#neurotransmitters

[thistlethorne]

FANTASIA KIT YOU HAVE SOME EXPLAINING TO DO

I FIGURED IT OUT

ok so I was doing some homework that required a little research on Solanaceae, which led me to Brazil's white angel trumpet, also known as angel's tears or snowy angel's trumpet. but then I looked at its scientific name...

Brugmansia suaveolens

THATS SOL'S NAME.

ok so I did some further research because I'm a little nerd, and I found out some more stuff that weirdly aligns? forgive me, I'm about to get scientific here.

Brugmansia Suaveolens is a species of nightshade from Brazil. It is extinct in its native area, however is still alive in places it was introduced. It is kept alive through human conservation.

Brugmansia suaveolens is actually nocturnal (sound familiar?), and only releases its scent in the evenings and at night, focusing on attracting only certain pollinators as it is toxic to the majority. It mainly attracts hawk moths, and over time adapted its shape to easily envelop its long proboscis. Brugmansia Suaveolens also partakes in chiropterophily, also known as pollination by bats. Bats are also immune to its poison, and love the high levels of nectar it produces during both of their prime hours. This is also why its primarily white to be more visible during the late hours and its shape is a perfect landing pad for the bat to make an entrance on.

Any part of Brugmansia Suaveolens is VERY poisonous, to the point that touching one's sap can cause temporary blindness. Smelling their extremely sweet perfume can cause nausea and headaches and sometimes respiratory irritation in people with asthma. ingestion can cause loss of consciousness, hallucinations, and comas. In some cases, Brugmansia Suaveolens has claimed the lives of those whom have digested it, often to try to trigger psychedelic effects, PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS IT WILL NOT WORK YOU WILL DIE. The most toxic part of them is especially their seeds and leaves, containing extremely high amounts of scopolamine, hyoscyamine, atropine, and other tropane alkaloids. fun fact, the chemical structure of tropane looks like a pterodactyl :D!!

But the alkaloid I wanna focus on is scopolamine, also called hyoscine or devil's breath. Scopolamine is an antimuscarinic agent, which blocks acetylcholine, an extremely important neurotransmitter and synapse processor, from the nervous system. Acetylcholine acts like a gate, letting in and blocking ion transport. It works in both the central and peripheral nervous system, activating muscle movement and cognitive function. By inhibiting this transmitter, scopolamine inhibits motor function and cognitive function. Scopolamine can thus be used as a drug to incapacitate a victim and has been used, albeit rarely, as a drug for sexual assault and kidnapping.

DOES THIS REMIND YOU OF SOMEONE?????

[puffycinnabunny]

I think this one reflects my colorful personality

[windudemon]

JUNGIAN COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS ARE REALLY NEUROTRANSMITTERS

Dopamine (Ne) is all about exploration, novelty, and active engagement with the world. It’s testing, experimenting, seeing what works, and staying open to multiple perspectives in real time. It’s "what if" thinking, bouncing between ideas, trying them out, and learning through trial and error. This is why the dopamine pathway is short and reactive, driving people to act quickly and be highly responsive to stimuli.

Acetylcholine (Ni) is much more about conception, depth, and refinement. It’s about filtering through possibilities, refining, and finding the most efficient path. This is more about a long-term vision, where you discount distractions and focus on what’s likely to work based on deep internal understanding. Like Ni, acetylcholine works with refined material, builds on past knowledge, and strives for clarity over time. Quality control over quantity. The pathway is longer, as it requires more time for reflection and synthesis.

Norepinephrine (Se) = Sensory Engagement / External Stimulation: Norepinephrine is often about stimulation, arousal, and action in the present moment, which matches Se's focus on immediate sensory input and the world outside. Se engages directly with external stimuli, maximizing the sensory experience—seeing, hearing, touching, and reacting to what's right in front of them, seeking novel or impactful experiences. Norepinephrine similarly drives people to engage with their surroundings, often seeking intensity and excitement. Both want to be in the moment and responsive to the environment.

GABA = Si (Introverted Sensing): GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter, meaning it calms down neural activity and contributes to a sense of stability, relaxation, and grounding. This is highly similar to Si, which is about internal sensory recall, stability, and creating a grounded mental state based on past experiences. Just like Si helps us process and stabilize memories and experiences, GABA contributes to calmness and internal balance.

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Ooops. Clickbait. Only the perceiving functions can be directly associated with neurotransmitters but here is why:

Perceiving functions (Ne, Ni, Se, Si) are more fundamental in terms of information gathering and conceptualizing because they deal with raw data, sensory input, and ongoing experience. These are processes that happen almost automatically and are more closely tied to the REACTIONS of the brain to immediate stimuli, which is where neurotransmitters like dopamine, norepinephrine, GABA, and serotonin come into play.

Judging functions, on the other hand, are higher-order, more abstract, and deal with organizing, categorizing, and deciding how to act on the information the perceiving functions gather. These processes tend to be more cognitive, involving more logical, computational thinking (yes, fi too!), which requires less direct chemical input and is mediated by higher-level brain areas like the prefrontal cortex. They are more internalized, less reactive to real-time input, and more about evaluating and controlling the data.

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But hey! If you really twist my arm, I could associate Fi with serotonin and Fe with oxytocin.

When it comes to Te and Ti, all I can think of is the lack of serotonin and oxytocin. You lack love, you are less moody, you think more robotic, sticking to the facts as opposed to idealistic or personal or communal values.

[hubbyschmokes]

[vorpalcoil]

"Cortisol", "dopamine", everyone casually throwing around words even neurologists barely understand like they're the new bodily humors. I'm putting the names of neurotransmitters on a high shelf until everyone's ready to play with them responsibly.

[blatentmisinformation]

The heart plays little to no role in human emotion. However, the liver actually secretes 90% of emotion related neurotransmitters and is key to emotional regulation.

[twilightcitysky]

WIP WEDNESDAY

@anotherwellkeptsecret was kind enough to make me a stunning illustration for the upcoming chapter of Chemistry. Posting it with a little snippet of what's to come in Chapter 14:

They were both scared, and neither had to go through it alone anymore. 

Be not afraid. “I love you,” he whispered, feeling his lips and tongue make the shape of those words for the very first time. ‘It feels loved… I’m astonished you can’t feel it’. Had he said that out of spite, or hope? Perhaps both. 

“Right. Good.” Crowley closed his eyes. The noise he made was such a stereotypical sigh of relief– ‘Phew’– that Aziraphale almost laughed, but bit his lip because he suspected it was a genuine reaction. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t–” 

Crowely shook his head minutely. Aziraphale remembered being shushed at the airbase (“I was technically on apple tree duty…”). When Crowley's eyes opened, there was a sheen to them. 

Aziraphale smiled at him. Crowley scowled. “‘M fine,” he said, and rubbed the inside of his wrist across his cheeks. “Don’t say anything.” 

“Not a word.” 

[solianapaeris]

Hobbies like embroidery, cross-stitching, crocheting, and knitting can release neurotransmitters in the brain that promote calmness and happiness. There are nerves in the fingertips that are activated when you press them together that send messages to your brain that calm it down. Apparently, holding a needle (or needles) activates those nerve points 🧵 🧶 🪡