Every
year at Thanksgiving, my parents encourage us to go around the table and list
something we are each thankful for. We are a pretty big family so this can go
on for quite a while, but it’s something I look forward to each year.
Mind
you, I never quite get it right. I always get a little flustered; either
feeling like I’ve said too much or as soon as it moves on to the next person, I
think of about a million additional things I should have listed — because
really, at the end of the day, I am thankful for so very much in my life. This
is a family tradition I have always enjoyed, but I’ve never given it much
thought until recently.
As a
medical professional, it’s an interesting thought — the idea of being
thankful.
When
you break this practice down, giving gratitude, it turns out that taking the
time to give thanks each day can have meaningful and lasting positive effects
on both our mental and physical health.
To put
it simply, recent studies indicate that people who take the time to practice
gratitude, think about or better yet, write down those things in life they are
thankful for, show actual health benefits. These can vary from reduced rates of
depression, improvement in cardiac function,
decreased levels of stress and inflammatory markers, and an
overall improved perception of happiness.
These
studies may be new to Western medicine but they have been celebrated by
countless religions and cultures — many of whom have encouraged the act of
celebrating gratitude for centuries.
Taking time to be thankful
Personally,
when I take time out of my day to stop focusing on what might be or what
I wish could be, and actually focus on those things that actually are
and that bring me happiness, I just feel a little better.
It’s
not a difficult thing to do. In fact, it only takes a few moments, and studies
indicate that if you do it on a regular basis, you are probably better for it.
As a physician, I believe it is important for my patients to practice different
forms of gratitude, but I know I must also practice it myself. So here it goes…
Things
that I feel gratitude for at the moment:
1.
My health, which isn’t perfect
(Austin seasonal allergies!) but keeps me feeling pretty dang good and enables
me to do the things that matter to me on a daily basis.
2.
My family, my parents, husband,
sisters, brothers, nieces, aunts, uncles and cousins, who are amazing and
fascinating humans and love all my quirks (or at least convincingly pretend
to).
3.
My husband, who is currently
cooking me dinner while I type this after a long day of work.
4.
My many, amazing, wonderful friends.
5.
My dog Willie, who is
a dashing, distinguished 14-year-old gentleman puppy.
6.
My profession, which
enables me to meet inspiring and fascinating people on a daily basis, and feel
needed in this world.
7.
My coworkers, who
are, plainly put, awesome, and truly care about the patients we serve.
8.
Coffee…because it’s coffee.
9.
These super soft socks I am
wearing. I love socks.
10. Brownies,
chocolate chip cookies and Rocky Road ice cream (Ok a
few vices).
11. Yoga. This is another practice with proven health
benefits and which celebrates gratitude.
12. The
ability to binge watch TV when my brain is done for the day.
Obviously,
I could go on and on, but honestly, I’m already feeling better.
This Thanksgiving, I know I’ll have a lot to list
off to my family as we go around the table. But true gratitude is about more
than just being thankful on a certain day — it’s an attitude of appreciation
for the things in your life, big or small, that bring you joy.
We all
have bad days, but when we take the time to pause and remember how much we’re
blessed, those bad days don’t seem as bad. Sometimes, giving thanks for the
little things can have a big impact.
Now,
you give it a try and see how much better you feel!
https://scrubbing.in/giving-gratitude-impacts-health/
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