The High Serotonin Personality

[Hans]

Serotonin

Yes I've had my prolactin tested and a little below the mid range

Body serotonin doesn't show brain serotonin.
Prolactin correlates with serotonin yes, but in some (rare) conditions prolactin might be low and serotonin elevated.

 

[firebreather]

Body serotonin doesn't show brain serotonin.
Prolactin correlates with serotonin yes, but in some (rare) conditions prolactin might be low and serotonin elevated.

Interesting theory

 

[bboone]

does blaha personify they high serotonin personality? he manifests every symptom to an extreme degree. i suspect he has some sort of serious endocrine disorder (some suspect klinefelter) and he is masking the symptom by taking huge amounts of steroids. you wouldn't believe it by looking at him, but he uses trenbolone and a bunch of other potent substances

 

[MatheusPN]

Do you think Brazil, Thailand and Australia demonstrate low serotonin personalities ?

Hey buddy,
But if I had to go by "clichés" and stereotypes, I would say yes, Brazil and Thailand are "low serotonin" personalities.
/QUOTE]

I live in Brazil, transit between São Paulo and Bahia every 1, 3 months; anyway, the older, more this type of personality is common. I see in this regard there is much similarity between our world, Westernized

On the stereotypes, which I hear massively, from Bahians and Paulistanos speaking and I agree, people who was in touch with one another; in general:
Paulistanos (who live in SP, capital) are more educated (please, hello, how you doing), more individual and more reserved, less intimate
Paulistanos from places like Capão redondo, itapecerica, are more similar with Bahians than the rest of paulistanos
Bahians are more welcoming, funny ("resenham", joke a lot) and the work environment is less serious

Taking away the difference in culture, clothes, in the transit or even in the walking (looking, speed etc) and others, more privative

 

[johnwester130]

this man has a lot of serotonin

 

[artist]

Are there any negative traits that serotonin can't cause? Because this looks to me like a list of almost every human foible.

 

[Hans]

Are there any negative traits that serotonin can't cause? Because this looks to me like a list of almost every human foible.

Serotonin isn't necessarily the cause of each and every one, but it does play a role. Quite a few traits can be stopped by using a serotonin antagonist but elevated serotonin isn't the root cause of a personality disorder. The root cause is most likely a person with a malfunctioning metabolism or that have mal adapted after a certain period of time, and even though he isn't in that specific situation anymore that requires high serotonin, his serotonin stays elevated chronically. This happens all the time with trauma for example.

But like I said, high serotonin often goes along with hypoglycemia, stress, sleep deprivation, high estrogen, cortisol, hypothyroid, etc.

 

[Coderr]

Does raw cocoa increase serotonin?

 

[Alex Jaramillo]

@Hans walking on egg shells is me 100%. I need to get prolactin tested to see where it’s at. Do you suggest getting serotonin measured directly? Or will prolactin do just fine

 

[Alex Jaramillo]

@Hans NVM! Found my answer in the thread. Georgi suggests prolactin as a good bio marker as well.

 

[Hans]

Does raw cocoa increase serotonin?

Not that I'm aware of. It contains a little bit of serotonin, tryptophan, phenylethylamine, tyrosine, tryptamine and tyramine but in general, these concentrations are irrelevant in healthy subjects since these compounds are metabolized in the intestinal mucosa, liver and kidneys by the monoamine oxidases (MAO).

Furthermore, cocoa contains more than 5% protein (around 16%), the minimum amount required to negate the effect of insulin of increasing tryptophan uptake in the brain.

Cocoa lowers cortisol and increases dopamine, which is the opposite of serotonin. Stress increases serotonin and cocoa helps cope with stress.

Cocoa could increase serotonin in the gut if it irritates your gut, but that serotonin doesn't cross the blood brain barrier.

 

[Hans]

@Hans NVM! Found my answer in the thread. Georgi suggests prolactin as a good bio marker as well.

Yes it is, but some of my clients still don't feel mentally and emotionally optimal even though prolactin is low. That either indicates that prolactin and serotonin is not always a good correlation or that serotonin is not always elevated in mental disorders. Cortisol, low androgens, low dopamine, upregulated kynurenine pathway, estrogen, etc., can all affect the mood somehow. Sometimes it's as easy as correcting a magnesium deficiency, sometimes it's just a mindset.

Feeling emotionally unstable or on edge can be due to elevated catecholamines and possibly cortisol. So lowering that can be a good start. Magnesium is pretty effective. Tribulus helped me feel more solid. Boosting GABA can also greatly help you relax and not care so much how other people might react.

 

[Regina]

Yes it is, but some of my clients still don't feel mentally and emotionally optimal even though prolactin is low. That either indicates that prolactin and serotonin is not always a good correlation or that serotonin is not always elevated in mental disorders. Cortisol, low androgens, low dopamine, upregulated kynurenine pathway, estrogen, etc., can all affect the mood somehow. Sometimes it's as easy as correcting a magnesium deficiency, sometimes it's just a mindset.

