How to boost dopamine naturally with 30 feel-good habits
Clinically reviewed by Dr. Chris Mosunic, PhD, RD, MBA
Feeling low-energy or just “blah”? Learn how to build your own "dopamine menu," which can help you naturally boost your mood and feel better, fast.
If you’ve ever finished an epic hike and felt like you could conquer the world, or had an exquisite meal and left the restaurant wanting to shout it from the rooftops, then you’ve experienced dopamine in action.
Dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter responsible for the good feelings we get after doing pleasurable things like seeing a great movie, attending a fantastic concert, or taking a walk through a beautiful national park.
Of course, sometimes, despite your best intentions, your mood dips, and having a few dopamine-boosting activities at your fingertips can be just what you need to find a bit more joy and feel a bit more like yourself.
Let’s explore the small ways you can nudge your brain towards more feel-good moments. That dopamine boost can turn a “blah” day into a better one.
What is dopamine?
Picture dopamine as your brain’s personal hype man. It can make you feel excited and even motivate you. It also helps you focus so you can keep moving toward your goals. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, which is a tiny chemical that helps your brain cells communicate. It fuels movement, anticipation, and reward.
Dopamine tends to rise even in anticipation of something good, like when your takeout is almost here or right before you check off something on your to-do list. It can also spike when something is new or exciting, like meeting someone you like, or starting a movie you've been looking forward to watching. Or when you accomplish a task you’ve worked hard for, like passing a big exam or giving a great presentation at work.
Why you might be craving a “quick hit”
So why do you like getting a dopamine hit? Well, it has to do with evolution. The brain is naturally wired for survival. So you crave pleasure, because, once upon a time, recognizing quick forms of pleasure—like food or safety—kept us humans alive.
These days, our environments have expanded from simple forms of pleasure helping us to survive, to things like checking our phones and shopping online. This may eventually lead to trouble because reaching for quick forms of pleasure all the time can cause our dopamine to fluctuate, perhaps leaving us feeling worse off than before.
Finding dopamine habits that keep us feeling good without long term consequences, like overeating, going into credit card debt or wasting hours scrolling through social media, may help us to be healthier. Building grounded habits makes you more likely to feel like yourself and live a calmer life consistently.
What is a dopamine menu?
A dopamine menu is a low-pressure, high-reward tool to help you feel better without overthinking or pursuing pleasurable habits that can be detrimental in the long term. It’s a personal cheat sheet of activities that gently boost your mood and energy, without pushing you into overdrive. Think of it like micro-moments of calm, connection, creativity, or movement.
Typically, if you get stuck in a fog, it can be hard for your brain to remember what makes you feel better. But a dopamine menu can help take the guesswork out. You just pick something, do it, and repeat it as needed. You can even organize your dopamine menu by time or intensity, like:
Tiny treats (1–5 minutes): Open a window to feel the breeze, play a song that makes you dance, step outside and get some sun or fresh air.
Daily anchors (10–30 minutes): Walk around your neighborhood, cook something without rushing, do your favorite stretch.
Deep resets (30+ minutes): Move your body, lose yourself in a hobby, connect deeply with someone who sees you
How to boost dopamine naturally: 30 ideas to add to your menu
When it comes to boosting dopamine, slow and steady wins the race. Here are some ideas to add to your “menu” that can gently nudge your brain into a better place.
Tiny treats (1–5 minutes)
These are the low-effort, high-comfort moments. They take almost no time, but still pack a mood-boosting punch.
1. Step out into the sun: Natural light helps regulate dopamine and your circadian rhythm. Even just a few minutes near a window can do the trick.
2. Listen to your favorite song: Put on a song that lights you up. Maybe even dance like no one’s watching if you’re feeling up to it.
3. Touch something comforting: Touching textured things like a warm mug and a soft blanket can help ground you.
4. Change your environment slightly: Open a window, light a candle, or tidy a little corner of your space. Shifting your sensory input can reset your brain.
5. Drink water: Hydrate! If this sounds boring, freshen it up by adding lemons and putting it in your favorite glass.
6. Hug someone (or something): Physical touch can release oxytocin, which plays nicely with dopamine. So, go hug a loved one, your pet, or your favorite squishy pillow.
Read more: How to find happiness: 9 simple and helpful tips
7. Move your body for one minute: Do some jumping jacks or little shoulder rolls. It doesn’t need to be big, just enough that you feel a tiny difference.
8. Recall a win (big or small): Think about a time you did something that made you feel good, like you perfectly parallel parked, or you nailed mimicking that speech from your favorite movie.
9. Smell something lovely: Ground yourself with a scent you love, like coffee beans, essential oils, or clean laundry.
10. Swap something: Change your shirt, playlist, or the room you’re in. A tiny shift can help trick your brain into feeling refreshed.
Daily anchors (5–30 minutes)
These are your feel-good rituals that help to keep your brain from collapsing mid-week.
1. Walk without a destination: Meander or stroll around your neighborhood. Let your thoughts wander while your feet move.
2. Make something: Bake cookies, draw a terrible stick figure, or re-pot a plant. Creativity can help boost dopamine by giving your brain a sense of novelty and control. (Here are 15 other mindful ways to help spark your creativity.)
