One of the simple and powerful tools to reach well being is to be thankful for the good and positive in your life. Yes, in addition to physical fitness, proper nutrition, proper sleeping habits, we should take care of the mental aspect of our existence.
I meet quite a lot of people who are surrounded by abundance and blessing but are cynical and full of criticism and always look at the glass half empty. Something that impairs their sense of happiness and well-being. .
And that’s a mistake! When do you realize it’s a mistake?
When life invites you to various types of failures and problems: such as health problems, the loss of a beloved relative, income problems, relationship problems, etc.
Human nature is to “normalize”, meaning to assume that what was is what will be, and that the blessing and abundance you enjoy today (and they are expressed in a large number of areas in your life) will automatically continue in the future.
The corona epidemic came and slapped us in the face – when we were experiencing a global epidemic that disrupted all our ways of life. And all the technologies did not help. We were quite helpless in front of a bacteria that you can’t even see with the eye.
But there are also crises that we experience on a smaller scale, and which shake us. It’s time to make a switch in your head and say thank you on a regular basis for all the good things that are our lot. Because saying thank you as a regular habit enhances well-being
Psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough showed in their research how gratitude and appreciation of the good contribute to our happiness and quality of life. They divided the subjects into two study groups, half of the study participants were told: ” There are many things in life, big and small, that we can appreciate and be thankful for. Write every day five good things that happened to you today. These don’t necessarily have to be very deep things, you can also write about small pleasures like ‘my coffee this morning was simply wonderful’ and these can also be big things – like thank you very much that I’m healthy .”
The other half of the participants were told to write down what they did that day. In any case, it was a total of a few minutes a day. When they were followed over time, the researchers discovered far-reaching results. The members of the grateful group not only learned to appreciate what was happening, but were also happier. In addition, they were more decisive, energetic and optimistic: they also became more generous, enjoyed better sleep, did more sports and were much less sick.
When you are grateful for all the good things you have here and now, you stop “normalizing”, you stop the ‘automatic pilot’ that most of us live under the assumption that what was will be. A Harvard University article on the benefits of gratitude notes that gratitude focuses you on the abundance you have here and now instead of focusing on what you lack. And that in itself has a positive effect on your well being
There is a story about a man who was very sad and depressed and he would complain about everything. His wife was very frustrated because he created a negative atmosphere in the house. She recommended that he go see a spiritual teacher who would find a solution to his problem. She found a spiritual teacher in a small village on one of the mountains in the north of the country and one day took her husband to that spiritual teacher. The man entered the simple house of the spiritual teacher, he was embarrassed “what can this do for me” he thought.
The teacher smiled at him and said to him: “To be happy, you must be thankful for what you have.”
” But how? The man wondered in frustration.
“Come” said the teacher I will take you to the place where the answer is. They got into the car and drove a long way until they entered the parking lot of the local hospital.
“I’m healthy” the man got angry “you’re wasting my time”. The teacher smiled and took him on a tour of the different departments of the hospital. And there they saw patients being ventilated, connected to machines, or patients screaming in pain or lying helpless in beds.
After some time, the man called, “I understand, let’s get out of this place”
And the message is: Thank you for everything you have now, and you have a lot to be thankful for, such as your health, and the health of your family members, your sense of taste, etc.
Nothing is taken for granted and therefore there is a very simple and recommended practice and that is to give thanks for the good that is in our lives on a regular basis.
Saying thank you is also good for your heart! .
The study, published by the American Psychological Association, found that patients suffering from heart failure without symptoms showed a decrease in the levels of inflammatory biomarkers in the body, as a result of improved heart health. As part of the study, 186 women and men were required to keep a “gratitude” diary, in which they recorded for eight weeks who they thanked and under what circumstances, at the same time as the usual medical treatment for their illness.
“A grateful heart is indeed a healthier heart, and keeping a ‘gratitude’ journal is an easy way to support heart health,” wrote study leader Dr. Paul Mills, an expert in family medicine and public health at the University of California. In addition, the study found that gratitude contributes to mental health, improved mood and better quality sleep.
Recommended exercises for cracking the ‘gratitude muscle’
1Spend a few minutes a day (in the morning when you wake up or at night before going to bed) to write a “gratitude journal” for the good things you have now Spend a few minutes a day (in the morning when you wake up or at night before going to bed) to write a “gratitude journal” for the good things you have now
2As managers, thank your employees, as employees – thank your colleagues. As managers, thank your employees, as employees – thank your colleagues.
3Say thank you to the people you are related to: family members, work and school friends, Say thank you to the people you are related to: family members, work and school friends,
4Say thank you to the “transparent people” – who are: the waiter in the restaurant, the security guard in the parking lot, the cleaner in the office and you will be surprised what a change you will make in them and in yourself Say thank you to the “transparent people” – who are: the waiter in the restaurant, the security guard in the parking lot, the cleaner in the office and you will be surprised what a change you will make in them and in yourself
5Record in your journal what you experienced when you said thank you Record in your journal what you experienced when you said thank you