Hacking Dopamine & Simple Ways to Improve Your Brain Health

I’ve lived with ADHD, dyslexia, and anxiety for most of my life. And I’ve spent the last decade immersed in research around how to improve my mental health, but only recently did I realize there was a big missing piece to the puzzle when it came to being happier, more confident, and more present. That’s taking care of the brain. Your brain is your problem-solver. It’s your memory keeper. It’s a supercomputer. If the physical health of your brain sucks, it’s like having a beer belly with IBS for a brain. If you’re really committed to being a happier and healthier person, it's common sense to keep your brain happy and healthy. But… The science can be complicated and boring. More serotonin and dopamine would be great… but I zone out when I am looking at all the research. That’s why I asked one of the leading experts on brain health to be here today. Dr. Daniel Amen has 40 years of experience as a psychiatrist, 12 New York Times bestselling books, and he’s conducted over 200,000 brain scans, all of which back up the simple tactics he’s about to share with you. Today’s episode is jam-packed with practical information, so you may even want to listen twice. You can make your brain stronger and more resilient. There are specific changes you can make today, including supplements to take, a change to your walking style, a specific breathing technique to reduce anxiety, and more. Dr. Amen will also share the one powerful question he’s been asking himself every single day that keeps his brain strong. He also shares a recipe for a delicious mug of “brain healthy hot chocolate.” I’ll drink to that and a little Brain Health 101. Xo Mel You will learn: 1:34: The results of my brain scan – and a huge finding that was discovered in my husband’s brain scan 9:37: A simple 101 on the brain 13:14: The 3 most important habits that have the biggest impact on brain health 15:41: The exact thing to say to yourself first thing in the morning to improve your brain 16:57: The specific two vitamins that are most important for the health of your brain 19:38: The difference between serotonin and dopamine and how to achieve balance between the two 25:08: How to tell if you have low dopamine & how to increase it 28:55: Why strength training is so important for your overall health 30:21: What cortisol is, why it matters, and how to reduce it 32:03: The one specific breathing exercise that Dr. Amen recommends for an anxious mind 36:06: How to calm a busy brain 39:22: The 3 most important words for mental training 41:27: What to do if you feel chronically tired 43:30: The 5 most important foods for brain health 44:21: How to make brain-healthy hot chocolate 47:06: What a psychiatrist of 40 years would never do because it’s bad for your brain

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Mel Robbins?

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• 0:45Mel Robbins?

  through SoFi Bank, N.A., member FDIC. To me, self-expression is all about showing the world what's on the inside. That's why I want you to discover Pandora Talsman, a new collection designed to help you express every side of who you are. Featuring meaningful zodiac symbols and personalized jewelry pieces, each design tells a story that's uniquely yours. Pandora Talsman, a new language of self-expression, because every version of you deserves to be seen. Shop new styles in store or online at pandora.net. This podcast is brought to you by Expedia. If you haven't booked your next trip yet, now is the time. Whether you're going to fly across the country or maybe you just want to explore

• 1:29Mel Robbins?

  a cool beach town this summer, Expedia makes it easy. Flights, hotels, vacation rentals, cars, activities, everything you need in one place. That means no jumping between sites, no hassle. And when you bundle, you can save up to 30% with everything you need in one app. Sign in to save, savings vary. Expedia, the one place you go to go places. Hey, it's your friend Mel, and welcome to a mind-altering episode of the Mel Robbins Podcast.

• 2:02Mel Robbins?

  Today, I'm going to introduce you to someone who has had a profound impact on my life, on my husband's life. Who am I talking about? His name is Dr. Daniel Amen. He is one of the world's leading experts on the brain. He is a psychiatrist and brain disorder specialist, and his 10 brain clinics around the world treat over 4,000 patients a month, including treating more than 100 former NFL players with concussion trauma. And I not only love this guy because of the difference he's made in my life, I love him because he is so focused on teaching us all how to improve the physical health of our brains

• 2:47Mel Robbins?

  through very simple, accessible, often free, little changes that you can do, that based on his research, can change and improve the health of your physical brain. And what I learned from Dr. Amen is that when you start to improve the physical health and the structure of your brain, when you learn how to increase blood flow and take better care of your brain, it improves your mental health, it impacts your happiness, your energy, your vitality, all of it. And so, I'm going to tell you the difference that he made in my

• 3:27Mel Robbins?

  life. I first met Dr. Amen because he has these clinics all over the world, and I went to one and I got a brain scan, and it really revealed, on a physical level, all kinds of things about the type of ADHD that I struggle with. And when I went over the brain scans with Dr. Amen, he explained to me that one of the reasons why I respond so profoundly to medication is because the medication, when working correctly for somebody like me, it shows in the brain scan, how certain parts of my brain light up, how blood flow increases. I learned so much about my old coping behaviors. It was like, it was almost like somebody had pulled back the curtain.

• 4:11Mel Robbins?

