Author: Ashley A
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Part 4 Of The Happy Chemical Series: Oxytocin
Why Humans Need Humans 💜 Content Warning This article discusses trauma, addiction, depression, grief, isolation, and unhealthy relationship patterns. Introduction When most people think about happiness, they think about excitement. They think about achieving a goal, getting a promotion, buying something they’ve wanted, falling in love, or experiencing a moment of joy. Those experiences certainly…
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The Happy Chemicals Series Part 3: Serotonin
More Than Just Happiness When most people hear serotonin, they think of happiness. At least I did. When I heard serotonin, I thought of comfort, happiness, feeling good, and not much beyond that. It is often called the happy chemical online, in conversations about mental health, and even in casual jokes. But the more I…
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When Your Mind Lives in Worst-Case Scenarios
Introduction: Living Ahead of Reality Sometimes my mind starts preparing me for the anxiety, grief, or trauma of an event before life has even decided whether it’s actually coming or not. I’ve always known how exhausting that is. This experience was just another reminder of it. Side note before I start: although this blog was…
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Part 2: Dopamine – The Chemical That Drives Human Behavior
Introduction When most people hear the word dopamine, they immediately think of happiness or pleasure. Social media has turned it into the “feel-good chemical” — but dopamine is far more complex than that. Dopamine is deeply involved in motivation, movement, learning, survival, focus, memory, addiction, decision-making, and even how we respond to stress. It helps…
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