#3 | The Animal Origins of Dopamine, Serotonin, Oxytocin and Endorphin

Estimated article reading time: 15-20 minutes

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What is this article about?

This fascinating research reveals that our four primary "happiness chemicals" (dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphin) aren't designed to make us feel good all the time, but evolved as survival tools that guided our ancestors through life-or-death situations in the wild. Each chemical serves a specific evolutionary purpose: dopamine drives us to seek rewards and opportunities, oxytocin creates feelings of safety in groups, serotonin helps us navigate social hierarchies, and endorphin masks pain during emergencies. Understanding these ancient brain patterns explains why our modern pursuit of constant happiness often leads to disappointment, and why these chemicals naturally surge and then dip as part of their biological function.

Why is it relevant to Strategic Happiness?

This article is foundational to Strategic Happiness because it reveals that our brain's reward system operates on scarcity principles - these chemicals evolved to motivate survival action, not to flow constantly, which means chasing perpetual highs is fighting against millions of years of evolution. By understanding the true evolutionary purpose of each happiness chemical, we can develop more realistic expectations and stop judging our natural emotional fluctuations as personal failures or signs that something is wrong. Most importantly, this knowledge empowers us to work with our ancient brain patterns rather than against them, designing happiness strategies that align with how our reward systems actually function rather than how we think they should work.