  And explained so much, simply based on the physical structure of my brain. He was even able to show me a part of the brain where I have damage from a car accident that I experienced when I was little. And he told me simple things that I could do to even start to heal that part of my brain. And so you're going to learn today, even if you don't get a brain scan, I'm going to give you all kinds of tools and tactics. You're going to learn simple things you can do in order to improve the health and structure of your brain, to actually heal it. And what happened next is he said, you know, I would love to scan your husband's brain. And at this point in time, it had become very clear that my husband, Chris, who's

• 4:57Mel Robbins?

  very stoic, he's a very centered, mindful guy, but he was really struggling. He just seemed down and sad. And so we go and we see Dr. Amen and they scan Chris's brain. And when we went over the results of Chris's scan, it was one of those medical conversations that is very sobering. Because Dr. Amen looked at the two of us over a Zoom call and said, normally when I see a brain that physically looks like this, it's on an autopsy. And he not only pointed out that Chris had had lots of concussion damage due to being

• 5:41Mel Robbins?

  a ski racer growing up, but he also pointed out that Chris was clearly struggling with dysthymia, which I had never heard of that term, but it's a term that they use to describe long-term treatment-resistant depression. He also pointed out that there was damage based on addiction. And it was Dr. Amen's diagnosis that made Chris truly accept the fact that he wasn't just sad, he wasn't weak, he was dealing with depression.

• 6:19Mel Robbins?

  It's what led him to go see a psychiatrist. It would led him to lose the shame and the stigma associated with seeking treatment and to take an antidepressant. And using simple protocol from Dr. Amen. Over the course of a year, Chris has not only improved the structure of his brain. And the simple habits that you're going to learn today are the simple things that Chris did. And you can do them too. After a year of taking medication, Chris is now no longer on an antidepressant. He doesn't drink. He doesn't smoke weed daily. His physical brain has changed.

• 6:59Mel Robbins?

  I feel like I have the guy that I met 27 years ago back. Like it's, this is really big stuff, you guys. And, um, you know, I think a lot when it comes to mental health, we think about your thoughts and we think about your nervous system. But Dr. Amen is the first person that made me really stop and think. Oh, I've never really thought about the physical health of my brain. Never really thought about the fact that if I increase blood flow up there, it's going to make a big difference. I never really thought about the fact that you could heal your brain. And that's what Dr. Amen's mission is. To teach all of us how to take better care of our brains, to teach all of us simple daily

• 7:44Mel Robbins?

  habits that you can use to heal damage that's been done by life. And to teach you how to be smarter about your health overall by focusing on that, I don't even know what it is. What is it? It's like, I always think about the brain like a giant bowl of macaroni, because that's what it looks like. But to get serious about it. And you don't need to go to his clinic. You don't need to spend a lot of money because he is going to give you things you can do today. Things that I do, things that Chris does, and things that people around the world are doing to heal their brains and to become happier human beings.

• 8:25Mel Robbins?

  And so I am so excited for you to hear Dr. Amen today. I mean, this dude is a double board certified psychiatrist. I don't even know what a double board certified psychiatrist is, but it sounds like he's got a lot of degrees and a lot of education. And more importantly, he is on a mission. He's on a mission to help end mental illness by creating a revolution in brain health that is accessible to you and me. He is the author of 12, did you hear that? 12 New York Times bestselling books, including a new book called Change Your Brain Every Day that's going to be released in 2023. He has clinics around the world that see over 4,000 patients a month,

• 9:10Mel Robbins?

  and he is constantly sharing video content for free all over social media. I mean, this guy is 68 years old. He's bald, he wears a lab coat, and he is going viral almost every single week on TikTok because of the video content that he shares online about ADHD, depression, brain health. This guy is a genius. And today, he's your doctor. He is joining us to help you learn simple ways to improve the health of your brain, that yes, you can boost your mood, you can increase dopamine and serotonin, you can lower cortisol levels, all of which make you happier and healthier human being.

• 9:51Mel Robbins?

  And so, without further ado, please meet my friend and a complete brainiac, Dr. Daniel Amen.

• 10:02Mel Robbins?

  Thank you so much for being with us.

• 10:05Daniel Amen?

  Well, I love being with you, so thank you for having me.

• 10:08Mel Robbins?

  Oh, you're the best. You know, one of the reasons why I love you is you have been an expert on the brain and a psychiatrist for 40 years, and you do not focus on what's wrong with us. You literally teach us how to bring out more awesomeness through brain health. You call it elite brain training. What is that?

• 10:33Daniel Amen?

  Well, a long time ago, I realized I hated the term "mental illness." It shames people, it's stigmatizing, and it's wrong. They're brain health issues. And if I can teach you to get your brain healthy, well, your mind is better. People often don't understand that. Your brain, physical functioning of your brain, creates your mind. Everybody wants to be better. Nobody wants to be told they're mental. And so, the mission I have on the planet is to end the whole concept of mental illness and create this revolution

• 11:18Daniel Amen?

  in brain health, which is why I'm so grateful to hang out with you today.

• 11:22Mel Robbins?

  Oh, I wasn't planning on asking you this, but I just was struck by the fact that you distinguished between the brain and the mind. What's the difference between your brain and your mind?

• 11:39Daniel Amen?

