topic Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool in Healthy Living

Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 12:07:14 GMT

Gratitude can improve your life, and may even save it! No really. Dartmouth posted this web page on the importance of gratitude: http://www.umassd.edu/counseling/forparents/reccomendedreadings/theimportanceofgratitude/

Here’s a clip from that page:

"Researchers ... are turning their attention to the study of gratitude and its relationship to health and mental well-being. I will present some of their findings here to help us understand how gratitude is helpful and why it's important to our well-being.

People who keep gratitude journals on a weekly basis have been found to exercise more regularly, have fewer physical symptoms, feel better about their lives as a whole, and feel more optimistic about their upcoming week as compared to those who keep journals recording the stressors or neutral events of their lives.

Daily discussion of gratitude results in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, attentiveness, energy, and sleep duration and quality. Grateful people also report lower levels of depression and stress, although they do not deny or ignore the negative aspects of life.

People who think about, talk about, or write about gratitude daily are more likely to report having helped someone with a personal problem or offered emotional support to another person.

Those with a disposition towards gratitude are found to place less importance on material goods, are less likely to judge their own or others success in terms of possessions accumulated, are less envious of wealthy people, and are more likely to share their possessions with others.

Emerging research suggests that daily gratitude practices may have some preventative benefits in warding of coronary artery disease."

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 12:13:27 GMT

Who wants to join me in creating an online Gratitude Journal? I’m thinking we can post a message of gratitude either daily, weekly, or as we are able, and all reap the benefits of one another's gratitude.

I'll start:

I'm grateful for coffee this morning. I'm also grateful for the numerous song birds outside my window.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 12:14:22 GMT

I'm also grateful for my morning walk.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

bw95562019 — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 15:49:38 GMT

i'm grateful my son, daughter and grand daughter arrived home safe last night from their trip to florida

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

SarahGH — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 16:12:08 GMT

I'm grateful that although I was diagnosed with breast cancer 11 months ago, the treatment was surprisingly not too bad. Although I had to give up my workouts for a couple of months, I'm regaining my strength now. I'm grateful for that, because I spent an hour in 90 deg. weather yesterday afternoon, and another 45 minutes this morning, cutting a terrible overgrowth of vines on my property .. and plan to go out again after lunch!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:24:33 GMT

@bw95562019 wrote:
i'm grateful my son, daughter and grand daughter arrived home safe last night from their trip to florida

Hurrah!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:25:03 GMT

@SarahGH wrote:
I'm grateful that although I was diagnosed with breast cancer 11 months ago, the treatment was surprisingly not too bad. Although I had to give up my workouts for a couple of months, I'm regaining my strength now. I'm grateful for that, because I spent an hour in 90 deg. weather yesterday afternoon, and another 45 minutes this morning, cutting a terrible overgrowth of vines on my property .. and plan to go out again after lunch!

This is fantastic news! Double hurrahs!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 12:05:26 GMT

I am grateful for the promise of renewal that comes packaged in each dawn, each early morning opportunity to reassess, redirect and reinvent! Let's go get 'em! Rah!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

SarahGH — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 12:44:51 GMT

I am grateful that I'm sort of winning the war against the aggressive vines, and have a relaxing morning at the hair salon! 🙂

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

retiredtraveler — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 13:58:45 GMT

Ok. I'll bite.

I'm grateful, although a better word might be 'lucky' or 'fortunate', that DW and I have planned and set goals for 40 years, then were able to achieve them, with no major setbacks. Things happen to people beyond their control that totally disrupt their lives. I'm grateful we had nothing major, and reached our goals.

But I still think running a few miles a day, and weight lifting, is doing far more to stave off coronary heart disase than gratitude.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 21:49:31 GMT

retiredtraveler wrote:

But I still think running a few miles a day, and weight lifting, is doing far more to stave off coronary heart disase than gratitude.

-----------------------

Good one, traveler! (Seems you could be grateful for having good sense. )

I'm going to be offline a few days, so let me toss a bevy of extra thoughts of gratitude out there: I'm thankful for good health. May I one day also have good sense.

I'm grateful for our national parks, our state parks, our bike trails and the time to enjoy them.

I'm grateful for friends and family to hang out with and the kind reception of strangers.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

SarahGH — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 21:50:47 GMT

I think I'm getting offline now too .. bad thunderstorm!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

retiredtraveler — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 14:05:12 GMT

"...I'm grateful for our national parks, our state parks, our bike trails and the time to enjoy them...".

I'm hijacking the thread to say you have posted you're into hiking and outdoor activities. That's our motivation for maintaining health. You understand (it would appear) what it's like to do a hard hike and find yourself up at 8,000, 10,000, 12,000 or more feet with a view for 50+ miles. It's getting more difficult to do that, but we'll keep at it as long as we can.

I'm grateful for continuing to be able to hike above treeline....

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 03:49:21 GMT

@retiredtraveler wrote:
"...I'm grateful for our national parks, our state parks, our bike trails and the time to enjoy them...".

I'm hijacking the thread to say you have posted you're into hiking and outdoor activities. That's our motivation for maintaining health. You understand (it would appear) what it's like to do a hard hike and find yourself up at 8,000, 10,000, 12,000 or more feet with a view for 50+ miles. It's getting more difficult to do that, but we'll keep at it as long as we can.
I'm grateful for continuing to be able to hike above treeline....

Ah, you would have enjoyed our hike yesterday. 12 miles above 10,000. And at the top? (or at least our turnaround) A bald eagle soaring over a pristine alpine lake with water so blue-green clear you'd think it glass.

And today I am grateful for getting that *&^% tent back in to the bag! (hee, hee), finding a great location for our next wee jaunt, and that the broken sprinkler valve that sent water down our driveway (but not before flooding 1/2 the chicken yard) broke a mere 60 minutes before we returned home, and not, as might have been, 3 days ago. So yay!

Besides all that, I'm grateful for beautiful forests, incredible rock outcrops, the Rocky Mountains in general, and the wisdom of our great nation to set aside lands for recreation and wildlife preservation.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

SarahGH — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 10:53:49 GMT

I am (don't laugh) grateful that American Pharoah won the Haskell Invitational race at Monmouth Park yesterday! He's brought so much interest to the sport, it was nice that his last big race brought him up a notch from Triple Crown winner, to Grand Slam status .. and his owner is a NJ resident.

I was at the track with my women's group on Saturday; annual plans for "Ladies' Day" made months before the racing season, and there was much more excitement than usual. Our group sponsored a race, and yours truly got to hand the trophy to the winning jockey:

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 11:48:53 GMT

Total awesomeness! Congrats! And you look fabulous!

@SarahGH wrote:
I am (don't laugh) grateful that American Pharoah won the Haskell Invitational race at Monmouth Park yesterday! He's brought so much interest to the sport, it was nice that his last big race brought him up a notch from Triple Crown winner, to Grand Slam status .. and his owner is a NJ resident.

I was at the track with my women's group on Saturday; annual plans for "Ladies' Day" made months before the racing season, and there was much more excitement than usual. Our group sponsored a race, and yours truly got to hand the trophy to the winning jockey:

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 12:03:21 GMT

Gratefulness can change your moment from sad to happy, and it can improve
the course of your health, too. Therefore, we created this thread as a place to post a message, proclamation, statement, exclamation about gratitude. What makes you grateful? For what are you thankful?

Me? This morning, I am grateful to be able to fix a breakfast including fresh organic eggs from the henhouse. And toast. Ummmmm, actual toast. Plus coffee with chicory. Yuuuuuum! (Our camp breakfast yesterday was a few chocolate covered espresso beans, cold oatmeal with dried cranberries, sunflower seeds and walnuts. That was tasty, and it got us on the road likkety-split, but this morning, I know I'll enjoy those eggs. Which, by the way, contain 50% less fat and cholesterol than store bought, have zero-to-no chance of having been contaminated in shipping and are beyond fresh. Weeee!)

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 11:56:05 GMT

I am grateful for wilderness. Visiting these wild places feeds my soul and calms my spirit.

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

SarahGH — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 12:04:34 GMT

I am grateful that despite man's destruction of wildlife habitat, in the endless desire for development, many animals have adapted to live around & among us! I love the birds & critters around me!

Re: Gratitude as a Health Tool

Epster — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 13:19:58 GMT

Is this one of your photos? Cuuuuute!

@SarahGH wrote:
I am grateful that despite man's destruction of wildlife habitat, in the endless desire for development, many animals have adapted to live around & among us! I love the birds & critters around me!