The Neurotransmitter Network

The brain chemicals that shape how you feel, and the conditions that shape them.

There’s a moment, maybe you’ve felt it, where your body reacts before you do.

Before a thought. Before a feeling. Your breath shortens. Your gut shifts. Your skin senses something.

That’s not just stress or instinct. That’s chemistry.

We call them neurotransmitters, but that word barely holds what they are.

Messengers, yes. But also mood-shapers. Focus-holders. Gatekeepers. The body’s way of translating experience into action.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve met four of them. Dopamine, the spark. Serotonin, the steady thread. GABA, the gentle brake pedal. Glutamate, the gas pedal.

You might know their names. But when you really pay attention, you start to feel their presence.

The way motivation hums, or disappears. The difference between a steady mood and a sudden crash. The tension that won’t unhook itself until you eat, or rest, or cry.

These aren’t just molecules. They’re how your body stays in conversation with itself. They don’t float around solo, doing their thing. They interact. Respond. Rebalance. Like any good network, they work better when they’re supported, and glitch when one part gets overloaded.

And this is just the beginning.

There are over a hundred neurotransmitters in the human body. Some well-mapped. Others still being understood. But these first four? They’ve given us something already: A way to understand the shifts we feel. A way to respect what’s happening under the surface.

In the weeks to come, we’ll meet a few more. Acetylcholine. Adrenaline. Histamine. Each with their own rhythm, their own story. Each part of the same system.

For now:

Four Key Neurotransmitters: The Interaction Matrix

Neurotransmitter	Role in the Body	Personality Metaphor	Primary Function	In Relationship With...
Dopamine	Motivation, reward, focus	The go-getter	Initiates drive, movement, anticipation	Competes with serotonin; modulated by glutamate
Serotonin	Mood regulation, resilience	The steady one	Balances mood, supports sleep and digestion	Works alongside dopamine; built from tryptophan
GABA	Inhibition, calm	The calm one	Slows signals, reduces overactivity	Made from glutamate; balances glutamate directly
Glutamate	Excitation, alertness	The intense one	Speeds signals, enhances learning	Converts into GABA; modulates dopamine pathways

They don’t work in silos. They work in sequence, in balance, in response.

This matrix isn’t a checklist, it’s a conversation map. One that reflects the real-time, responsive nature of your inner world.

A conversation map

Remember, each neurotransmitter doesn’t “give” you a mood. It supports the state your body thinks it needs.

If you’re in a survival state, your brain might pump more glutamate to stay hypervigilant. If you’re in recovery mode, it may lean on GABA to downshift. If you’re feeling connected and regulated, serotonin and dopamine tend to flow with ease.

So rather than trying to “boost” a specific neurotransmitter, it helps to ask: What state is my nervous system in? And what’s it asking for?

Because these chemicals are not just causes of your mood. They’re responses to your state.

Let’s walk back through your brain’s chemical crew

GABA – The Gentle Brake Pedal

GABA is your brain’s calming neurotransmitter. It helps you slow down, let go, and exhale. It’s made from glutamate and supports nervous system downshifting, especially at night.

When GABA is low, the world feels jagged. Noise feels louder. Stress lingers longer. Sleep doesn’t come easily.

It needs support from magnesium, B6, glycine, and a nervous system that feels safe enough to soften.

Glutamate – The Gas Pedal

Glutamate is your main excitatory neurotransmitter. It helps with memory, learning, alertness, and motivation. But too much, or poor conversion into GABA, and it creates tension, overwhelm, and anxiety.

High glutamate feels like being on edge, even when nothing’s wrong. Racing thoughts, quick reactions, trouble relaxing.

Balance, not elimination, is the goal. Because you need glutamate to stay present and functional. But not so much that your body forgets how to rest.

Dopamine – The Spark

Dopamine is your motivation molecule. It’s tied to pleasure, drive, focus, and reward. When you feel lit up by a task, or proud of finishing something, dopamine was there.

But dopamine isn’t about chasing “more". It’s about healthy engagement.

You need enough tyrosine, B-vitamins, iron, and a regulated nervous system to access it. Too much stress? You burn it out. Too much sugar or stimulation? You dysregulate the receptors.

The magic is in the spark that lasts, not the flash that fades.

Serotonin – The Steady Thread

Serotonin stabilises. It supports mood, sleep, gut motility, and feeling safe in your body. It’s not the “happy” neurotransmitter, it’s the resilient one.

It’s made largely in the gut, and influenced by tryptophan, B6, magnesium, sunlight, movement, and a gut that isn’t inflamed.

When serotonin is low, you feel flat. Disconnected. Like you’re floating, but not in a good way. When it’s supported, you feel like yourself, steady, flexible, able to feel things fully without falling apart.

And here’s what matters most

These neurotransmitters don’t operate on their own. They influence and depend on each other.

• GABA is made from glutamate.

• Serotonin helps modulate GABA.

• Dopamine and serotonin balance focus and mood.

• Too much glutamate can suppress GABA and serotonin.

• Not enough protein or minerals? You don’t make any of them well.

• Too much stress? You burn through them faster than you can rebuild.

They’re not individual switches. They’re part of a network of dials, turning up or down in response to:

• Your food

• Your breath

• Your stress

• Your microbes

• Your nervous system’s state of safety

It’s not just what you feel, it’s what your system thinks is needed.

If you’re living in a state of near constant alert, whether the threat is real, subtle, or long since passed, your brain chemistry will mirror that.

Not to sabotage you. But to keep you upright. To help you cope. To get you through.

Because that’s what it’s built to do, respond to the moment, the memory, the pattern.

So if you want to work with your neurotransmitters? You don't need to chase the chemicals. Support the conditions they trust.

That means rhythm. Rest. Enough food. And a body that doesn’t feel like it’s under siege.

What Supports the Network

System Input	How It Affects the Network
Protein + micronutrients	Provide the amino acid building blocks + cofactors for synthesis
Stable blood sugar	Prevents reactive stress signalling, supports dopamine + serotonin levels
Gut health + motility	Supports serotonin production, lowers inflammatory signals to brain
Sleep + darkness at night	Regulates GABA, serotonin, and dopamine rhythms
Rhythm + breath	Activates vagus nerve, supports GABA and serotonin balance
Reducing overexposure	Less noise, light, screen time lowers glutamate and frees up attention
Light in the morning	Boosts dopamine and serotonin, aligns nervous system to circadian time
Meaningful connection	Increases oxytocin, modulates dopamine + serotonin, reinforces safety

The bottom line

You are not just your chemistry. But your chemistry reflects your environment. Your pace. Your nourishment. Your safety. Your breath.

Neurotransmitters are responsive. Which means they’re also re-trainable.

You don’t have to chase balance by targeting each one. You support the network. You support the conditions.

You breathe. You eat. You rest. You reconnect. And your brain remembers what it's like to feel safe enough to settle. And curious enough to engage again.

Want to see where the science comes from? For the extra curious, the references are here.