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OXYTOCIN...reduced social anxiety

johnjuanb1

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Given its ability to break-down social barriers, induce feelings of optimism, increase self-esteem, and build trust, oxytocin is increasingly being seen as something that can help people overcome their social inhibitions and fears. Studies are showing that it may be effective in treating debilitating shyness, or to help people with social anxieties and mood disorders.

Chronic enhancement of brain oxytocin levels causes enduring anti-aggressive and pro-social explorative behavioral effects in male rats.

AuthorsCalcagnoli F, et al. Show all Journal
Horm Behav. 2014 Mar 26. pii: S0018-506X(14)00049-X. doi: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2014.03.008. [Epub ahead of print]

ABSTRACT

Oxytocin (OXT) has been implicated in the regulation of social behaviors, including intermale offensive aggression. Recently, we showed that acute enhancement of brain OXT levels markedly suppressed offensive aggression and increased social exploration in resident rats confronted with an intruder in their home territory. Moreover, a different responsivity to the exogenous OXTergic manipulation was observed among individuals based on their baseline aggression. In this study we aimed at evaluating the behavioral response to chronically enhancing or attenuating central OXT levels, and at scrutinizing whether the trait-aggression moderates the treatment-induced behavioral changes. To this end, resident male wild-type Groningen rats were continuously (via osmotic minipumps) intracerebroventricularly infused with synthetic OXT or a selective OXT receptor (OXTR) antagonist for 7days. Changes in behavior were assessed performing a resident-intruder test before and at the end of the treatment period, as well as after 7days of withdrawal. Chronic infusion of OXT was found to selectively suppress aggression and enhance social exploration. Chronic blockage of OXTRs instead increased introductory aggressive behavior (i.e. lateral threat), yet without affecting the total duration of the aggression. The magnitude of the anti-aggressive changes correlated positively with the level of baseline aggression. Interestingly, OXT-induced behavioral changes persisted 7days after cessation of the treatment. In conclusion, these findings provide further evidence that enhanced functional activity of the central OXTergic system decreases social offensive aggression while it increases social explorative behavior. The data also indicate that chronically enhancing brain OXT levels may cause enduring anti-aggressive and pro-social explorative behavioral effects.
 

johnjuanb1

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PAIN and WOUND HEALING

Oxytocin can also be used to heal wounds (through its anti-inflammatory properties). Studies have also shown that a rise in oxytocin levels can relieve pain — everything from headaches, cramps and overall body aches.
 

johnjuanb1

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OXYTOCIN CHARACTERISTICS:

- Reduced muscle tension
- Temporarily reduced appetite but increasing appetite with long term use
- Stimulates digestion on full stomach
- Increased urination (diuretic effect)
- Faster healing wounds and reduced inflammation
- Increase in growth hormone
- Stimulates mating
- More social contact between individuals
- Increased boldness and curiosity
- Sleep inducing effect (with high dosages)
- Diminished pain sensation
- Improved learning
 

johnjuanb1

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Oxytocin intensifies orgasms

'Love Hormone' Oxytocin May Intensify Orgasms
04/04/14 11:10 AM ET
By Rachael Rettner, Senior Writer Published: 04/04/2014 05:00pm EST on LiveScience

A dose of the "love hormone" oxytocin may make people's orgasms more intense, a new study from Germany suggests.

In the study, 29 healthy couples who'd been together for at least a year took either an oxytocinnasal spray or a placebo spray before having sex in their home. After intercourse, participants completed a survey about their sexual experience as well as their feelings toward their partner.

Oxytocin had no effect on sex drive or arousal for either men or women, nor did it affect the ability to achieve an erection for men, or vaginal lubrication for women. [11 Interesting Effects of Oxytocin]

But those who took oxytocin before sex — especially men — reported slightly more intense orgasms, as well as greater levels of contentment after sex. In addition, men who took oxytocin said they felt more sexually sated after sex than those who took the placebo.

Some women who took oxytocin reported that they were better able to share their sexual desires and empathize with their partners during sex.

"This field study demonstrates that [oxytocin] may alter specific aspects of sexual experience and partner interactions in healthy couples," the researchers, from Hannover Medical School in Germany, wrote in the March issue of the journal Hormones and Behavior.

Previous studies have suggested that oxytocin plays a role in relationship bonding, and the hormone is known to be released from the brain's pituitary gland during orgasm. But few studies have examined whether higher levels of the hormone affect sexual behavior.

The researchers noted that even though oxytocin seemed to intensify people's orgasms, the effect was rather modest. For example, men who took the hormone rated their contentment after sex about half a point higher (on a six-point scale) than those who took the placebo. This may be because oxytocin is already released during sex, so the effect of additional oxytocin may not be very large, the researchers said.

The researchers also noted the study was small and involved adults who reported no sexual problems. Future studies are needed to confirm the findings and to see whether the hormone may help those with sexual dysfunction, such those as low sexual desire or erectile dysfunction, the researchers said.
 

johnjuanb1

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Spontaneous erections

Oxytocin--anatomy and functional assignments: a minireview.

AuthorsKiss A, et al. Show all Journal
Endocr Regul. 2005 Sep;39(3):97-105.

