The Brutal Buzz by Indie: 7 Life-Affirming Things Grateful People Do

Monday, March 24, 2014

7 Life-Affirming Things Grateful People Do

Gratitude has been linked to stress reduction, increased happiness, and better physical and emotional health. Here are some ways to reap those benefits.

Christina Lu / BuzzFeed

Dr. Laura Gambrel, professor of psychology at La Salle University, recommends keeping a journal specifically for gratitude, in which you write about three good things — big and small — that happened to you throughout the day, along with some background information on how and why each good thing happened. Studies show that doing this nightly for just one week can decrease depressive symptoms for up to six months; even those who did it once a week showed an increase in physical activity, fewer health complaints, and greater optimism about their future. The bonus is that you're also creating an incredibly efficient and personalized pick-me-up. Having a bad day? Why not read about that time the subway arrived at the very moment you got to the platform? Isn't life the best sometimes?!

Grateful people recognize that much of the good in their lives comes from those around them, and because of this they tend to cultivate the strongest relationships. But research shows that we can milk even more gratitude (and happiness) from our experiences with our loved ones by actually telling them why they're appreciated.

In this 2005 study published by the University of Pennsylvania, people who performed a "gratitude visit" — i.e., wrote a letter of gratitude to someone who impacted their life in a positive way, and then read it aloud to that person — experienced an immediate spike in happiness, which lasted up to a month after the exercise. Of course, your gratitude visit doesn't necessarily have to be as formal. If you find yourself remembering that time your friend brought over pizza or proofread your résumé, text them about it. You'll get to relive the warm, fuzzy feeling all over again.