Time Perception & Entrainment by Dopamine, Serotonin & Hormones | Huberman Lab Podcast #46

Dopamine's Role

Dopamine plays a crucial role in how we perceive time, often leading to an overestimation of time passage. Andrew Huberman explains that increased dopamine levels can cause us to fine-slice time, similar to increasing the frame rate on a camera, which makes events appear to last longer than they do 1. This effect is evident in a study where dopamine release during surprising or expected events influenced how subjects perceived time during a basketball game 2.

You're batching time according to the frequency of dopamine pulses, the frequency of dopamine release.

--- Andrew Huberman

This suggests that dopamine not only marks positive or unexpected events but also sets the frame rate for our entire perception of experiences.

   

Serotonin's Effect

Serotonin, in contrast to dopamine, leads to an underestimation of time passage. Huberman highlights that elevated serotonin levels slow down the brain's frame rate, causing people to perceive time as moving faster than it is 3. This phenomenon is often observed when serotonin levels are increased through pharmacological means or substances like cannabis.

They take the frame rate...from 4,000 frames per second down to, say, 20 frames per second.

--- Andrew Huberman

Moreover, disruptions in sleep can cause a dysregulation of serotonergic and dopaminergic states, further affecting our time perception and concentration 4.

   

Memory & Time

Dopamine also influences how we remember past events, often making fun experiences seem longer in retrospect. Huberman notes that while exciting events feel like they pass quickly, they are remembered as lengthy and detailed due to increased dopamine levels 5. Conversely, boring experiences feel prolonged in the moment but are recalled as brief.

If something that you experience is fun or varied...you will experience that as going by very fast.

--- Andrew Huberman

This paradox highlights how dopamine affects both our immediate and retrospective time perception, shaping our memories and experiences 6.