Gratitude and Personal Growth

Gratitude and Personal Growth

What is gratitude? As kids, we get taught to thank others when they give us a gift or make a nice gesture.

We learn to thank naturally as a social standard. But how frequently do we communicate gratitude for small daily good

things? Do we truly understand what it means to be grateful? How often do we express "thank you" without truthfully feeling thankful?

Gratitude is a conscious, positive emotion expressed when we're grateful for something tangible or intangible.

Gratitude entails far more than merely being polite. It's a practice that entails recognizing someone else's gesture towards us or the good things in our lives. It involves both the process of identifying the positive and its outcome.

Gratitude is vital for psychological well-being and personal growth.

Regular expressions of gratitude result in increased happiness and reports of greater life satisfaction, meaningfulness, and productivity.

Dopamine (a chemical released in the brain that makes you feel good) is unleashed in the brain when someone expresses or receives gratitude.

Dopamine gets produced in two brain regions: the substantia nigra and the ventral tegmental area.

The former is concerned with movement and speech, while the latter is concerned with reward. Dopamine is released when a person expresses or receives gratitude, creating a link between the behavior and feeling good. The more a person expresses gratitude, the more dopamine is released.

When expressed regularly, gratitude is a powerful emotion with numerous positive consequences:

> increased happiness,

> positive mood,

> more satisfaction with life,

> less materialistic,

> less likely to experience burnout,

> better physical health,

> better sleep,

> less fatigue,

> lower levels of cellular inflammation,

> greater resiliency,

> encourages the development of patience, humility, and wisdom.

Expressing gratitude is a simple, quick, and inexpensive everyday intervention that can help reach your nutrition, fitness and wellness goals.

Try this 7-day gratitude challenge following three daily prompts. Click Here to Download

It's simple: write down three positive things from your day, big or small, like conquering your deadlift personal best, learning a new delicious breakfast recipe, or finding joy in hanging out with that person who makes you laugh.

After completing this activity for seven days, try to continue without the aid of prompts.

(Print the challenge or edit on your device. If you are using a journal, write down the question and then your answer in your journal.)