Source: # The brain, hormones and body chemistry behind your moods How the brain, nerves, hormones and brain chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine shape thoughts, feelings and moods – explained simply. ## Chapters on this topic ### Chapter 3: Human Brain and Nervous System Where mental health has an address in the body : A thought has an address. An address is not a destiny. - [3.1 Overview](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#overview/) - [3.2 Major brain regions](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#major-brain-regions/) - [3.3 The nervous system](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#the-nervous-system/) - [3.4 Brain plasticity](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#brain-plasticity/) - [3.5 Messengers](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#messengers/) - [3.6 Taking care of your brain](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#taking-care-of-your-brain/) - [3.7 One story](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#one-story/) - [3.8 One companion verse](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/3#one-companion-verse/) ### Chapter 4: Hormones and Brain Chemicals Messengers of mood, not insults to character : No single chemical is a mood. A chemical story is also not an insult. - [4.1 Neurotransmitters](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#neurotransmitters/) - [4.2 Hormones affecting mental health](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#hormones-affecting-mental-health/) - [4.3 The mind-body connection](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#the-mind-body-connection/) - [4.4 Keeping hormones in balance: food, lifestyle and warning signs](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#keeping-hormones-in-balance-food-lifestyle-and-warning-signs/) - [4.5 One story](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#one-story-1/) - [4.6 One companion verse](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/4#one-companion-verse-1/) ### Chapter 19: How Five Senses Actually Work Transduction before mood : A sense is a converter. Mood is what the converter feeds. - [19.1 Overview](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#overview-1/) - [19.2 Sight (vision)](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#sight-vision/) - [19.3 Hearing (auditory)](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#hearing-auditory/) - [19.4 Smell (olfactory)](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#smell-olfactory/) - [19.5 Taste (gustatory)](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#taste-gustatory/) - [19.6 Touch (somatosensory)](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#touch-somatosensory/) - [19.7 Sensory integration](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#sensory-integration/) - [19.8 A short clinic story](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#a-short-clinic-story/) - [19.9 One companion verse](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/19#one-companion-verse-13/) ### Chapter 21: Body Chemistry and Mental Health Blood work before blame : Thyroid and glucose can impersonate a psychiatric diagnosis. Test first. - [21.1 Overview](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#overview-2/) - [21.2 Thyroid function](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#thyroid-function/) - [21.3 Blood sugar](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#blood-sugar/) - [21.4 Vitamins](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#vitamins/) - [21.5 Minerals](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#minerals/) - [21.6 Amino acids and omega-3](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#amino-acids-and-omega-3/) - [21.7 Gut–brain axis and inflammation](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#gutbrain-axis-and-inflammation/) - [21.8 Practical recommendations](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#practical-recommendations/) - [21.9 Physical conditions that can look like mental illness](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#physical-conditions-that-can-look-like-mental-illness/) - [21.10 One companion verse](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/chapter/21#one-companion-verse-15/) ## Stories from real life (19) - [The Alarm That Would Not Switch Off](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-alarm-that-would-not-switch-off-9/) – Priya was seventeen and preparing for her board exams in Jaipur. Whenever she opened her Physics paper, her heart hammered, her palms turned cold… - [After the Bike Fall](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/after-the-bike-fall-10/) – Arjun, twenty-two, rode his motorbike to a call centre in Hyderabad. One rainy night he skidded and hit his head. He had no helmet… - [Learning to Paint at Seventy](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/learning-to-paint-at-seventy-11/) – Haridas, seventy-one, retired from the railways in Kolkata and found the days strangely empty. He began forgetting where he had put his glasses and… - [Midnight Scrolling and the Growing Brain](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/midnight-scrolling-and-the-growing-brain-12/) – Fifteen-year-old Chloe lived in Manchester and was known at school for her sharp wit. Lately she had been dozing in class and saying things… - [The Stroke That Taught A Family Anatomy](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-stroke-that-taught-a-family-anatomy-155/) – After a left-sided stroke, a grandmother lost speech but not song. Relatives said she was being stubborn. A doctor named Broca's area. Naming did… - [The Helmet Argument](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-helmet-argument-156/) – A teenager's new rudeness followed a scooter fall without a helmet. Uncles planned a lecture on respect. An emergency doctor planned a scan. The… - [Night Shifts and Biscuits](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/night-shifts-and-biscuits-13/) – Neha, thirty-one, was a staff nurse in Mumbai who worked three weeks of night shifts each month. Between 2 and 4 a.m. she kept… - [Tired All the Time, and Not Just Sad](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/tired-all-the-time-and-not-just-sad-14/) – Kavita, thirty-eight, taught primary school in Lucknow. For almost six months she had felt tired in a way that sleep did not fix. She… - [Heat, Hormones and Hurtful Words](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/heat-hormones-and-hurtful-words-15/) – Lakshmi, forty-seven, ran