It’s Thanksgiving; the beginning of the Holiday Season. The gathering of family and friends is usually a recipe for happy times. Typically, we express our gratitude for the blessings and good fortunes we have in our lives. For some of you, it may be the only time during the year that you take a moment to consider what you have to be grateful for. But on the other hand, the season may trigger feelings of depression, making it difficult to realize any pleasure in the holidays. In truth, when it’s mild depression or uneasiness, expressions of gratitude can be one of the best antidepressants existing today.
Gratitude is not just for the religious nor should it be classified as some “woo-woo” act that has little to do with reality. Expressing gratitude brings into play a host of other emotions – feelings of charity and well being – that are all tremendously important to our mental and physical well being. Now expressing gratitude helps combat the low level, just not satisfied with life feeling making it an excellent “nonpharmaceutical” antidepressant.
But here’s the thing, for it to be effective, expressions of gratitude must be continuous and it must be intentional. Expressing gratitude on a regular basis has been found to have a positive effect on moods. Positive feelings creep into the psyche of even the most hard-hearted Scrooge. You’ve seen the movie, Scrooge was freed from the chains of depression and bitterness when he was forced to practice charity and to understand what he had to be thankful for. Optimism and hope become predominant reactions even when there are challenges.
So are you wondering what can you do to keep gratitude in your life? Here are a few things that could make a big difference:
• Each morning make a list of even the most trivial thing that you are grateful for. You can start with your best gift: being alive to face a brand new day. Write it down. When you actively write anything, it goes from the intangible to the tangible.
• Practice charity. Give time, talent or finances to those in need.
• Practice random acts of kindness. Really!
• Smile more. Use those facial muscles for projecting the positive.
• Tell someone (or many) how they have made a positive change in your life. Why are you grateful to know them?
As with anything, you have a choice: you can ignore what you have to be grateful for, keeping it on the shelf until the Holidays, or you can regularly take stock of all that you have in the “wealth” category. Gratitude is the way to the best antidepressant. It’s not just for the Holidays. Show yours today and every day.
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Photo: Getty Images
