From the ABCs of goal achievement to complex psychological-hormonal processes – what’s happening inside me?

I’ll try to combine 3 areas:

1. 1. Best practices of goal achievement and psychosocial aspects.
   2. Biodynamic body psychotherapy and the emotional vasomotor cycle.
   3. Endobiogenics and hormonal influence.

Or… how my life motorcycle runs, what kind of fuel and oil it uses, at what rhythm the engine works.

I’ll start with good old goal achievement. The cycle here is simple and easy to understand:

What do I want? – Goal – Pursuit – Review – What do I want?

It turns out that biodynamic body psychotherapy has a similar cycle – the emotional vasomotor cycle (EV). It’s practically the same, just with an added rest phase:

Impulse – Charge – Discharge – Integration – Rest – Impulse

When discussing with endobiogenics specialists, it became clear that there’s also a cycle there – called the neuroendocrine regulation cycle (NR). It helps the body adapt to changing conditions and works asynchronously, meaning it doesn’t overlap 1:1 with the action cycle but exists within it.

Stimulus-Hypothalamic response-Pituitary response-Target gland activation-Body response-Feedback

When pursuing a long-term goal, the NR cycle completes not once but several, or even dozens of times. At each stage of the EV cycle, or even parts of stages, hormonal regulation occurs repeatedly, maintaining balance between motivation, energy, reflection and recovery.

For example, when pursuing a big goal, the NR cycle spins within the EV cycle:

• 1st NR cycle: dreaming → initial planning → first actions → reflection → rest.
• 2nd NR cycle: more detailed planning → more intense action → analysis and corrections → rest.
• 3rd NR cycle: Challenge → strategy refinement → more effective action → reflection → rest.

… and so on.

If the neuroendocrine cycle is disrupted (e.g., too much cortisol due to stress), burnout or loss of motivation may occur. The neuroendocrine cycle involves numerous substances, but we can mention some of the “most popular” ones and when they appear in the EV cycle: Dopamine, Serotonin, Cortisol, Adrenaline, Testosterone, Oxytocin, Melatonin, Endorphins.

Integrating all 3 areas and taking the emotional vasomotor cycle as the action base, we get this picture:

🌟Impulse

This is the idea. What do I want? It either comes from logical thought, or arises from the soul or… gut feelings. In the first case it’s arguments and environmental analysis, maybe advice from an authority figure, while in the second – it’s intuition and physiological reaction and body language, and the body doesn’t lie. For me this is very connected to peristalsis – when I think about what drives me, well, how to put it… processes that help the body get rid of what it doesn’t need work very well. In biodynamic body psychotherapy there’s even a term – psychoperistalsis. During therapy, specialists literally listen to what your gut is “playing”. Well, and endobiogenics specialists see dopamine here (because it’s fun to plan new things). That’s why we like scrolling through feeds – every 30 seconds there’s a new topic, new idea/impulse, new dopamine hit.

🌟Charge

I get fired up. I formulate the goal, make an action plan. I generate ideas, brainstorm, gather information, lay out possible options. The body activates – I don’t get tired for long, sleep less, everything around makes me happy. In this energy I might even hang a mirror on the wall – even though my wife has been asking for a month. Here I sometimes slip into excessive activism or trying to take on more than I can handle. Then I engage logic and conscious awareness, and calibrate the charge. If I don’t calibrate, the body disconnects me and does the calibration itself. Speaking of the body and its self-regulatory processes, endobiogenics comes into play again: Cortisol and adrenaline rev up the engine – increasing alertness, heart rate, muscle readiness. Norepinephrine provides clarity – focus! But if there’s too much cortisol – chaotic action and impulsive decisions may begin. The body also gives signals: heart pounding, muscles tense, hard to relax even in the evening.