  Well, your brain, the physical functioning of your brain, creates your mind. And people get this mixed up all the time, but you just have to think of someone who has Alzheimer's disease. And if you saw the scans of people with Alzheimer's disease, you see that they're wildly damaged. And then, that person is no longer fully that person because their brain has been damaged. People really need to know, if you want a healthy mind, the first thing to have is a healthy brain.

• 12:19Mel Robbins?

  And so are you saying that absolutely anybody can improve the physical health of their brain and that will have an impact on your happiness, your performance and your mental health?

• 12:33Daniel Amen?

  Everything. And it happens quickly. So for example, if you get better sleep tonight, your mind will be better tomorrow. If you get drunk tonight, your mind's going to be worse tomorrow. And because those both have a direct impact on the physical functioning of your brain.

• 12:59Mel Robbins?

  Wow. Like, you know, it's interesting because you're right. There is so much information and so many conversations out there about mental health. But you have this revolutionary approach of teaching all of us how to take better care of our brain and how to improve our brain itself and how that has a direct impact. So I want to start at the very beginning because, you know, you've been doing this for 40 years. You are, in my opinion, the world's leading expert on the brain.

• 13:34Mel Robbins?

  And can you give us just a 101 on the brain and what you want anybody and everybody to know about the brain? And I want you to speak directly, Dr. Amen, to somebody who may be listening, who's never thought about this topic before.

• 13:54Daniel Amen?

  So your brain is involved in everything you do. How you think, how you feel, how you act, how you get along with other people. It's the organ of intelligence, character, and every single decision you make. And when your brain works right, you work great. And when your brain is troubled for whatever reason, you're sadder, sicker, poorer because your decisions aren't as good. Today, I'm in Miami, but I usually live in Newport Beach where we have more plastic surgeons than almost anywhere in the world because people care more about their faces,

• 14:38Daniel Amen?

  their breasts, their bellies and their butts than they do their brain. And that's insane. Because it's your brain that makes you attractive. It's your brain that makes you happy. It's your brain that keeps you purposeful. Or it's your brain that is the organ of rage. And so getting your brain right is critical. And it's these three steps. Brain envy, gotta care. Avoid anything that hurts it. Know the list. And quite frankly, most second graders would get a 90% if you gave them 100 things that hurt their brain.

• 15:20Daniel Amen?

  And then the third thing is regularly do things that help it. And I worked with BJ Fogg for six months. He runs a persuasive tech lab at Stanford on how people change. And we developed tiny habits. You know, what's the smallest thing you can do today that will make the biggest difference? And the mother tiny habit is whenever you go to do something today, ask yourself, it takes three seconds. Ask yourself, is this good for my brain or bad for it? And if you can answer that with information and love,

• 16:02Daniel Amen?

  love of yourself, love of your family, love of your mission, then just start making better decisions because you care about the organ that makes you you.

• 16:16Mel Robbins?

  Wow. All right, let me unpack this. So number one, brain envy is this idea of actually caring about the health of your brain. And so do you recommend that you have somebody in mind that you envy? Like clearly I envy you because you take incredible care of your brain. But is it just this concept that you just actually have to wake up and realize that what's in between your ears is the most important aspect of your health and wellness, period? Is that what you're saying?

• 16:48Daniel Amen?

  Yes.

• 16:48Mel Robbins?

  And number two, you then said that there are these micro habits that you have developed. What are three micro habits that have the biggest impact on the health of your brain other than asking yourself, is this good or bad for my brain?

• 17:05Daniel Amen?

  So I start every day. With today is going to be a great day. Because once you get the physical functioning of your brain healthy, you then have to program it. So I start every day. So why is today going to be a great day for you? Directing your mind, it puts your brain in a positive state. And then my favorite of all the habits I do is when I go to bed at night, I say a prayer and then I go, what went well today? And I go on a treasure hunt. And I actually start from the very moment I woke up,

• 17:48Daniel Amen?

  looking for what was right about the day. And I've done this now seven or eight years. And even the night my dad died about two and a half years ago, and it was an awful, awful day. Uh, I did it because it was my habit, right? The brain is lazy. It does what you nudge it to do. And so it really helped me even in a really hard time. But it's almost my favorite time of the day because like you, I'm busy and great things will happen and I'll just not really focus on it.

• 18:30Mel Robbins?

  Let's take a short pause to hear from our sponsors and we'll be right back with Dr. Amen.

• 18:40Mel Robbins?

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• 19:21Mel Robbins?

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• 20:44Mel Robbins?

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• 21:27Mel Robbins?

  Shop new styles in store or online at pandora.net. One of the things I'm most proud of here at the Mel Robbins podcast is that we're constantly growing and hiring new amazing people to join the team. So let me introduce you to our new producer, Matt. Matt, you just moved to Boston, joined our team, furnished your new apartment with our sponsor, Wayfair. Be honest, how empty was this place when you got the keys?

• 21:51Speaker 02

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• 21:57Mel Robbins?

  So where did you even start?

• 21:58Speaker 02

  Went straight to Wayfair because I needed everything, bed frame, couch, area rug, desk, you name it.

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• 22:41Mel Robbins?

