We often underestimate how much our morning rituals can set the tone for the rest of the day. Prioritizing activities that encourage natural dopamine release not only helps you wake up, but basically helps your brain feel motivated and balanced.
“Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a chemical released by brain cells that is primarily involved in motivation, learning, and reinforcement,” says Mia Sobiero, a neuroscience researcher who conducted research at New York University Langone Health and Columbia University’s Zuckerman Institute.
“It’s not just about feeling good; it’s primarily about learning and motivation. That is, it helps your brain understand what behaviors are worth repeating and what habits you should strengthen in your life,” Sobiero says. Ms. Sobiero also founded Research Girl, Inc., a nonprofit organization that helps aspiring scientific researchers gain more opportunities in their fields of interest.
A common misconception is that dopamine levels should always be elevated, but Sobiero says that “neurotransmitter levels fluctuate.”
“You don’t want to have super high dopamine levels all the time, but you want to maintain a healthy dopamine system,” she says. “You just want to build a good pattern of dopamine, where dopamine is released normally.”
Sobiero explains how she structures her mornings to keep her dopamine system healthy.
A neuroscientist’s morning routine boosts dopamine
Step 1: Expose to sunlight
Sobiero’s ideal morning routine for feeling your best starts the night before. Getting enough sleep sets the tone for the next day, she explains.
And, “When I wake up in the morning, I make sure to expose myself to light,” she says. “It’s scientifically proven that opening your curtains in the morning and letting the sun hit your face for a few minutes can reduce symptoms of depression, especially if you have seasonal depression.”
According to Harvard Health Publishing, exposure to sunlight directly affects the areas of the brain that control the body’s internal clock or circadian rhythm.
Not getting enough sunlight each day can “cause your brain to overproduce melatonin, the sleep hormone, and reduce the release of serotonin, the feel-good brain chemical that influences mood. The result of this chemical imbalance? Feeling depressed and lethargic,” the health blog says.
Step 2: Sudoku
Sobiero makes time every morning to do “small, meaningful activities,” like completing a daily Sudoku puzzle.
“Doing puzzles gives you a little bit of dopamine, which is a great way to start your day. It’s the chemical that makes you feel good when you accomplish something,” she says. “Novelty, or something new that you don’t expect to be good, increases dopamine levels in the brain and contributes to dopamine health. That’s why puzzles are great.”
Soviello says solving crossword puzzles and physics puzzles can have the same effect on the brain. The brain has a reward system that says, “When something unexpectedly good happens, dopamine increases, and when something worse than expected happens, dopamine decreases.”
“This means, evolutionarily, that we strive toward a goal in hopes of getting this feel-good chemical as a reward,” she says. “So when you do something, like learn a new skill, and become amazingly good at it, you get a huge influx of dopamine.”
Step 3: Text your friend
Every morning, Sobiero practices a simple but important form of social connection: sending a text message to a friend. “I’ll send a text to a friend like, ‘Good morning. How are you doing today?'” she says.
“Humans are biologically connected,” Sobiero added. “It’s scientifically proven that making connections with people lifts your mood. Because that’s what we should be doing.”
Spending long periods of time without socializing with people close to you, such as friends and family, can be detrimental to your health, she says. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, feeling socially isolated and lonely can increase your risk of developing heart disease, dementia, depression, and other chronic conditions.
Connecting with others is “very healthy for your brain as well as your body,” Sobiero says.
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