Why Neurotransmitters Are So Difficult for People To Understand

Within our brain are chemicals, called neurotransmitters, that affect mood and mental health. When they’re functioning properly, we typically feel decent, we can cope with stress, and we respond properly to different emotional experiences.

But many of us have neurotransmitters – especially serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine – that are not balanced properly. You may have too many of one, you may have not enough of another, but they are out of balance to what your brain needs.

If a person has anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges, it is likely that they have developed imbalanced neurotransmitters. But what does that mean for you, and why is it that the neurotransmitter component of mental health is so difficult for people to conceptualize and understand?

Let’s talk about some important things to understand about neurotransmitters, their function, and what it means when they’re “imbalanced.”

1. They affect how you think and feel. Most of us will defend the emotions we have and the way we think as normal. For example, if you were to tell someone with depression that they are sad for “no reason” they will argue with you, tell you there are plenty of reasons, and explain to them that you’re wrong. To them, their experience feels perfectly normal. Their thoughts make sense to them and they do not think that their emotions are irrational. Many of us can understand that neurotransmitters affect how we think, but we struggle to understand that it means that the emotions and thoughts they have feel 100% justifiable to them.
2. They change. Some people wonder how anxiety can lead to depression, or how stress at work can cause people to develop panic attacks. One answer? Because they change how your body creates and manages neurotransmitter levels. That is why even mild to moderate stress and anxiety should be treated, because they may continue to affect a person’s neurotransmitter levels and, ultimately, their mental health.
3. They can be biologically influenced. Neurotransmitter issues can occur over time as a result of life events, trauma, and other issues that lead to mental health challenges. But they can also be biologically influenced. A person’s neurotransmitter levels can change as part of their development, leading to mental health conditions for no clear cause.
4. BUT even when biologically influenced, they can change with therapy. It’s often difficult to imagine that you can change how your body works, but that’s what therapy can do. Therapy has the ability to change how your body operates, including the neurotransmitter levels you create and how they are balanced together. This comes from making connections, stress coping, and more – all of which can occur with psychotherapy.

In therapy, we don’t talk about neurotransmitters often, because your treatment doesn’t require that type of knowledge. But many people also struggle to really imagine how they work as well, because it’s hard to believe that chemicals in your brain can affect how you think, or that something like talking to someone else can alter your body chemistry.

Still, it’s helpful to have this understanding so that you also understand why there is always hope. The ability for something as simple as talking to change your brain chemistry is why there are always ways to address your mental health if you’re willing to seek out support.

For more information, or to get started, contact Long Island Counseling Services, today.