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Updated March 21, 2022
By Jessica Linton, Wellness Education Assistant
Gratitude is the practice of recognizing and appreciating things that are valuable or important to you and acknowledging how those things have had a positive impact on your life or your state of mind. Practicing gratitude is done by consciously taking moments out of your day to direct your attention to things that add value to your life or improve your state of mind.
In 2016, there was a gratitude study done of university students seeking counselling and the effects of gratitude on their mental health. The control group, who practiced writing one letter of gratitude a week for three weeks, had improved mental wellness over the other groups who did not practice gratitude. This worked because by practicing gratitude, the students were using less words associated with negativity and consequently were releasing themselves from harmful thoughts by focusing on the positive things in their life.
There are plenty of reasons to practice gratitude! By focusing on things that you’re grateful for and focusing less on the negatives, you can experience improved optimism and happiness, which can be helpful in slightly countering the effects of anxiety and depression. Granted, gratitude can't always replace formal supports like counselling, but it can help lessen the effects and can improve your mood at least a bit!
One of the most positive benefits of practicing gratitude is that the regular practice of gratitude can help strengthen your relationships with others. Taking time to be grateful for the people in your life allows you to consistently remind yourself of what you appreciate about them and helps ensure that you don’t take those relationships for granted. Gratitude can also be contagious! If you take the time to write a note of appreciation to a friend when they’re feeling down, they may be more inclined to do the same for you.
Additionally, practicing gratitude lowers your cortisol levels and by extension, can help lower your stress levels. Stress is “the silent killer” because it can negatively impact your body in so many ways: including lowering your immune system, worsening mental health issues, and can raise your risk of heart problems. By lowering your stress levels you can improve your overall physical and mental wellness, which is a great benefit!
It’s worth noting that the study mentioned above showed that positive results from practicing gratitude don’t happen immediately. It takes time and consistency to see a change in your outlook, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t feel a change right away.
Here are five simple ways you can practice gratitude on a regular basis: