Do you or someone you know find things to be grateful for even during challenging and stressful times?
Do you or someone you know seem to focus on what is missing or difficult despite many positive things in your/their life?
The first person comes from a place of gratitude and appreciation while the latter is about holding a grievance or anger.
There are multiple benefits to having a gratitude practice. Research suggests it can improve sleep1: decrease inflammatory markers and increase heart rate variability2: it can enhance your sense of well-being and provide interpersonal and emotional benefits3.
When we develop a sense of appreciation for those around us and cultivate a sense of gratitude for life itself, we are relieved of the burden that comes with seeing ourselves as ‘victims,’” writes Greg Krech in Gratitude, Grace and the Japanese Art of Self-Reflection.
Krech calls this state of appreciation “grace,” a term used in many religions. However, grace as a practice is not a belief as much as a shift in thinking. Or as Krech puts it: “It’s the difference between seeing life as an entitlement and seeing it as a gift.”
However it is practiced, gratitude isn’t a blindly optimistic approach in which the bad things in life are whitewashed or ignored. It’s more a matter of where we put our focus and attention. Yes, pain and injustice, and cruelty exist in this world. But when we focus on the gifts of life, we gain a feeling of well-being. We often feel more energized to reach out and help others; we feel we have some power to positively affect our world. This again leads to a feeling of well-being…and gratitude. It’s a self-sustaining cycle!
Here are some simple, effective gratitude practices. Find one or more that resonate with you and give it a try for at least 2 weeks and see how you feel.
Every evening, think of 1-3 things you are grateful for. You can write them down if you prefer.
Weekly, write down everything you are grateful for and see how you feel in your body. Notice how you feel emotionally as well as in your physical body.
Verbally express feelings of appreciation to loved ones or friends.
Remember someone that helped or influenced you like a teacher, mentor, co-worker, pet. Recall how they made you feel good.
I hope you find this helpful. I would l love to hear about your experience practicing gratitude.
- Jackowska M, Brown J, Steptoe A. The impact of a brief gratitude intervention on subjective well-being, biology and sleep 2015; 21 (10): 2207-17
- Redwine L, Henry BL, Pung MA, Wilson K, Chinh K, Knight B, et al. A pilot randomized study of a gratitude journaling intervention on HRV and inflammatory biomarkers in Stage B heart failure patients. Psychosom Med 2016; 78 (6): 667-76
- Robert A Emmons , Michael E McCullough. Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. J Pers Soc Psychol 2003; Feb;84(2)