Expressing Gratitude: Why Being Thankful is Good For You
Being Thankful May Be Good For You
My trip to India has led me to reflect on many things about my life. My most recent posts have been expressions of gratitude for many things that I value and appreciate: my family, my home, clean air, and my ability to travel all over the world. Expressing gratitude for the good things in my life felt….well… good. And the process of being thankful was pretty easy.
I was curious about whether expressing gratitude or being thankful was good for people. I took a look at the research, as summarized by in 2010 by Dr. Alex Wood and colleagues, conducted on the topic of expressing gratitude and found some interesting things. Take a look at the findings and think about your outlook on life. It may be that regular expressions of gratitude can improve your well being.
Life Orientation Towards Gratitude
Defining gratitude is kind of tricky. Gratitude is usually considered an emotion that people feel when another person gives them some sort of aid, like money, during a time of need. However, there are other ways to look at gratitude. There are people who have a life view that is focused on noticing and appreciating good things. These people are said to have a life orientation towards gratitude. Here are just a few characteristics that people with this life orientation may have:
- an appreciation for other people
- a focus on what you have
- doing things which show gratitude
- focusing on good things in the present moment
- realizing life is short and appreciating the time that we have
Being Grateful and Mental Health
Although research evaluating gratitude is in its infancy, there is some evidence that being grateful is linked with good mental health. People who have a life orientation focused on being grateful are less likely to be depressed. Those who are thankful or grateful are less likely to being diagnosed with anxiety, substance abuse, and eating disorders. Beyond mental health, people who often feel or express gratitude seem to be more satisfied with their life.
Gratitude and Relationships with Other People
Being a grateful person is also linked with good social relationships. People who are grateful are more likely to have high quality relationships and are more forgiving. Gratitude seems to help with both starting and continuing a positive relationship. So if you are looking to start a good relationship, look for a grateful person!
Gratitude, Stress, and Health
Although there is some information about the link between gratitude and mental health, there is much less known about how gratitude relates to stress and health. There is some evidence that people who are grateful have less stress and sleep better, but there has not been much research linking gratitude and health.
So, based on this information, should you work on being thankful? Can expressing gratitude help treat your depression or anxiety? Right now, we do not know whether expressing gratitude is a good way to treat a mental health condition. There are several studies that suggest that practicing gratitude may improve your mood, but it is not clear whether these changes can lead to resolution of a mental health condition. If you are suffering from depression, anxiety, or any other mental health condition, it is important to visit your doctor or mental health provider to get a treatment plan that is right for you.
How do you see the world? Do you express gratitude? Are you a grateful person? Does being grateful affect your mood?
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Like this post?
Visit the other posts in my “Expressing Gratitude” series:
Expressing Gratitude: I Am Thankful for My Home
Expressing Gratitude: I Am Thankful for My Family
Expressing Gratitude: I Am Thankful I Get To Travel the World
Expressing Gratitude: I Am Thankful for Clean Air
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The information provided in this blog post is not designed to provide medical advice. If you have a medical, mental health, or safety question, consult with your health care provider.
Category: Stress Management, Thoughts
About the Author (Author Profile)
Kristen is a psychologist who lives in central Florida and enjoys writing about stress and health. When she is not writing, Kristen enjoys spending time with her family and pets, reading, traveling, yoga, and trying to finish her never ending yard renovation.Subscribe
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Great post. I always express gratitude by thanking God for my blessings and by telling those that I love how lucky I feel I am to have them. Somehow this does not help with my anxiety. I feel that I am so grateful for what I have that I fear losing those that are so dear to me and it actually causes me stress. But that is just me and it is because I need to live in the moment more than think about the future. I also have to learn to believe that maybe I deserve to have my blessings. Thanks for the post! ~ Suerae
Suerae Stein recently posted..Fab Foto Friday – Water Droplets
I know that fearing loss can definitely lead to more anxiety, but I think that you have it right when you mention enjoying what you have in the moment. Hopefully when you practice enjoying things in the moment as you look back on your life, there will be a lot of great moments to remember. I am sure that you deserve all of the blessings that you enjoy. Thanks for coming by and enjoy your blessings!!
The older I have become the gratitude I express. In my youth, I had very little to be grateful for and then later, life was a bit of a struggle. I am grateful now for those learnings and the wisdom I have gained from them.
Great post Kirsten
Madonna
Madonna recently posted..Glass Half Empty
Hi Madonna,
Your comments are really touching. I am glad that you are grateful for what you have learned. I sounds like you have overcome some adversity to get the perspective that you have now. I had not even thought about that–being grateful for wisdom and learning. That may be an inspiring new post! Thanks for visiting.
We are generally so lucky to have what we have- it’s amazing to me how many of us just fail to appreciate each of those little things- starting with our ability to employ our five senses.
Thanks for the reminder.
Roy A. Ackerman, Ph.D., E.A. recently posted..Take Notes. The ones you’ll remember always.
Thanks for stopping by Roy. Thanks for pointing out the little things that we fail to appreciate. I always have more gratitude for my senses after an experience like yoga. I probably over appreciate my sense of taste!
Thanks for this nicely written post. Gratitude is a great thing in life, we all must learn to count on our blessings and be thankful for them, rather than keep cribbing about our troubles and what we did not get.
Don’t know if gratitude can actually cure depression or other mental health conditions but, I guess it can certainly help us keep happy and upbeat as it teaches us to focus on good things in our life, so when we think and thank about all good around us, positivity increases. They say, if you focus on misery, misery increases by the law of attraction and similarly when you focus on abundance and happiness, you attract more of it into your life. So, being thankful costs nothing and certainly works wonders.
Sarah Reece recently posted..Bluehost Discount
Thanks for coming by Sarah. I hope that you have a lot of positivity in your life. I agree that feeling and expressing gratitude is a very simple, low cost, and low tech way to attract more happiness in your life. I am trying to focus on doing it more myself. Hopefully it won’t always take a transcontinental trip to inspire me to do so again.