The Power of Gratitude
Great news! Thanksgiving week is finally here! A time to relax, spend quality time with loved ones, and eat yourself into a food coma (OK, maybe not). Whatever the day holds for you, I sincerely hope that it brings you a sense of rejuvenation and renewal.
However, as we embrace Thanksgiving week, here is some less-than-great news. Our brains are wired to focus more on negativity. It may sound surprising, but scientists believe it's an adaptive trait from our days as prey in the wild. Those who paid attention to potential dangers (the negative) were more likely to survive. One researcher described it as our brains being "Velcro for negativity and Teflon for positivity."
We've all experienced this firsthand. Remember that time you received a performance review highlighting 99 things you excel at, but one area for improvement? What occupied your thoughts that night? Exactly.
But here's a reason for hope: neuroscience tells us that our brains are highly adaptable. It's called neuroplasticity. We have the power to rewire our brains. By regularly practicing gratitude, we can create new neural pathways that shape our perception of daily life for the better. And the benefits are truly remarkable. Check out his awesome video that demonstrates how expressing gratitude radically increases happiness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHv6vTKD6lg
Expressing gratitude not only increases our happiness, but it also improves our physical and emotional well-being. It boosts optimism, strengthens connections during difficult times, increases self-esteem, and gives us more energy. It even has a positive impact on our heart health, immune system, and blood pressure. On top of that, gratitude enhances emotional and academic intelligence, empowers forgiveness, reduces stress, anxiety, depression, and headaches, and promotes self-care and exercise. It also helps us develop a greater sense of spirituality and a broader perspective.
If there was a pill that offered all of these benefits, wouldn't you take it? Well, the good news is that you can achieve them through the regular practice of gratitude.
This Thanksgiving season is the perfect opportunity to commit to a gratitude practice. Consider starting a gratitude journal, where you write down one or two things you're grateful for every morning. I also find it helpful to incorporate a short gratitude meditation into my daily routine.
Here's a simple meditation you can try:
Find a comfortable seated position.
Close your eyes and relax your body in the chair.
Take a few deep breaths to calm your mind and body.
Reflect on the question, "What am I truly grateful for?" Take the first thing that comes to mind and build upon it.
Dive deeper into the story behind this positive experience or memory.
Allow yourself to savor this experience and let it soak into your mind and body.
Enhance the feeling by visualizing the memory vividly.
Stay with this experience longer than usual to embed positivity into your brain. Research shows that savoring gratitude for at least 15 seconds has the greatest impact on changing our neural pathways and our perception of the world.
Try incorporating this meditation into your morning or evening routine for a week, and observe the difference it makes in your attitude.
Want this world to be a kinder, gentler, more positive place? Be the change you want to see. Be grateful.
Wishing you and your loved ones a truly wonderful Thanksgiving celebration.
PS - feeling lost in a spiral of negativity? Coaching can help. Schedule a free consultation today to see if coaching is right for you: www.mariancoaching.com/scheduling