  Okay, so Dr. Raymond, is there one supplement that you believe everybody should take for better brain health?

• 22:52Daniel Amen?

  Well, a couple, multiple vitamin, a really high-quality multiple vitamin. I make one called NeuroBite Plus. Brand new study showed people with memory problems who were headed to darkness when they took a high-quality multiple vitamin, within a matter of months, their memory was better.

• 23:15Mel Robbins?

  What? Wait a minute, hold on a second. So you're saying that a high-quality multivitamin can not only improve your memory, but if you're sliding on a slippery slope toward memory loss, research shows that it can actually bring memory back?

• 23:35Daniel Amen?

  Yes, brand new research just came out. They're actually comparing it to placebo and cocoa extract, chocolate. And they were hoping the chocolate would do it. It wasn't the chocolate, it was the multivitamin. Now, I never make a disease claim with supplements. But if this level of B6, B12, and folate did that.

• 24:02Mel Robbins?

  Wow, I'm gonna start popping it like candy is what I'm gonna do. That's incredible. So a multivitamin has a huge impact. I hear a lot about fish oil, too.

• 24:10Daniel Amen?

  Omega-3 fatty acids have been found to be good for your heart, good for your brain, good for your hair, good for your skin, good for your eyes.

• 24:20Mel Robbins?

  Why is it good for the brain?

• 24:23Daniel Amen?

  Um, 25% of the nerve cell membranes in your brain are made up of omega-3 fatty acids. So if you're deficient, your brain is not gonna work as fast and efficiently as it could. And low levels have been associated with all sorts of bad things, from depression to dementia to ADHD.

• 24:52Mel Robbins?

  I'm gonna sprint out of this interview. Go get this, these, these supplements. I mean, I've been really, I'm, I'm sort of embarrassed because we've got a brain that I clearly envy here in Dr. Amen. And I feel like I am really dropping the ball here on my own brain. And so I'm gonna report back the next time we have you on about how I feel really religiously taking a multivitamin and my fish oil. I promise, Dr. Amen. I wanna go into some of the other, I guess, chemicals that you hear associated with the brain. And have you explained to us what they are and why they're important for happiness, for brain health?

• 25:37Mel Robbins?

  Let's talk about serotonin. What is it and why is it important?

• 25:41Daniel Amen?

  Serotonin is hugely important for many different functions in the brain, but for happiness, for flexibility, and respect. And respect's the ones that fools people. But when your serotonin levels are low, you more easily feel disrespected. And if you have a social fight, or you feel diminished in some way, your serotonin levels drop. And when serotonin levels go low,

• 26:24Daniel Amen?

  people tend to worry. They get stuck on negative thoughts, negative behaviors. They tend to be argumentative and oppositional. And if things don't go their way, they get upset, which on the surface can appear selfish, but it's really not selfish, it's rigid. And boosting serotonin with like bright light therapy, which is why it's so important to get sunshine and wild. You know, as we go into the holidays, time change happens just at the wrong time, right? As we get less sunlight and it gets colder outside,

• 27:08Daniel Amen?

  we just, you know, then got a bomb dropped on us. Like all of a sudden you lose an hour a day of light. And light is so important.

• 27:18Mel Robbins?

  Let me back us up a second. So does your brain create serotonin? Is that like, what is, like, what is the function of serotonin in the brain?

• 27:27Daniel Amen?

  So your gut makes about 90% of the serotonin in your body, but it doesn't go directly into your brain. Your brain creates serotonin from the amino acid precursor called tryptophan. And that's why often eating tryptophan-rich foods.

• 27:51Mel Robbins?

  Like turkey.

• 27:54Daniel Amen?

  Can be helpful. You have to eat tryptophan-rich foods with a carbohydrate because you need an insulin response to drive tryptophan into the brain. So turkey and sweet potatoes together is a great combination to boost your mood.

• 28:14Mel Robbins?

  So when you have high levels of serotonin, how does that impact you?

• 28:19Daniel Amen?

  Well, you tend to be happy. You're a little bit less motivated. You sort of don't care that much. I remember when Prozac first came on to the market and, you know, I would give it to some of my depressed patients and they would say they would be less depressed, but also less motivated. Because as tryptophan goes up, dopamine, another chemical we should talk about, goes down. They have this sort of counterbalancing effect. So a lot of people who take SSRIs, they go, well, I'm happier, but I don't really care that much.

• 29:00Mel Robbins?

  So is serotonin sort of the happiness one? And dopamine is the motivation and drive one? Is that their relationship?

• 29:10Daniel Amen?

  Dopamine is the molecule of more. It's when you get dopamine, you go, oh, I like that. And the problem is, the more you get, the more you want. And then it turns into trouble. We are wearing out our dopamine centers in the brain and our society with our phones and social media and the non-stop video games, texting. We're being thrilled to death, which ultimately wears out the pleasure centers in the brain. So you have to be very careful.

• 29:51Daniel Amen?

  I often talk to people about drip dopamine, don't dump it.

• 29:56Mel Robbins?

  What does that mean? Drip dopamine, don't dump it?

• 30:00Daniel Amen?