🌟Discharge

This is action, goal pursuit, one task after another: task1, task2, task3… etc. This phase requires consistency, endurance and focus. Both physically and mentally. This is where reality becomes clear – how much do I really enjoy what I’m doing, did I take on too much, or maybe too little, how much does the world need this, what’s its resonance? If I try to discharge more than I’ve charged, or without any system I mix charging with discharging (i.e. without finishing and integrating old things I start generating new ideas), burnout, exhaustion or even illness threatens. And here logic and awareness help, without which natural bodily protective mechanisms kick in, acting like a manual brake. What’s happening at the hormonal level? Testosterone (yes, in women too!) strengthens determination, helps maintain endurance and competitive spirit. Dopamine gives a “reward” for each completed task – provides mini euphoria. If I overdo it – dopamine exhausts receptors, motivation drops, even favorite activities start seeming meaningless. Frustration, self-doubt, anxiety begin. Here the happiness hormone serotonin kicks in, it helps maintain emotional balance so it doesn’t turn into American-style rollercoasters. It’s like a big “everything’s fine” pillow.

🌟Integration

The goal (or several goals) is achieved (or not), so it’s time to review the matter from a bird’s eye view. Where were the obstacles? Why did I get stuck? What were the circumstances? How do I feel about this result? And most importantly – what will I do differently next cycle? Integration is very connected to learning for me, because repeating the same thing and expecting different results – well, that’s just stupid. In the business world this part is called “lessons learned session” and is usually led by the project manager after project completion. In personal life you can do it yourself, but it’s very easy to “agree” with yourself, so it’s worth involving a friend, spouse, or even an external expert like a coach. This stage requires maximum awareness and holistic, integral thinking. Oxytocin, which Billy Eilish sings about and which is related to social connections, helps accept feedback and discuss results with others. Serotonin allows emotional processing of experiences and learning from them without falling into the “oh, I’m a failure” abyss. If I ignore integration – the desire to jump into another project without reflection arises, mistakes repeat, burnout risk increases.

🌟Rest

A very important part, because it creates space for new impulses. When talking about goals, I always mention the importance of stepping away from routine – closing up in a lakeside cabin, going on a bike trip or just stretching legs on the couch with a beer can. Everyone has their own way. I have a tradition of taking a 3-day motorcycle trip or flying alone to another country. Both riding the bike and being on a plane “disconnect” from daily life. Most importantly, the mind and body relax. When the system rests, it willingly revs up again. GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) reduces nervous tension and helps disconnect from stimuli. Endorphins (especially if rest is active – sports, nature, travel) provide deep relaxation. If I don’t rest – cortisol levels remain high, melatonin is lacking, sleep is poor quality. Over time irritability appears, the body recovers slower, burnout risk increases.

🌟New impulse

A new impulse will come naturally when there’s space for it. Look – peristalsis is heading to the bathroom again… Bingo! No stomach spasms means everything’s fine, the impulse is good, mine, not forced. If the impulse is forced and doesn’t resonate internally, the body will say so. For example, a father tells his son to study physics, with specific arguments and examples, with future prospects and opportunities. The son understands, nods his head, but his stomach twists, head aches, needs lots of coffee. While young, he’ll push through, push through for long. But when thinking about a custom bike startup, gets an energy boost from his body…and doesn’t need to force anything, it flows naturally. Dopamine, mi amor…🙂 and his majesty Serotonin, my chemical Petunia, maintaining balance.

🎯Conclusions

Why do I need to know how everything works?

If the system gets out of balance, it’s quite useful to understand the causal relationships and adjust accordingly. For example, if I feel like a failure, maybe I lack serotonin, not knowledge, skills or muscles? Then I grab some nuts and a banana, put on sneakers and walk briskly under open sky where the sun shines, chatting with passersby, especially female ones. Or I’m sitting in the office, doing work I love, but something’s wrong? Maybe lacking oxytocin. Then I don’t need to change activities, but move to Workland where there’ll be someone to chat with over coffee, get a cat, hug my dad, listen to good music and maybe finally visit my aunt in Kaunas?

Understanding cyclicity is liberating – just act “from intuition” and see what happens – MOVE, and we’ll see, no need for perfect plans and visions. It’s calmer when you realize you don’t need to find final answers to all questions, to be or not to be… better to act and listen to your body, and know about it at least as much as I know about my motorcycle or car. Then the cycle will spin more efficiently, with less sticking, better balancing between maximum self-realization and pragmatic reality. And if I’m lucky, I’ll even get some love along the way.