a small tailoring shop in Madurai. Over the past year her periods had become irregular, and she woke drenched at night… - [It Is Not Only a Chemical](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/it-is-not-only-a-chemical-16/) – Tom, twenty-nine, was an engineer in Glasgow who had been feeling flat for months. He ate takeaway at his desk, slept until noon at… - [The Thyroid That Looked Like Sadness](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-thyroid-that-looked-like-sadness-157/) – Meera was called negative for a year. A physician added TSH. Hypothyroidism was sitting under the story. Thyroxine did not make her a different… - [The Exam-Week Jaw](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-exam-week-jaw-158/) – A student called himself lazy. His jaw, sleep, and stomach called it load. Reducing Sunday email changed more than a poster about grit. Cortisol… - [The Grandfather Who Stopped Coming to the Table](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-grandfather-who-stopped-coming-to-the-table-77/) – Raghunath Kulkarni, seventy-one, used to be the loudest voice at the family dinner in Nashik. He argued about cricket, teased his grandchildren and told… - [The Dark Months in Helsinki](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/the-dark-months-in-helsinki-78/) – Aino Virtanen was twenty-three when she moved from Chennai to Helsinki for her master's degree. September was beautiful. By November the sun rose late… - [Mihir and the Scratchy Shirt](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/mihir-and-the-scratchy-shirt-79/) – Mihir, seven, cried every morning about his school uniform. 'It scratches! The tag is stabbing me!' His parents in Ahmedabad thought he was making… - [Leela, Age 41](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/leela-age-41-175/) – Two years after surviving a terrifying kitchen fire, forty-one-year-old Leela realised something strange was happening to her nervous system. Whenever she encountered the smell… - [Tired, Low and Forgetful at Forty](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/tired-low-and-forgetful-at-forty-83/) – Sunita Patil, forty-two, a school teacher in Kolhapur, had been feeling flat for most of a year. She was exhausted by lunchtime, felt cold… - [Kabir’s Skipped Meals](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/kabirs-skipped-meals-84/) – Kabir Sheikh, thirty-five, drove a delivery van in Hyderabad. His days ran on tea and biscuits, with a large meal late at night. Lately… - [Neha’s Tingling Fingers](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/story/nehas-tingling-fingers-85/) – Neha Verma, nineteen, was a first-year student living in a hostel in Delhi. She was a strict vegetarian and survived on instant noodles, tea… ## Shloks (4) - [Katha Upanishad 1.3.3–4](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/shloka/katha-upanishad-1-3-3-4-14/) – Know the self as the rider, the body as the chariot, the intellect as the driver, and the mind as the reins. - [Bhagavad Gita 6.16](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/shloka/bhagavad-gita-6-16-15/) – Yoga is not for one who overeats or starves, nor for one who sleeps too much or never sleeps. - [Bhagavad Gita 15.9](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/shloka/bhagavad-gita-15-9-27/) – Presiding over ear, eye, touch, taste and smell, and over the mind, the person enjoys the objects. - [Bhagavad Gita 17.8](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/shloka/bhagavad-gita-17-8-29/) – Foods that increase life, clarity, strength, health, happiness, and love—which are juicy, naturally oily, stable, and agreeable—are dear to the sattvic mind. ## More topics - [What is mental health? A simple guide to the mind and who can help](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/mental-health-basics/) - [Emotions, anger and mood swings – understanding your feelings](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/emotions/) - [Stress – causes, symptoms and how to reduce stress at work and in exams](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/stress/) - [Anxiety, panic attacks and fear – signs, causes and what helps](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/anxiety/) - [Depression and low mood – signs, causes and the way back](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/depression/) - [Trauma, grief and loss – healing at your own pace](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/trauma-grief/) - [Children, teenagers and parents – mental health at home and school](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/children-parents/) - [Sleep problems, food and daily routine for a healthy mind](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/sleep-food-routine/) - [Counselling, therapy and psychiatric medicines explained](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/therapy-medicines/) - [Helping a loved one with mental illness – family and relationships](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/family-relationships/) - [Mental health crisis and suicide prevention – what to do](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/safety-crisis/) - [The five senses, the five elements and the mind](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/senses-elements/) - [Bhagavad Gita, yoga and Indian wisdom for mental peace](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/spiritual-wisdom/) - [Addiction to alcohol, tobacco, drugs and gambling – signs and recovery](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/addiction/) - [Phone addiction, social media and screen time – digital well-being](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/digital-life/) - [Ageing well, memory loss and dementia – caring for elders](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/topic/later-life/) [myadvisorfriend@gmail.com](mailto:myadvisorfriend@gmail.com) · [Contact](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/contact/) · [About](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/about/) · [Privacy](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/privacy/) · [Disclaimer](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/disclaimer/) --- *Psychology for Everyone – A Mental Well Being Series* by Satish Zope · free to read · Contact: [myadvisorfriend@gmail.com](mailto:myadvisorfriend@gmail.com) · [About](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/about/) · [Privacy](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/privacy/) · [Disclaimer](https://poonam.myadvisorfriend.com/disclaimer/)