ABSTRACT

Oxytocin (OXY) is a very abundant neuropeptide exerting a wide spectrum of central and peripheral effects as neurohormone, neurotransmitter, or neuromodulator. In the central nervous system (CNS), the OXY gene is predominantly expressed in magnocellular neurons in the hypothalamic paraventricular (PVN) and supraoptic (SON) nuclei. The magnocellular OXY neurons release their products into the general circulation in the neurohypophysis while the mediocellular OXY neurons secrete elsewhere in the CNS. OXY is also produced in peripheral tissues, e.g., uterus, placenta, amnion, corpus luteum, testis, and heart. OXY is a potent stimulator of spontaneous erections in rats and is involved in ejaculation. The typical actions of peripheral OXY are stimulation of uterine smooth muscle contraction during labor and milk ejection during lactation. OXY acts via the receptor which is a typical class of I G protein-coupled receptor. OXY receptors have also been identified in other tissues, including the kidney, heart, thymus, pancreas, and adipocytes.
 

johnjuanb1

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Better sleep

Problems Sleeping? Oxytocin Could Help You Sleep Better - Oxytocin Central.com

OXYTOCIN IMPROVES SLEEP

It’s a common problem. You feel tired, so you go to bed. However, once you get into bed, you find yourself lying awake for hours on end unable to get yourself off to sleep. Forget counting sheep; there may be a better, more effective solution to sleep problems.

Oxytocin influences sleep processes

Although there haven’t been any direct studies linking oxytocin to curing insomnia, scientists do know that oxytocin influences sleep processes, and there is plenty of evidence to back this theory up. A recent study by Blagrove et al, 2011, [1] found that oxytocin levels peak at around five hours after the start of sleep, typically during the REM stages of sleep. The study found that oxytocin levels are correlated with stages of light Stage Two sleep.
Solution for disorders that impact on a person’s sleep
Higher levels of oxytocin in the body have therefore been suggested to lead to a better effectiveness at getting to sleep and staying asleep. Many studies have found that oxytocin can be an effective treatment for disorders that affect sleep, such as depression and social anxiety (MacDonald et al, 2011) [2]. As a result of these findings, it is suggested that oxytocin administration (in the form of an intranasal spray) may also be an effective treatment for direct sleep disorders such as insomnia and dream disorders.

Calming for nightmares


Oxytocin is regularly associated with encouraging emotional bonds between both mothers and their children, and between partners. Research has demonstrated that the hormone connects social relationships in waking life.
The way oxytocin affects people’s sleep is said to be similar to the way it affects their relationships; current evidence from many scientific studies has concluded that oxytocin attenuates amygdalar hyper-responsivity to negatively valences emotional stimuli (Kirsch et al. 2005) [3]. This finding would suggest that, due to the fact that nightmares are linked to abnormal amygdalar activity, taking a dose of oxytocin nasal spray may help the person to sleep and may alleviate the severity of nightmares. It is a theory that Dr. Tammy Tucker, a family physician based in Bentonville, Northwest Arkansas, agrees with whole-heartedly. In her program and book, which promotes general health and wellbeing, she firmly states that oxytocin levels are closely linked to sleep – as well as several other health issues – and that a way of improving sleep quality is by taking a dose of oxytocin nasal spray or drops.

Improves sleep quality and amount

All of this promising research suggests that oxytocin modulates social emotions in dreams. This exciting prospect will no doubt lead to further research, hopefully leading to clues as to how the brain generates dreams and dream content. This would enable us to interpret our dreams more clearly; it could suggest that a person’s dreams are an extension of his or her social cognition.
But what does this mean for those people that are suffering from the crippling effects of insomnia? In short, it means that oxytocin could be found to significantly modulate sleep and sleeping patterns. If this is the case, it could be possible to manipulate a person’s oxytocin levels in order to improve their sleeping ability and quality.
 
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johnjuanb1

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OXYTOCIN and VIVID DREAMS

Oxytocin, Sleep, and Dreams

By Patrick McNamara, Ph.D. on August 27, 2011 - 5:48am
The neurohormone oxytocin has been found to influence a range of social and affiliative behaviors (MacDonald and MacDonald, 2010). Administration of oxytocin (OT) can enhance trust, empathy and a host of other pro-social feelings (MacDonald and MacDonald, 2010). We know that dreams, particularly dreams associated with the REM state, are primarily about social emotions and social interactions with people close to us and with perfect strangers. Could it be then that OT influences dream content when dreams depict social interactions?

There is evidence that oxytocin influences sleep processes: Levels of oxytocin peak at around 5 hours after sleep onset when REM sleep predominates.
Blagrove and his colleagues in Britain have been doing some exciting work on this issue. They (Blagrove et al, 2011) recently reported that OT levels are also correlated with stages of light sleep (Stage 2 in the old nomenclature). Dreams from Stage II are just as filled with social interactions as dreams from REM sleep.

Oxytocinergic activity, furthermore, is regulated by nuclei within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus close to centers that regulate arousal and sleep-wake states. In addition, oxytocin is known to modulate reactivity of the amygdala to social emotions and the amygdala, in turn, is modulated by REM sleep. Despite the multiple ways in which oxytocin may influence sleep and dreams, no study, as far as I know, has directly examined effects of oxytocin administration on sleep and dreams.

I suspect OT dramatically influences the social emotions we find in dreams. If OT influences social emotions in waking life there is no reason to believe it doesn't do so in dreams.
 

johnjuanb1

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It looks to me that oxytocin will help my insomnia. When you have an orgasm, oxytocin levels spike. After an orgasm you usually want to sleep and it's usually a very peaceful deep sleep. I can't wait til my vial of oxytocin arrives. :)
 

johnjuanb1

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Reconstitute it with bacteriostatic water. I'm going to add 2mls of bac water. I read that it only takes 10mcg to work but since it comes in
a 2mg vial I'll probably try 5 units on the diabetic syringe which is 50mcg.
 

big roscoe

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Mar 9, 2013
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I run kind of a secluded lifestyle which is probably self imposed? Parabolan probably doesn't help,lol, I'm hoping this will improve social interactions as well?
 

workhard2121

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I'm getting some for my girlfriend as she gets anxiety lately being in her premed course and working. Hoping this helps her a little. I'll definitely report back on it.