How Gratitude Can Change Your Life
Incorporating gratitude into your day-to-day mindset can transform your life, helping you to bloom and grow into the best version of yourself. Focusing on the good and changing your mindset can help you to improve your physical health, mental health and even lead to better sleep, lower stress levels and improved relationships.
When you practice gratitude, your mind-body connection strengthens, which helps alleviate pain and allows your body to rest. Your mind-body connection is the link from your thoughts, emotions and behaviors toward your physical and biological health. Emotions and thought processes can influence your health in both negative and positive ways, so why not take advantage of this and practice gratitude to better your health? Think about it this way - have you ever been in a bad mood, feeling angry or sad, but then you listen to an upbeat song and automatically feel a little lighter on your feet? That’s your mind focusing on the good vibes of the music and telling your body to release that serotonin.
People can practice gratitude in many ways. Some easy ways to start are by saying what you are grateful for out loud. You could also keep a “gratitude journal”, where you write about positive things you’re thankful for in your life. Each morning, you can list out five things, big or small, that you are grateful for. Meditating on the blessings in your life can help shift your mindset. Telling the people you love how grateful you are for them can make you feel as good as it makes them feel, if not, better! These techniques can help reduce feelings of anxiety or depression. “An interesting fact is that studies actually show that one singular act of thankfulness can produce a 35% reduction in depressive symptoms and a 10% increase in happiness.”
Having positive thoughts can help calm down your nervous system and soothe your soul, therefore allowing you to sleep better. Have you ever heard the quote, “Slow down and smell the roses,”? It’s important to slow down and reflect on all of the blessings that surround you, or on how far you’ve come, whether it be in work, relationships, health or situations. You should celebrate the small victories as well as the big ones! Even in your darkest days and in all that you’ve been through, you’ve given it your best and worked hard to get to where you are now. It’s important to remember that your track record for making it through your toughest days is perfect - be proud of yourself for that! Focusing on the good helps your brain to slow down, be present and enjoy the moment. And who doesn’t love that feeling after getting a perfect night of sleep?
Taking time to appreciate the good can even improve your relationships. You become more mindful of how thankful you feel for the people around you. This can help to develop stronger bonds with others, and build better connections and community. Expressing gratitude can also gravitate others toward you. According to Najma Khorrami M.P.H, expressing gratitude helps you to celebrate the positives in your relationships, acknowledge the goodness in others, show your care for others and reciprocate kindness.
Embrace gratitude and strive to find something to be thankful for every day. This small act can boost your happiness, improve your health and you may even see your life blossom in many ways! Allow it to bloom right in front of you, and enjoy every season of it all.
By Virginia Shea