Sometimes it's hard to be positive, but the value that comes from being grateful are so broad - mentally and physically - that working to get that into a habit loop reaps tremendous benefits. Gratitide really is the best attitude.
In the previous blogs I’ve tried to provide both insight and practical opportunities to help you cope with challenging situations. We’ve talked about stress, so we can better understand what is happening, and how that affects us. We’ve also talked about resilience and what we can do reduce the impact of stress, or the stress load on us. Today I want to dig deeper into 1 way to address both. It’s so simple it daft, but its 100% the best way to help us all feel better that this unclear time. Gratitude.
Gratitude is the human way of acknowledging the good things of life. Thanking others, thanking ourselves, appreciating Mother Nature, it can take on many many forms and it enlightens the mind and make us feel happier. It also has a healing effect on us.
We know what gratitude is, but does it really affect our brains and bodies? Yes, 100% it does, and the effect of gratitude on the brain is long lasting. Besides enhancing self-love and empathy, gratitude significantly impacts on body functions and psychological conditions like stress, anxiety, and depression.
1. Gratitude aids in stress regulation
Significant studies over the years have established the fact that by practicing gratitude we can handle stress better than others. Studies found that grateful people show a marked reduction in the level of cortisol, the stress hormone. They also have better cardiac functioning and were more resilient to emotional setbacks and negative experiences.
2. Gratitude reduces anxiety and depression
By reducing the stress hormones and managing the autonomic nervous system functions, gratitude significantly reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety. At the neurochemical level, feelings of gratitude are associated with an increase in the neural modulation of the prefrontal cortex, the brain site responsible for managing negative emotions like guilt, shame, and violence.
3. Gratitude releases toxic emotions
The limbic system is the part of the brain that is responsible for all emotional experiences. Studies have shown that the two main sites regulating emotions, memory, and bodily functioning (that’s the hippocampus and amygdala), get activated with feelings of gratitude.
4. Gratitude reduces pain
Studies have shown that 16% of the patients who kept a gratitude journal reported reduced pain symptoms and were more willing to work out and cooperate with the treatment procedure. A deeper dig into the cause showed that by regulating the level of dopamine, gratitude fills us with more vitality, thereby reducing subjective feelings of pain.
5. Gratitude improves sleep quality
The hypothalamus – the gland within the limbic systems that regulates all bodily mechanisms - sleep is a vital one. Hypothalamic regulation triggered by gratitude helps us get deeper and healthier sleep naturally A brain filled with gratitude and kindness is more likely to sleep better and wake up feeling refreshed and energetic every morning
In my blog on Stress we talked about the fact that the brain’s first and foremost role is to help us survive, and are therefore set up to focus more on the obstacles and difficulties of life because they demand action in order to survive. We have to fight and overcome them to get back the normal flow of life. On the flip-side, it has little need to attend to the better things in life because they are ‘already there’ and don’t present a problem to be solved.
In his book ‘Grateful Brain,’ author Alex Korb explains that our brain is also conditioned to function in a repeated way. For example, a person who worries too much about the adverse outcomes will subconsciously re-wire their brain to process negative information only. Korb has mentioned that our mind cannot focus on positive and negative information at the same time. So that not only in times of stress but all times, we could only see the caveman interpretation of the situation – not the flip-side. We need to practice gratitude to remind ourselves of the things that give us the courage to move on in life.
By consciously choosing to practice gratitude, we can train the brain to attend selectively to positive emotions and thoughts, thus reducing our stress load, our anxiety and feelings of apprehension at time of uncertainly and fear. .
A key component of mental resilience (which is what we all need now) is gratitude. Gratitude builds emotional resilience by:
Helping us to see the positive things in life
Fighting the negative ruminations and rebuilding pessimistic thoughts with optimistic ones
Staying grounded and accept the present situation, even if that is a harsh reality
Identifying and focusing only on solutions
Maintain good health by regulating our metabolic functioning and by controlling the hormonal balances
Sustain relationships and appreciate people who are there for us.
So whichever way we look at it, what we need in our lives right now is more gratitude… but how? There are several easy practical ways you can add gratitude into your life everyday, here are the 3 I use daily – never takes more than 5mins!
1. Appreciate Yourself
Stand in front of your mirror and speak out five good things about yourself to yourself. It can be about your past achievements or your present efforts, your talents and your virtues. Just say the words aloud. Compliment yourself with words like beautiful, loyal, disciplined, kind, loving, etc., and notice if that makes you feel better.
Now, for most people looking themselves in the eye and doing this feels odd, uncomfortable and for many impossible to start with. We are so used to looking external for these reassurances and were brought up being told to say these things about yourself is arrogant. Forget all that, the benefits you will reap once you get over yourself and give it a go (more than once!!!) will spur you on to do this more and more.
I have a set of positive affirmations stuck to my mirror, and I pick a few each day – it means I start the day feeling confident and assured that I can deal with whatever the day throws at me!
2. Gratitude journal
You might have heard about this before. A gratitude journal is your personal space to pen down all the little and big things in life that you are thankful for.
I have been doing a daily gratitude journal for over 7 years now. Every morning I write down 10 things I’m grateful for. 5 from the day before and 5 for my future (written in the present tense). This means I start the day focussed on the positive.
And every night before I go to bed, I remind myself of the best thing that day. I therefore end the day and enter sleep from a place of gratitude too.
When I first started I was in a bad place, and trying to think of 2 good things in a day were hard, but no matter how bad the day I could always find them – sometimes they are small, sometimes they are generic, but I can always find them. The weather, my health, the support of friends, an achievement at work, finding a place to park, yummy food – there are so so many things to be grateful now. These days I have to restrict myself to 10!!
Here's a template/reminder for you.
3. Find a gratitude buddy
Find a gratitude buddy for your daily practice – it can be your spouse, your kid, or your friend from anywhere. Make a regular contact daily to check in and assure that gratitude is front of mind.
I’ve had a gratitude buddy for 4 years now. I text her every morning to say I’ve done my journal and every night before bed I text her the best thing that happened that day. It makes sure I do it, and it also means I get to hear her gratitude and share in that.
Sharing thoughts of gratefulness with someone is a great way to sustain motivation and strengthen your emotional skills.
We’ve both had days were we text says “nothing to be grateful for today” and right back comes the “look deeper, start small and grow from there”… I survived the day – is a valid thing to be grateful for. I have a roof over my head, food to eat, clean water! Even if you have to get right back to basics sometimes, it gets the ball rolling and ensures your mind keeps exploring for those positives. It becomes easier and easier.
“Be thankful for what you have, you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never ever have enough.” – Oprah Winfrey
We know how to experience and express gratitude, and now you know the many ways it benefits you. At this time of heightened stress due to uncertainty, change and fear – we need all those benefits more than ever.
All we need sometimes is a little push or a reminder of how powerful and vital gratitude exercises are.
Consider this your reminder…
Until next time...
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