  So you want little tiny piece, you know, little tiny bursts of dopamine, not a big splash. So for example, cocaine, big splash of dopamine and you go, whoa. But the problem is you have none left and then you get depressed, which you then start using. Alcohol's the same way. Alcohol dumps dopamine. Nicotine, vaping dumps dopamine. Scary movies dump dopamine. Falling in love dumps dopamine. You want to drip it.

• 30:36Mel Robbins?

  So would an example of dripping dopamine include the two micro habits you talked about? One being waking up in the morning and saying, I'm going to make it a great day. How am I going to do that? And also at the end of the day, going on that treasure hunt for what went right?

• 30:52Daniel Amen?

  Yes.

• 30:53Mel Robbins?

  Excellent. How can you tell if you have low dopamine?

• 30:56Daniel Amen?

  If you're tired, if you're sad, and you just don't have the motivation to get done what you want to get done. But the good news is even if you've been bad to your brain, by doing the right things, your brain, you know, we call it neuroplastic, it can be better even in a matter of months.

• 31:24Mel Robbins?

  Wow. We've talked about supplements. We've talked about some micro habits. What are simple ways to increase dopamine?

• 31:33Daniel Amen?

  Cold showers will do it. So I just took a shower before I did it. And I always finish with like two minutes. I turn all the way cold because cold therapy has been shown to increase both norepinephrine, another neurotransmitter, and dopamine.

• 31:53Mel Robbins?

  Any like certain times of day where your dopamine is higher or lower just naturally?

• 31:58Daniel Amen?

  In the morning.

• 31:59Mel Robbins?

  And is the same true as serotonin?

• 32:02Daniel Amen?

  In the evening.

• 32:03Mel Robbins?

  Okay. So to explain that to us and then how we can use something natural to boost it.

• 32:10Daniel Amen?

  Everybody's circadian rhythm or the rhythm of their energy is different. There are morning larks and night owls. And you sort of have to know what you are. A lot of my ADD patients are night owls and society is sort of biased against them. You know, because school starts early, work starts early for a lot of people. But you just have to know your rhythm. And if your dopamine is high in the morning, that's when you want to focus and get work done. If it tends to be higher later in the day, no. Your rhythm.

• 32:51Mel Robbins?

  I'm like slightly overwhelmed. I don't even know where to start in terms of like how to, how to boost my serotonin naturally, how to boost my dopamine naturally. So are there certain things you should do first thing in the morning to keep your dopamine levels high, to stay focused, to promote your brain health?

• 33:13Daniel Amen?

  So one thing I really like is morning bright light.

• 33:17Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 33:18Daniel Amen?

  Morning bright light therapy, and you can actually get these therapy lamps, 10,000 lux. So it's bright.

• 33:26Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 33:26Daniel Amen?

  Put it, don't look at it. Put it like an arm's length away from you for 20 or 30 minutes in the morning. Super simple, can significantly improve dopamine, your energy, mood, and cognitive function. Exercise, whether you want to increase serotonin or dopamine, it does both. Walk like you're late for 45 minutes, four or five times a week. Super simple, bright light, exercise, just incredibly helpful. I just turned 68

• 34:07Daniel Amen?

  this year, and it's very clear to me that the stronger you are as you age, the less likely you are to get Alzheimer's disease. But it's really, for older people, it's frailty that kills them almost more than anything else. So light, exercise, simple supplements, and now you can eat in certain ways to boost the neurotransmitters in your brain.

• 34:40Mel Robbins?

  So when you say frailty and strength, are you also recommending, in addition to the 30 to 40 minutes of walking as if you're late three or four times a week, that you also add in strength training?

• 34:54Daniel Amen?

  You bet. I think it's absolutely critical for men and for women. Your muscles are your protein reserve. You've probably, you know, seen, you know, one person gets into a car accident and they come out of it just fine. Another one's permanently damaged. Same accident. Why? Because it's the level of brain health or brain reserve they brought into the accident that often determines the outcome. So every single day of your life, from my perspective, every single day of your life, you should be boosting your brain reserve.

• 35:37Mel Robbins?

  Well, that's what I find to be so inspiring and empowering about your work, your research, your message, Dr. Amen, and all the content that, you know, goes crazy viral on TikTok. You are very clear that there are simple things that we can do to train our brains, to make our brains healthier, and that has an enormous impact on the quality of our lives. And so it's not too late for anybody listening to improve their brain health doing these simple things. Can we talk quickly about cortisol? Like what it is? Why it matters to kind of understand what it is when it comes to your brain health?

• 36:15Daniel Amen?

  So cortisol is critical. It's made by your adrenal glands and it helps us manage stress and deal with inflammation. When it's high because of chronic stress, chronic negativity, that it actually puts fat on your belly and shrinks your hippocampus, the major memory center in your brain.

• 36:45Mel Robbins?

  Dr. Amen, hold that thought. We're going to take a short break, and when we come back, we're going to dig right back into it.

• 36:57Mel Robbins?

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• 37:42Mel Robbins?

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• 38:26Mel Robbins?

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• 39:08Mel Robbins?

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• 39:51Mel Robbins?

