Chemicals Between Us

Some sayings are timeless because they hold a universal truth, like “The journey of 1,000 miles starts with a single step.”

Then other sayings sound clever but just don’t stand the test of time like… “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Well, whoever said that was clearly not a linguist, a brain scientist, or an evolving entrepreneur. Most likely some snotty kid in a schoolyard back in the 1920s.

The point is that words consistently prove to be more powerful than we realize.

Our brain is constantly trying to make sense of the words it receives, and it will create or cease to create certain chemicals based on how it interprets those words.

With every statement you make to yourself or others, you are, in essence, giving the brain a pharmacy prescription to fill.

The common acronym for the primary chemicals our brain makes is DOSE - D. O. S. E. stands for Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, and Endorphins.

These are the fundamental chemicals that allow us to sustain our sense of happiness and our body’s energy levels. So, without even realizing it, we ask the pharmacy in our brains to create or withhold these chemicals based on how we talk to others or our own internal self-talk.

If we speak our words consciously and responsibly, we send a pharmacy prescription to our brain that keeps us feeling positive, energized, and focused.

If we speak our words without the awareness they carry, we send in a prescription that has us and others feeling down, depleted, and distracted.

Here’s a simple example.

“I don’t know where the report is, and it’s pissing me off.” Can you feel the dark clouds around that statement?

“I’ll locate the report, and everything will be just fine.” Feels like a sunny spring day in comparison.

What most people don’t realize is that the brain is listening to our words and the words of others at such a subtle level that it will instantly act to create the reality that the words represent. And in doing so, it releases Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, or Endorphins to create a chemical response to those words.

What’s incredible is that so much can be done here. You can learn to speak in a way that is constantly empowering you and others. You can also learn to reframe negative things other people say so that it turns itself around into something that supports your chemistry to be at its best.

When I work with my clients, I am always mindful of language because it is one more critical factor in having the success, happiness, and life they deserve.

Maybe, we should change it to “Sticks and stones are for building homes, but my words will never fail me.”