Wouldn’t it be great to continue the holiday tradition of giving thanks throughout the entire new year? Researchers remind us that such gratitude would be rewarded with better mind and body interplay. University of California (Davis) psychology professor, Robert Emmons, tells us (throughout history) religious leaders and philosophers have mentioned gratitude as a virtue instrumental to health and well-being. Now a new field of Positive Psychology is examining a closer look at some promising benefits of gratitude.
Emmons told WebMD (2004) writer, Elizabeth Heubeck, “Grateful people take better care of themselves and engage in more protective health behaviors like regular exercise, a healthy diet, regular physical examinations.” The professor continues, “Gratitude research is beginning to suggest that feelings of thankfulness have tremendous positive value in helping people cope with daily problems, such as stress.” The Huffington Post (12/24/14), under the title “How Giving and Gratitude Benefit Your Physical Health,” adds that gratitude reduces stress by helping control anxious emotions that can lead to stroke, respiratory, and digestive disorders.
Because grateful people tend to be more optimistic, their immune systems receive a boost, as shown in the University of Utah psychology research on first-year law students who remained healthier than corresponding law students with a more pessimistic attitude. The same has been found true in several written and verbal interview accounts of World War II prisoner of war camp survivors who fought depression and anxiety despite repeated torture. In fact, even after grieving the loss of a loved one, if a person can find gratitude for the multitude of good memories left behind, mental and physical illnesses begun by an overload of stress can be averted.
The Huffington Post also found other health benefits of being altruistic (giving unconditionally to help others) among which are strong sleep patterns, and the reduction of blood pressure/high cholesterol counts due to increase in exercise, improving dietary behavior, and the curbing of alcohol and cigarette use. The Post found that “giving” produces a higher level of satisfaction in life. Did you know that adding volunteerism to your daily routine will help you live longer? Research published in 2013 demonstrated that those who volunteered reduced their earlier mortality rate by 22% compared to their more selfish counterparts. Individuals who begin support programs reap an even higher level of physical and mental health strengthening than those who participate in the programs.
A psychology professor, Edward Diener from the University of Illinois (Champaign/Urbana), has studied various cultures. He found that the poor living in India and the affluent living in Japan experienced the same low level of satisfaction due to his belief of their country’s emphasis on cultural materialism. It will surprise most of us to know that, according to Diener, the middle class do report almost the same high levels of satisfaction as many U.S. multimillionaires. Therefore, Diener believes that income level is not the only measure of satisfaction with one’s life. In fact, he finds that one’s climb out of adversity earlier in life seems to produce heightened feelings of gratitude.
Robert Emmons’ research showed that the use of gratitude journals, as used to gain mental health wellness, can be useful in promoting gratefulness among people. Creating lists of benefits in your life, talking to yourself in an appreciative manner, and reframing situations to gain more positive outcomes are also strategies that help develop a permanent trait of GRATITUDE.
I am grateful to resident, Marilyn Bobowski, who forwarded a YouTube video to me this January 4th morning. The March 31, 2013 video is titled “Everyone Matters: Gratitude” by Louie Schwartzberg. Please picture the beautiful visualizations that Louie sent along with his eloquent but simple words. The video can also be found by following this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4115qFsdWKQ
Here are excerpts from gratitude, six minutes of Profound Bliss:
“It’s not just another day in your life. It’s one day given to you as a gift. It’s the only gift you have now. Your appropriate response should be gratefulness! If you do anything else, cultivate that response, as if this is the first day of your life and the very last day. Begin by opening your eyes to see a terrific array of colors for your enjoyment. Look at the sky – how it differs from moment to moment. Weather has many nuances – it may never be the same again with the change of the formation of clouds. Open your eyes. Look at the faces of people. Each has an incredible story behind their face – theirs and their ancestor’s story. The generations from so many places in the world can be like life-giving water. Open your hearts to gifts like electricity that gives you light and water – drinkable water – that millions of people in the world will never experience. These are just a few of the enormous amount of gifts we have. Open your heart to all of these presents – let them flow through you. Bless all with your eyes, smile, touch, and presence. Let gratitude overflow to blessings of all around you. Then this will surely be a good day!”
