Question

How are neurotransmitters and hormones involved in triggering or medicating emotions

Answer 1

Certain brain areas and the presence of levels of different hormones and chemicals like neurotranmitters in your brain, controls emotions. For example, if we are in danger, our brain releases stress hormones that can initiate fight or flight reactions by flooding certain regions with the neurotransmitter like epinephrine (adrenaline). When the danger subsides, our brain inhibits the stress response by sending out a calming signal in the form of differnt neurotranmitter like acetyl choline Neurotransmitters and hormones such as serotonin, dopamine, GABA, cortisol, noradrenaline and oxytocin often affect emotion

A healthy thyroid plays a vital part in brain chemistry, for example those with an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) can suddenly feel tense and anxious. They may experience panic attacks, impatience, be overactive and have an exaggerated sensitivity to noise, If you have an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) you may feel stressed and overwhelmed and experience depression, tearfulness, and loss of appetite these effects are due to the fact that thyroid hormone levels increase serotonin neurotransmission

Oestrogen, the primary sex hormone of women is released from Ovaries, this hormone is linked to mood disruptions in women, as seen in premenstrual syndrome, Low oestrogen levels are associated with depression, anxiety and mood swings. However, high oestrogen levels can also wreak havoc with our system. So a right biochemical balance is essential for the well-functioning steroid hormones system, these hormone affect emotion by increasing neurotransmitter like serotonin and number of serotonin receptors in the brain, estrogen can also act by increasing the levels of neurotransmitter like dopamine, the brain includes several distinct dopamine pathways, one of which plays a major role in the motivational component of reward-motivated behavior. These neurotransmitter's effect is also why it's often a target of medications that are used to treat depression, anxiety, and other mood disorders..