However, people who used more positive emotion words and more “we” words in their gratitude letters didn’t necessarily have better mental health later. What if we didn't take good things for granted? Learn how gratitude can lead to a better life-and a better world-in this new GGSC book. Not surprisingly, those in the gratitude writing group used a higher percentage of positive emotion words and “we” words, and a lower proportion of negative emotion words, than those in the other writing group. We compared the percentage of positive emotion words, negative emotion words, and “we” words (first-person plural words) that participants used in their writing. Gratitude unshackles us from toxic emotionsįirst, by analyzing the words used by participants in each of the two writing groups, we were able to understand the mechanisms behind the mental health benefits of gratitude letter writing. While not definitive, here are four insights from our research suggesting what might be behind gratitude’s psychological benefits. When we dug deeper into our results, we found indications of how gratitude might actually work on our minds and bodies. In fact, it seems, practicing gratitude on top of receiving psychological counseling carries greater benefits than counseling alone, even when that gratitude practice is brief.Īnd that’s not all. This suggests that gratitude writing can be beneficial not just for healthy, well-adjusted individuals, but also for those who struggle with mental health concerns. What did we find? Compared with the participants who wrote about negative experiences or only received counseling, those who wrote gratitude letters reported significantly better mental health four weeks and 12 weeks after their writing exercise ended. The third group did not do any writing activity. Although all three groups received counseling services, the first group was also instructed to write one letter of gratitude to another person each week for three weeks, whereas the second group was asked to write about their deepest thoughts and feelings about negative experiences. We randomly assigned our study participants into three groups. The majority of people seeking counseling services at this university in general struggled with issues related to depression and anxiety. We recruited these participants just before they began their first session of counseling, and, on average, they reported clinically low levels of mental health at the time. We set out to address these questions in a recent research study involving nearly 300 adults, mostly college students who were seeking mental health counseling at a university. The rewards could be something big, like new workout gear, or something smaller, such as movie tickets.From the GGSC to your bookshelf: 30 science-backed tools for well-being. It's also helpful to reward yourself when you reach your goals. The goals should challenge you, but also be realistic. Also, listen to your body and don't overdo it. Exercising safely, with proper equipment, to prevent injuries.It's easier to make exercise a regular part of your life if you have fun doing it. Good core strength improves balance and stability and helps to prevent lower back injury. Choosing activities that work all the different parts of the body, including your core (muscles around your back, abdomen, and pelvis).Other things that you can do to make the most of your workouts include: How much exercise you need depends on your age and health. You can work your way up to doing the recommended amount of exercise. Even doing ten minutes at a time is fine. But you can start slowly, and break your exercise time into chunks. Yoga and doing various stretches can make you more flexible.įitting regular exercise into your daily schedule may seem difficult at first. Flexibility exercises stretch your muscles and can help your body stay limber.To improve your balance, try tai chi or exercises like standing on one leg. Balance exercises can make it easier to walk on uneven surfaces and help prevent falls.Some examples are lifting weights and using a resistance band. Strength, or resistance training, exercises make your muscles stronger. Examples include brisk walking, jogging, swimming, and biking. They keep your heart, lungs, and circulatory system healthy and improve your overall fitness.
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