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• 40:23Mel Robbins?

  Okay, so Dr. Raymond, what are three things you can do to start to bring down those cortisol levels?

• 40:30Daniel Amen?

  Meditation, incredibly helpful. Prayer for people who do that. Hypnosis, I'm a huge fan. I've done it with my patients for the last 40 years. Having a regular relaxation process. And then ask yourself, is this worth killing? Brain cells, for me. You know, whenever I listen to people arguing or really focused on, you know, whatever the latest conspiracy theory is, I'm like, is this worth killing? Brain cells, for me.

• 41:08Mel Robbins?

  No, it's not. I know you have a specific breathing pattern that is associated with a calmer mind. Can you teach it to us?

• 41:19Daniel Amen?

  I love it so much. It's the 15-second breath. So if you're having a panic attack, this is gonna fix it in two minutes or less. And what researchers discovered is you take twice as long to breathe out as you breathe in. It produces an automatic relaxation response in your body. So the pattern is this. It's four seconds in.

• 41:53Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 41:53Daniel Amen?

  Hold it for a second and a half. Eight seconds out. Hold it for a second and a half.

• 42:01Mel Robbins?

  Will you walk us through it?

• 42:03Daniel Amen?

  So, four seconds in.

• 42:09Daniel Amen?

  Hold it.

• 42:12Daniel Amen?

  Eight seconds out.

• 42:19Daniel Amen?

  Hold it out. And then repeat. So let the energy of breathing go lower in your body. And if you just practice this on a regular basis, cortisol will go down. And you're just gonna get flooded with a feeling of calmness and relaxation. Now, you gotta practice. You have to create a pathway in your brain of relaxation.

• 42:54Mel Robbins?

  Why does this 15-second breath work?

• 42:58Daniel Amen?

  Because it stimulates, encourages your brain to go into a parasympathetic state. So there's a difference between stress, what scientists call sympathetic state, has nothing to do with sympathy. It's a bad word. But a sympathetic state is where...

• 43:21Daniel Amen?

  I was on the beach at Coronel Del Mar, walking my dog, and I saw two pit bulls running toward me.

• 43:29Mel Robbins?

  Oh, my God.

• 43:30Daniel Amen?

  Oh, my God, right? So, my heart went fast. I mean, it was panic. And ended up turning out okay.

• 43:40Mel Robbins?

  Well, what happened? Now, I'm on the edge of my seat. Did you pick up your dog? Did they just jump up and greet you?

• 43:45Daniel Amen?

  No, he was a big white shepherd.

• 43:47Mel Robbins?

  Oh.

• 43:48Daniel Amen?

  And I got bit. He ended up in the ocean. Yeah, it was sort of a disaster. I still get triggered sometimes. It is critical to eliminate trauma, because I love walking on that beach so much. So, I actually did a session of EMDR. I don't know if you've ever talked about EMDR. It's specific psychological treatment for trauma. It's actually really cool.

• 44:18Mel Robbins?

  You're right. It is really cool. So, I have been doing EMDR for the past two years as part of my work with my therapist on a whole host of issues. And in particular, EMDR, you guys, it is super helpful, or at least it has been, for addressing childhood drama. And so, what it is, because it's a big, long name, that I can't even remember what EMDR stands for, but here's what you basically do. You're with a therapist, and you revisit something from your past that's super triggering. And as you do that, you then stare at this ball moving back and forth on the computer screen, and I have no clue why this actually works, but I do know it has helped me a lot.

• 45:00Mel Robbins?

  And it's so powerful and super cool that I want you to know more about it. And so, we're just going to do another episode on it. That's what we're going to do. But in the meantime, Dr. Raymond, I have another question, and it's this: How do you calm a really busy brain?

• 45:16Daniel Amen?

  So, the first simple thing to do is the diaphragmatic breathing, the breathing pattern that we just talked about. The second thing that we haven't talked about, but so important, is to direct your thoughts. I was 28 years old before I learned I didn't have to believe every stupid thing I thought.

• 45:42Daniel Amen?

  I'm in class when I was a psychiatric resident at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and I heard my professor say that, and I'm like, "No way." Because my mind would torture me. You know, I'm one of seven children, I was pretty much irrelevant, I have, you know, five sisters, there's a lot of chaos in my family. And my mind would torture me. And if you start writing down your negative thoughts, and just ask yourself whether or not they're true. And there's a whole process. I teach my patients.

• 46:23Daniel Amen?

  I need to be the director of my mind, rather than my ancestors directed, or the voices of my parents directed, or the news, or, you know, the gossip at work. I need to be the director. I want to be happy, connected, purposeful. I often go, "Well, this is thought shit." Me being happy, connected, and purposeful. And, you know, Mel, just because you have a thought has nothing to do with whether or not it's true, or whether or not it's helpful, or, you know.

• 47:08Daniel Amen?

  Everybody has crazy thoughts. Jerry Seinfeld once said, "The brain is this sneaky organ." All of us have weird, crazy, stupid, sexual, violent thoughts that nobody should ever hear. And just because you have a thought, it doesn't say one thing about you. It's just sort of, you know, like the weather. It's not the thoughts you have that make you suffer. It's the thoughts you attach to that make you suffer.

