At the clinic where I work with patients with chronic conditions (hypertension, diabetes, obesity), we frequently discuss lifestyle management: diet changes, exercise strategies, and stress reduction. Reading research about the benefits of practicing gratitude makes me ready to add ‘being grateful every day’ to that list.
A research investigation (Chen et al., 2024) on the impact of gratitude on longevity and health among older adults was clear: Being grateful is a hallmark of healthy aging and positive well-being. Why am I surprised that science backs up how giving thanks is good for me? Last summer, I was trying to memorize a segment of Colossians 3. My focus was the traits of a Christian in community: a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience. Being quick to forgive. Expressing love. Keeping Christ’s word in my heart and mind. As I read and repeated verses 12-17, I realized three of the verses (15-17) each included being thankful. God prescribes a grateful mindset for his beloved (vs. 12).
The health-producing results of gratitude include a lower risk of any kind of death (Chen et al., 2024). In addition, positive outcomes include less depression, greater social support, and engagement in meaningful events and relationships. Obviously, a thankful person is more enjoyable and refreshing to be around (Proverbs 11:25). As Chen and colleagues (2024) describe it,
“While gratitude is a universal human experience, it can have a profound spiritual grounding. In many religious communities, positive aspects of life, such as health and love, are seen as gifts with appreciation. This perspective motivates individuals to practice self-care and prosocial activities and to grow via meaning-making in the midst of adversity” (p. 1036).
Making a habit of gratitude is like any other habit-forming effort: set a goal, make a plan, practice. Elizabeth Taylor Johnson, author, researcher, and nursing professor, offers these tips:
- Fake it until you make it. Being grateful is a choice. Feelings can follow what the mind dictates.
- Keep a gratitude journal. Many of the gratitude interventions tested have involved participants writing their thankfulness in a diary or letter. Writing concretizes our thoughts and feelings, enhancing our awareness of them. Journaling also gives us something to read later when gratitude seems hard to grasp.
- Keep a daily list if possible.
- When something in daily life creates a sense of gratitude, notice it. Savor it. Cherish it for at least 10 seconds. This also contributes to the enduring positive outcomes.
- Appreciate the little things. For example, you may notice a weed growing up through the crack in the concrete, the smile of a stranger, or the taste of a drink. Notice the extraordinary in the ordinary.
- Remember, like any muscle, an attitude of gratitude will grow the more it’s used. The experiences of gratitude may be snippets now; however, they can increase and permeate the whole of your life. Likewise, a sequoia tree starts as a seedling.
We can all improve on our practice of thanking God (Psalm 28:7) and others (Ephesians 1:16). We’ll feel good doing it, and those we thank will be blessed. This is a lifestyle management choice worth adopting.
Karen Schmidt, RN, BA, in a contributing editor with the Journal of Christian Nursing and a lover of writing (and receiving) thank you notes.
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