Gratitude practice

A sense of purpose in life is an essential longevity factor, yet it is difficult to have it constantly. Gratitude proved one of the most effective methods for keeping and strengthening your sense of purpose.

Complete this task by contemplating for a few minutes a story that evoked a feeling of gratitude in you.

Gratitude practice is short, can be performed anywhere and anytime, and - compared to other similar methods - has positive short and long-term effects on human physiology. 

Once you do the initial preparation work described below, you will have created a shortcut into quick activation of a gratitude network. Your mind will experience a rewarding state almost instantaneously! 

Scientists have found that a repeated gratitude story is the most effective way to build the gratitude circuit. Rather than each time trying to gather 5 or more things you are grateful for, think of any story that describes a particular challenge that along the way is successfully resolved. Experience a pleasant feeling of gratitude that arises once you remember it. 

Pick a story from your personal life or from someone else’s that evokes a genuine feeling of gratitude in the main characters of that story. There is no need to remember every detail of the story. Instead, think or write down three things about it: 

• Describe the situation - what challenge was encountered? 

• What feelings alongside gratitude arose once the challenge was resolved?

• What other elements could you add to the emotional content of the story? 

Read it every time you do the practice to trigger a natural feeling of gratitude in your nervous system. Once you feel it, immerse yourself fully and stay like that for a few minutes. 

Stay honest when you pick your story. Your mind recognizes when help and appreciation are insincere, thus making practice ineffective.

If you haven’t picked a story yet, try one of ours. If it clicks - feel free to use it!

Impact

Scientific studies proved that gratitude improves overall well-being by significantly increasing happiness, reducing depression, and strengthening resilience. People who naturally feel grateful experience increased energy levels, reduced blood pressure, and less chronic pain. Moreover, people who more often expressed gratitude were observed to have higher self-esteem and were more likely to help others—also, having grateful thoughts before sleep made them rest better.

Gratitude works as an antidepressant by boosting the production of dopamine and serotonin. These neurotransmitters - also known as “feel-good” hormones - play a vital role in activating part of the brain (prefrontal cortex) responsible for creating feelings of happiness and contentment. With regular gratitude practice, your brain constantly improves at retaining positive experiences and deflecting negative ones, thus making you happier and more relaxed.

A sense of purpose is vital for healthy aging. One study showed a death due to all causes was 143% less likely in adults with a high sense of purpose. Having a high sense of purpose also lowered the risk of death due to blood, circulatory, and heart conditions. Another study discovered that having a sense of purpose leads to a lower risk of dementia.

Hazlett, L. I., Moieni, M., Irwin, M. R., Haltom, K. E. B., Jevtic, I., Meyer, M. L., Breen, E. C., Cole, S. W., & Eisenberger, N. I. (2021). Exploring neural mechanisms of the health benefits of gratitude in women: A randomized controlled trial. Brain, behavior, and immunity, 95, 444–453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2021.04.019

Fox, G. R., Kaplan, J., Damasio, H., & Damasio, A. (2015). Neural correlates of gratitude. Frontiers in psychology, 6, 1491. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01491

Alimujiang et al. Association Between Life Purpose and Mortality Among US Adults Older Than 50 Years. JAMA Network Open 2019. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.4270

Sutin et al. Sense of Purpose in Life Is Associated with Lower Risk of Incident Dementia: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease 2021. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8887819/