Developing an Attitude of Gratitude
Has anyone ever told you to stop and count your blessings? Well, they weren’t wrong. Reflect on meaningful moments in life, and take time to feel grateful, even for small positive interactions. When you practice gratitude regularly, you can experience a multitude of psychological, physical and interpersonal benefits.
Gratitude is a positive emotion that undoes the harmful effects that anxiety has on your body. Counting your blessings can return your physiology (for example, your heart rate and blood pressure) to its baseline whenever you feel stressed and anxious.
People who experience gratitude can:
- cope more effectively with stress.
- recover faster from illnesses.
- benefit from greater physical health.
- improve their relationships.
- have more feelings of connectedness and a desire to help others.
- amplify their resilience, spirituality, and feelings of love and forgiveness.
Research suggests we must continually engage in gratitude-based activities to obtain benefits and boost our overall happiness and well-being. Furthermore, research shows that practicing gratitude frequently increases the time in which you experience benefits more so than practicing gratitude only occasionally.
Letters of gratitude
One way to practice gratitude is to send someone a letter of appreciation. Choose a person who has recently been kind to you, given you an item, helped you in some way or made a positive impact on you. Write that individual a letter about what they did, how it made a difference and where you are in life now due to their action. And after sending the letter, take your gratitude a step further: Call the person and schedule a time to visit them or meet on a video chat to share your letter.
People who express their gratitude are up to 25% happier than others! Showing appreciation takes deliberate practice to master. The more often you express your thankfulness, the happier you will be.
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