• 47:40Mel Robbins?

  I want to ask you a question. Because I want you to talk to the person that has never considered that they could direct their thoughts, or that the things that they think aren't necessarily true. If there's a person hearing this, just like you were 28 years old, sitting in a class when it first entered your mind.

• 48:10Mel Robbins?

  Other than taking out a notebook and just start to write down the things that are popping in your mind, is there some other way to help someone kick the door open? Because this is a revolutionary and life-changing concept when somebody first entertains the notion, Dr. Amen, that you can direct what you're thinking about and you can dismiss some of the crap that you torture yourself with as untrue. How do you begin this mental training and reprogramming?

• 48:50Daniel Amen?

  So I don't have any tattoos, but if I got one, one of the first tattoos I would get is, "Is it true?" It's just start carrying that question around in your head. And so when you get a thought, my wife never listens to me, I've had that thought. If you have that question, then you don't automatically have to attach to it. You can talk back to it. We don't have to believe the nonsense that's going on in our head, to sort of begin to

• 49:28Daniel Amen?

  think about it like the weather and then go, "Does this thought serve me? Does it help me? Is it even true?" And it's so often the lies we tell ourselves that keep us overweight, depressed, and feeble-minded.

• 49:51Mel Robbins?

  Yeah, I can give everybody an example from my own life. When I was super sick, I started to tell myself this story that my husband, Chris, was mad at me, that he was annoyed, that he was taking care of me. I was telling myself this story that people were mad, that I had to cancel things. And all of those thoughts made me feel terrible, and none of them were true.

• 50:21Mel Robbins?

  And so you're right. I didn't interrupt them last week. I just sort of marinated in them. But I'm realizing, sitting here, listening to you, that I allowed those negative thoughts that were not even true to make me feel bad. What advice do you have for people who are chronically tired, Dr. Amen?

• 50:39Daniel Amen?

  Well, the first thing is get your thyroid checked.

• 50:41Mel Robbins?

  Get your thyroid checked. Okay.

• 50:44Daniel Amen?

  Chronic tiredness can go with low thyroid. It can go with you being anemic. It can go with you having low iron. So, you know, I always think of people in four big circles: biological, psychological, social, and spiritual. And so I'm always going to, so what's the biology of tiredness?

• 51:05Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 51:06Daniel Amen?

  You know, you had an infection. How's your gut health? What's going on in your hormones? You can also be chronically tired because you're filled with automatic negative thoughts. So that negativity can drive higher cortisol production and you just feel wiped out. You also might not be sleeping well. And getting checked for sleep apnea is critical because that goes with chronic tiredness. So if you start loudly, if you stop breathing at night, if you're chronically tired during the day, you should get sleep apnea checked. If you're

• 51:48Daniel Amen?

  in a conflict with a loved one, that so drains your energy. Or if you're holding on to hurt, I'm a huge fan of forgiveness. You know, not holding on to hurts where you're drinking the poison and hoping someone else is gonna die. And then tiredness and spirituality, I think of purpose. The more purposeful someone is, the more dopamine they have. And so really focusing in on, you know, why you're on the planet, I think is a critical piece to energy as well.

• 52:29Mel Robbins?

  I want to come back to some tips and some tools that people can use to start boosting brain health. What are the five best foods that you can eat for brain health?

• 52:42Daniel Amen?

  Salmon, especially wild salmon for the omega-3 fatty acids. Berries, blueberries, they're often called them brainberries. So people take blueberry extract, as has been shown, to improve memory.

• 53:01Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 53:02Daniel Amen?

  Nuts and seeds. People who eat nuts and seeds on a regular basis have a lower incidence of depression and dementia. Leafy greens for the fiber and the magnesium. But my favorite one is raw cacao, or, you know, the main ingredient in chocolate.

• 53:27Mel Robbins?

  Wow.

• 53:28Daniel Amen?

  I want you to try this. I make brain-healthy hot chocolate virtually every day.

• 53:35Mel Robbins?

  How do you make it?

• 53:36Daniel Amen?

  And so I get raw cacao. So for each serving, you know, say the serving's like 12 ounces, a heaping teaspoon of raw cacao, unsweetened organic almond milk, and you could do with other nut milks, but I like almond milk. And there's a company called Sweet Leaf that makes liquid chocolate stevia. And so I heat up the milk, I mix in the raw cacao, I put a couple of dropperfuls of chocolate stevia, and put it in a blender. It tastes amazing.

• 54:16Mel Robbins?

  See, I love that there was an ambulance driving by in the background as you, as my and our brain doctor, were telling us to make hot chocolate. That was just a beautiful thing. I think that was the universe telling us all, we need to have our brain-healthy cacao with the stevia chocolate sweetener. I'm actually gonna make one when we are done with this. What can I do to, what can we do to improve our memory, Dr. Amon?

• 54:43Daniel Amen?

  Think about this, Mel. Fifty percent of people 85 and older will be diagnosed with dementia. Like, those are odds I am not okay with. And if you want to keep your brain healthy or rescue it, you have to prevent or treat The 11 major risk factors that steal your mind. And I know we don't have time to go in it, but the mnemonic I have is bright mind. So for example, maybe the most important thing B is for blood flow.