Feeling emotionally unstable or on edge can be due to elevated catecholamines and possibly cortisol. So lowering that can be a good start. Magnesium is pretty effective. Tribulus helped me feel more solid. Boosting GABA can also greatly help you relax and not care so much how other people might react.

I think that "it's just a mindset" can be cop-out. I have done a good deal of rinzai zen and aikido training and am left feeling that something is lost in the translation of the ancient texts. It keeps ending up as "mind over matter."
My colleagues are the most 'walk on eggshells' uptight authoritarian narcissists out there.
Oh yes, they can endure being heavily tatooed from head to toe, week long sesshins, fasting, and whatever joint-lock you can manueuver. GRRRR. Nothing bothers these cool cat warriors. err, except being asked a question? err, except bumping into them, err , except EVERYTHING!!!....
I think the more correct interpretation is there is a undying lamp of various factors that are under the influence of various other factors that are unclear to me.
But it is knowable. The mindset is not independent from the structure or the function.

 

[Hans]

I think that "it's just a mindset" can be cop-out. I have done a good deal of rinzai zen and aikido training and am left feeling that something is lost in the translation of the ancient texts. It keeps ending up as "mind over matter."
My colleagues are the most 'walk on eggshells' uptight authoritarian narcissists out there.
Oh yes, they can endure being heavily tatooed from head to toe, week long sesshins, fasting, and whatever joint-lock you can manueuver. GRRRR. Nothing bothers these cool cat warriors. err, except being asked a question? err, except bumping into them, err , except EVERYTHING!!!....
I think the more correct interpretation is there is a undying lamp of various factors that are under the influence of various other factors that are unclear to me.
But it is knowable. The mindset is not independent from the structure or the function.

People's behaviour can be seen similar to how dogs behave. If you don't correct the dog for his bad behaviour, the behaviour might just escalate and get worse.
Similarly, people that treat other people bad have been allowed to become like that without receiving correction.
Diet, lifestyle, upbringing, stressors, etc., also play a role, but at the end of the day it's their choice to behave like that. They are just so far down that path that it might seem impossible for them to change, because they see it as normal and even beneficial to behave like that.

 

[Regina]

People's behaviour can be seen similar to how dogs behave. If you don't correct the dog for his bad behaviour, the behaviour might just escalate and get worse.
Similarly, people that treat other people bad have been allowed to become like that without receiving correction.
Diet, lifestyle, upbringing, stressors, etc., also play a role, but at the end of the day it's their choice to behave like that. They are just so far down that path that it might seem impossible for them to change, because they see it as normal and even beneficial to behave like that.

Yeah, this is true.
Especially the far down the path circumstance.
But with children, it was always so beautiful in Japan to see how Shinto parents completely ignore bad behaviour. They have so much patience and trust that nature will run its course.
It's unfortunate that people act like dogs. (although dogs in different environments behave completely differently--but that is another subject). I always just disengage and avoid the nasty types. Because if you correct them, then you have been goaded into their cesspool. And you can't just give them a swift hard smack to cut through their mindset.

 

[Hans]

I always just disengage and avoid the nasty types. Because if you correct them, then you have been goaded into their cesspool. And you can't just give them a swift hard smack to cut through their mindset.

Yeah, it's almost impossible to change others if they don't want to change. Ignoring them would be the best. You can't beat them when you have to drop to their level.

 

[Alex Jaramillo]

@Regina people like this?

 

[Regina]

@Regina people like this?

haha. Nah, they are more the silent chip-on-their-shoulder angry types.
I stopped training and am enjoying just gardening now.

 

[BruceD]

I have the complete opposite experience. I have been peating a little over a year. Had great results so far. The one guideline I am not adhering to is serotonin. I tried to reduce it - avoid foods with tryptophan, take BCAA or collagen with foods that have it in quantity, etc. My sleep deteriorates to the point where it is unbearable. I wake up in the middle of the night and no amount of meds, supplements, juice can get me back to sleep. I give up and take tryptophan, and sleep like a rockstar. Feel even-keeled, relaxed, and generally in a good mood. None of the aforementioned traits seem to apply.

I literally take a heaping spoonful of tryptophan powder and dump it in my mouth and wash it down with juice. Nightly. Feel much better.

I even have the MAOA gene mutation that results in low enzyme activity - which would result in higher neurotransmitter levels.

Does anyone have any idea why this would happen? It seems to run counter to everything that everyone else experiences.

I once took Prozac years ago. Only for a few days. Hated it. Couldn't sleep, overstimulated, anhedonia, etc. None of this makes sense!

 

[Hans]

avoid foods with tryptophan, take BCAA or collagen with foods that have it in quantity

From what food did you get your protein from? Excluding BCAA and collagen? Some people go so far with this tryptophan depletion thing than they eat too little protein in general and get some mineral or vitamin imbalance.