3. If you’re not eating enough protein, try to increase it: Dopamine needs the amino acid tyrosine to be made, and foods like eggs, almonds, chicken, tofu, and beans are full of it.
4. Journal: Write down one thing you’re grateful for, or do a brain dump of what’s swirling around. This can give you clarity, calm you down, and make you feel better. (Here are seven ways to practice being grateful.)
5. Practice a bit of mindfulness: Meditate or practice breathwork. Even one minute of mindfulness can help regulate your nervous system and boost your dopamine.
💙 Listen to Mindfulness with Tamara Levitt to help you feel better on tough days.
6. Finish a task that’s been haunting you: Dopamine loves a checkmark. So fold the laundry, answer that email, or finally return that library book.
7. Get tactile: Do something that uses your hands and engages your senses. You could try knitting, painting, or even sculpting.
8. Listen to something inspiring: Put on a podcast or an audiobook that motivates you or makes you feel excited about the future.
9. Do a mini reset of your space: Make your bed, wipe a counter, or just fluff a pillow. Visual calm can help you get emotionally calm.
10. Laugh (on purpose): Watch something silly on purpose, call a funny friend, or revisit that meme that always makes you belly laugh.
Deep resets (30+ minutes)
These resets aren’t everyday activities. But when you’re in the thick of it, they can make you feel grounded, connected, and purposeful. They may take more time, but they usually stick with you a lot longer.
1. Work out (or just play): Do a yoga session, go for a hike, or roller skate to your favorite nostalgic songs. Exercise can help trigger dopamine, especially after it’s complete, which can help lift your mood and boost motivation.
(Here are seven other simple movement exercises to boost your mental health.)
2. Plan something fun: Dopamine can rise when we anticipate something rewarding, like pleasure or accomplishment. So, book a trip, RSVP to a concert, or plan a cozy night in.
3. Have a real conversation: Get deep with someone who gets you. Connection is one of the most reliable sources of sustainable dopamine.
💙 Learn how to build more Real Connection in your life during this session with Tamara Levitt.
4. Do a full dopamine detox: Try a few hours—or even a day—without your usual digital crutches. Let your brain reset. You might be surprised by what you notice and what starts to feel fun again.
Read more: What is dopamine fasting? Potential benefits and how to do it
5. Spend time in nature: Get out into the world. Go to a forest, park, or just your backyard. Your brain will thank you.
6. Tackle a creative project: Pick up your camera or doodle in a sketchbook. It doesn’t have to be good. That’s not the point. Just have fun.
7. Cook a full meal from scratch: Pick out ingredients that you know you like and go from there. Feeding yourself well is its own kind of pleasure.
8. Read something juicy: Read a novel you can’t put down or a magazine you keep meaning to open.
9. Volunteer or offer help: Helping someone else, even in a small way, can be a great dopamine booster. Plus, it feels genuinely good.
10. Take a slow bath or shower: Picture yourself in a spa and let the water rinse off the static of your day.
How to boost dopamine naturally FAQs
How can I increase dopamine levels in a natural way?
The best way to naturally increase dopamine without long term consequences is by building in small and consistent habits that genuinely feel good but don’t result in long term problems, like becoming overweight of going into debt. Movement that energizes you is a great way to do this.
Other actions that can do the trick are getting outside, listening to music, and laughing with someone you love.
How long does it take for natural dopamine boosts to work?
It really depends. Some hits, like hearing your favorite song and catching sunlight on your face, can feel immediate. Others, like regular movement, mindfulness, and a consistent sleep schedule, build slowly.
Think of it like charging your phone. Some activities give you a quick boost while others are the long cord plugged into the wall that’s steadily powering you back up.
Overall, your brain benefits most when dopamine levels rise through repeatable actions that don’t lead to negative long term consequences filling you up, not hurting things like your financial picture or health.
What’s the difference between dopamine and serotonin?
Dopamine is your short-term pleasure chemical. It’s about pursuit, reward, anticipation, and pleasure — like eating your favorite meal or the feeling you get after checking something off your to-do list.
Serotonin, on the other hand, is your steady state mood balancing neurotransmitter. It regulates mood over time and contributes to a sense of overall wellbeing and calm. Basically, if dopamine is the spark, serotonin is the cozy fire that keeps burning.
Is too much dopamine a bad thing?
Spiking your dopamine with short term pleasures that lead to negative long term consequences can be a bad thing, like becoming overweight or going into debt. When your dopamine comes from things that don’t lead to negative long term problems, it helps to keep you motivated, curious, and emotionally resilient.
But when it’s over-activated, usually through things like substance use, compulsive behaviors, or constant overstimulation, it can lead to burnout, emotional crashes, and even addictive loops.
Can meditation really increase dopamine?
Meditation can help increase your dopamine, especially practices that emphasize mindfulness, breathwork, and loving-kindness. Just a few minutes of intentional stillness may help calm your nervous system and gently boost feel-good neurochemicals, like dopamine.
If meditating isn’t your thing, try pausing and taking two or three deep breaths instead. This short moment of stillness may also boost your dopamine.
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