Snap That
Gratitude
Gratitude is a big deal in Positive Psychology (the study of ‘how to amplify the good stuff in life’). Being thankful (grateful) is really important to make the most of our everyday lives. That’s why BITE BACK has a Thank Tank – it's an easy way for you to keep track of great moments to be grateful for.
What is it?
Gratitude is the positive feeling you get when you notice and appreciate the things in your life.
In Psych Speak
Gratitude: ‘a felt sense of wonder, thankfulness and appreciation for life’
Being grateful is a lot more than saying "thank you” for a gift: it’s noticing how lucky you are (even though things may not be perfect), looking on the bright side and enjoying your friends and family. Gratitude is about making an effort to notice and feel good about the positives.
What are the benefits?
Psychologists have found that being grateful not only feels good, but also improves how happy and healthy you are.
It helps you feel better, enjoy your life, be closer with friends and family, lower your negative emotions, bounce back from hard times and fight off the black dog (depression).
Over 10 years of scientific research supports these claims about the benefits of being grateful (see Where's the Proof?)
Where's the proof?
Gratitude Experiment!
To prove what gratitude can do, one study used two groups of random people (over 200 in total). One group did a gratitude exercise; they wrote down 5 things they were grateful for once a week (just like you do in Thank Tank). The other group did a random task; nothing to do with gratitude.
After 10 weeks the groups were compared. People who did the ‘gratitude exercise’ were happier, felt more optimistic and more satisfied with their lives and even had some boosts to their physical health compared to those who didn’t do gratitude training.
So increasing gratitude, is what caused a lot of wonderful benefits to follow.1
Psychologists have studied thousands of people to find that gratitude is linked to a lot of positive emotional and physical qualities. They found that people who are grateful tend to have more positive feelings (like excitement and exhilaration just to name a few), are more alert, can pay better attention, have higher levels of energy and get better sleep. Grateful people have better relationships with their friends and families, lower levels of depression, anxiety, and negative emotions and overall are happier with life. People who aren’t very grateful in their lives tended to show the opposite; they had less of those positive emotional and physical qualities.
Most importantly for everyone here at BITE BACK, there is evidence that being grateful impacts on how much you enjoy school, how confident you feel to handle your school work and how you bounce back from stressful and challenging times (like parents’ divorce, bullying, depression - the hard stuff!). The more grateful you are the easier it tends to be.2
Why is this such a big deal? Because research has now shown that increasing your gratitude levels can cause you to get the positive benefits (for an example, check out the ‘Gratitude Experiment’ box). Making an effort to notice things you are thankful for increases your levels of gratitude and can make you happier, healthier and protect against depression and other negative headspaces.
How do you build it?
The trick to gratitude: It’s all in your head!
It’s not about having the best stuff or the most friends. What is important is paying attention to the people, places and things that are actually awesome in your life and to share the love with other people.
You can be grateful for the big stuff, like the people who are important to you (family or friends). Or it can be the little chunks of awesome in life –a funny moment, hearing your favourite song, or a delicious snack (mm snacks).
Studies have shown that increasing your gratitude can increase your happiness and wellbeing. But knowing that doesn’t mean much unless you can take it off the page, right?
Below are some activities and tips to help you increase your level of gratitude. Just remember, everyone is different and some of the activities may not work for you. If you try one and it doesn’t feel right, give another one a go to find what works for you.
Thank Tank on BITE BACK
Thank Tank is a chance for you to notice the little things and share the awesomeness in your life. It is similar to the activity psychologists used in the ‘Gratitude Experiment’ (see 'Where's the Proof?), only better. Think about the good things going on in your life, and drop an entry or three about them in the Thank Tank every week to really reap the benefits of gratitude.
Not sure what you'd drop in the Thank Tank? Write about any of the big or little things in life that made you feel a little bit awesome. Even recognising simple stuff like
- The taste and smell of a hot buttered toast
- The sun on your face
- The warm water on your back in the shower
- The love and loyalty of pets
- Being in nature
- Eating healthy foods
- Getting the right amount of sleep.
can help increase your levels of gratitude.
From virtual to actual reality
Create a Blog
Sharing your “thank yous” in a public way is great to inspire other people too. Have you seen these:
People love sharing what they are grateful for, so get yours out there too.
Do it with photographs
Check this out; http://365grateful.com/. Every day for a year this lady took a photo of tiny little wonderful things that she was grateful for. If words aren’t your thing, taking the time to photograph awesome things in your world might work for you.
Gratitude Visit
If there are people who you are grateful for or to, let them know. Think of a person in your life, someone who has had a positive influence – a friend, a family member, someone you admire – and tell them how grateful you are to them. Tell them face to face, call them, email them or write it in a letter. If you aren’t feeling brave, write it all down anyway- you don’t have to send it. Sharing your gratitude with others boosts the impact.
Letter to yourself
What about you? What is great about you? It can be easy to beat up on ourselves sometimes. But maybe putting down the great stuff about you can help you feel some of the benefits of gratitude too.
Letter to your body
Do you ever think about how much good work your body goes through to keep you healthy? Here a women in her 30's writes a letter thanking her body for all those things she takes for granted.
Art or Poetry
Say it through art - draw sketches, make a collage, or create a box of mementoes of things that you are grateful for. Or you could write a poem: Check out Slam Poet Andrea Gibson for some inspiration .
Gratitude in action
Coming soon...