• 55:14Mel Robbins?

  Okay.

• 55:15Daniel Amen?

  Whatever you can do to increase blood flow to your brain, you're gonna be happier, your memory's gonna be better, and you're gonna be more sexual.

• 55:27Mel Robbins?

  So is that the brisk walking?

• 55:30Daniel Amen?

  So you want to avoid things that steal blood flow, caffeine, nicotine, being sedentary, having any form of heart disease. And then you want to do things that enhance blood flow. So walking, raw cacao, beet, the supplement ginkgo. These things all increase blood flow. Cinnamon, oregano.

• 55:56Mel Robbins?

  Cinnamon, oregano. Wow, this is starting to sound like a cooking show. But don't worry, everybody, we're gonna put Dr. Amen's information, including the information on bright minds, in the show notes because there are 11 of them. And I don't know about you, but I definitely cannot keep track of 11 things right now. So Dr. Amen, you've been a psychiatrist for 40 years. What are five things that you would never do because it's bad for your mental health and your brain health?

• 56:21Daniel Amen?

  I would never say everything, I think. Some people come to me and say, oh, Dr. Amen, I'm brutally honest. And I'm like, well, that's usually not helpful. I would never purposely stay up late and screw up my sleep. I would never eat everything I want. And I would never take medicine just based on symptom clusters. I always want to look at the brain and then target whatever treatment I need to how somebody's brain's motion.

• 56:56Mel Robbins?

  Yeah, the one thing I forgot to ask you, this time of year, when it gets darker earlier and it's colder, I notice my mood drops and I feel sad. What do you do, whether it's because of the time of year, or because of chronic stress, you feel this sort of languishing or heaviness set in? What are three things that you would recommend that somebody do to boost their mood?

• 57:30Daniel Amen?

  So, morning bright light, exercise, don't overdo the caffeine. And it's really important, I haven't talked about this yet, turn off blue light when the sun goes down.

• 57:44Mel Robbins?

  What is blue light?

• 57:46Daniel Amen?

  Constantly flooded with blue light. And in the morning, it's fine, but after dark, it's not because it decreases the production of melatonin. So you get it from your laptop, or you get it from your phone, or you get it from whatever gadgets you might be looking at. And so, after dark, either put blue light blockers on your gadgets, or just turn them off and go read a book.

• 58:17Mel Robbins?

  If you could leave everyone with just one thing to start doing today, to create better brain health, what would it be?

• 58:31Daniel Amen?

  Whenever you come to a decision point in your day, just ask yourself, and what I'm doing, good for my brain or bad for it? And if you can answer that with information and love, I'm serious about this, love of yourself, love of your family, love of the reason you're on earth, you're gonna start making good decisions for your brain, and then everything in your life will be better.

• 59:03Mel Robbins?

  Dr. Amen, you're so awesome. Thank you for giving us very tactical and doable strategies based on research that help us improve not only the physical and functioning aspect of our brains, but also tools and strategies to help us to start to reprogram the brain and the thinking patterns in it. Dr. Amen, you are a gift. We so appreciate you. I love you. Thank you for spending the time with us. Thanks, Dr. Amen.

• 59:33Daniel Amen?

  Thank you, my friend. What a joy.

• 59:36Mel Robbins?

  What a joy is right. And there is so much that Dr. Amen threw at us today in terms of resources and things to do. And there's a particular resource that he has for free that I want to make sure you know about. He has a website called brainhealthassessment.com. I want you to check it out, and here's why. There are 16 different brain types, and based on 200,000 brain scans, Dr. Amen has a free assessment that you can take online that based on these 200,000 brain scans that measure blood flow and activity in the brain, he literally can help predict what your brain might look like if it was scanned in

• 1:00:17Mel Robbins?

  one of his clinics based on the most common symptoms that you experience. So in less than five minutes, you can discover a comprehensive approach to optimal brain health based on your brain. You can know your brain's risk factors. Why? So that you can actually address it starting today. And so I want you to go to brainhealthassessment.com if you want to learn more, if you want to know what specifically you should do for free, and you will get a personalized email report. And I believe so much in this, obviously, because Dr. Amen's work.

• 1:00:58Mel Robbins?

  Has helped my husband, it has helped me, and I know it will help you. We'll put this all in the show notes. You can peruse it at your, you know, leisure, your desire, whenever the heck you want. But it's there for you because as you know, the Mel Robbins Podcast, we're not just here to listen, we're here to do something about it. And one final thing, in case nobody else tells you, I want to be the one to tell you that I love you, I believe in you, I believe in your ability to create a better life. And what we both learned today is it does begin with you starting to take better care of your brain. That bowl of macaroni that's between your two ears, you and I, we need to start to really pay attention to it.

• 1:01:43Mel Robbins?

  And I hope that you now feel better equipped, I know I do, to be able to do that. All right, I'll see you in a few days.

• 1:02:07Mel Robbins?

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• 1:02:50Mel Robbins?

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