

Hope this semi-confused post is okay, for example I ate two hands full of whole grain spaghetti with cheese and pork, as sometimes eating pork? Somehow feels good? I dunno I feel more calm and satiated. Red meat I somehow don't like that much anymore. I seem to have issues with my electromagnetic field if we can get "wu-wu" like that, yet I dunno. 

I leave the post at that ?, hope there is some possible feedback for this still not integrated fully information&data hell. 

Edited November 4, 2022 by ValiantSalvatore

[ValiantSalvatore]

Is there a good way to use the endocannabinoid system? I just read an article today that it's also in our ANS and not only in the brain receptors? What are natural agonists for BDNF and NGF? I would eat more nuts now and natural sugars, as I seem to be able to withstand a lot of sugar without receiving drawbacks. I love apples for example blueberries, strawberries, cashews, honey, hazelnut etc. 

I bought an audiobook about alkaline foods, so I'd like to go more into that direction for now. I could listen to it, when I fall asleep....

Any good foods for studying long-hours I can instantly integrate into my diet? I eat a lot of bio creme cheese and salmon and I have no idea what other fishs for example are good besides Tuna, as I am a newb at eating see creatures lol.

Edited November 4, 2022 by ValiantSalvatore