Benefits of Gratitude in Our Lives
The Benefits of Gratitude in Our Lives
Now that we have explored what gratitude is and why it’s important to incorporate it into your life, it’s time to move on a related subject: what are the benefits of gratitude? I’ll address what the practice of gratitude does for our minds and bodies. But to understand how it works, let’s begin with the body/brain connection.
The Neuroscience of Gratitude
There’s been a number of recent studies on how gratitude affects our brains. Scientists have explored why this particular emotion acts like a natural antidepressant, producing a feeling of happiness and contentment. Those studies have shown that when we experience gratitude, our brains release dopamine and serotonin, neurotransmitters, or chemical messengers, that affect how we control our emotions. When gratitude becomes a daily practice, the neural pathways they create become permanent, creating an ongoing feeling of well-being.
It has been shown that experiencing gratitude activates areas of the brain that regulate emotions. At the same time, it reduces one’s level of cortisol, the stress hormone, resulting in better cardiac functioning. Finally, it increases the neural modulation of the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that helps manage negative emotions.
The Mindfulness Awareness Research Center of UCLA concluded that gratitude changes the neural structures in the brain, making us feel happier and more content. Feeling grateful and appreciating others when they do something good for us trigger the “good” hormones and regulate effective functioning of the immune system.
The Upward Spiral
UCLA neuroscientist Alex Korb, author of the The Upward Spiral, talks about the “gratitude circle,” saying, “There’s a part of our brain called the anterior cingulate cortex. It’s responsible for drawing our attention to the details in our lives that are relevant in some way…So to activate the gratitude circuit we simply have to give our anterior cingulate cortex the task of finding something positive.”
He goes on to explain, “We truly can’t focus on positive and negative feelings at the same time. When we feel grateful, our brains release dopamine (the reward chemical) which makes us want to feel that way again, and we begin to make gratitude a habit.” In other words, once you start finding things to be grateful for, your brain starts looking for additional things to be grateful for.
According to Korb, practicing gratitude doesn’t mean denying the difficult emotions that we feel. To be mentally healthy, you have to accept the full spectrum of your emotions. The more you resist negative emotions, the more frustrated you become.
The Physical Benefits of Gratitude
We’ve already discussed the physical benefits of gratitude, which include better sleep, better immunity, lower blood pressure, decreased stress, less anxiety and depression, and, it goes without saying, higher levels of optimism.
According to the Mayo Clinic, “Expressing gratitude is associated with a host of mental and physical benefits. Studies have shown that feeling thankful can improve sleep, mood and immunity. Gratitude can decrease depression, anxiety, difficulties with chronic pain and risk of disease.”
According to Psychology Today, gratitude reduces many negative emotions, including envy, resentment, frustration and regret. The article suggests that mentally strong people can exchange self-pity for gratitude. As a result, it accomplishes the following:
· Opens the door to more relationships
· Improves physical health
· Improve psychological health
· Enhances empathy and reduces aggression
· Promotes better sleep
· Increases mental strength