The link between Gratitide and Happiness
“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
―
Hello December and day 1 of Healthy Mind Power Week. 7 days of short inspiring articles to get your month off to the right start. And in this case, finish off 2018 with an extra dose of Joy and Happiness. This month we are focusing on Happiness Habits that if implemented into your life will bring your life greater joy and meaning.
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Lets dive right in:
Gratitude as a Happiness Habit
With Thanksgiving behind us, we have all recently been thankful for something. Our first Happiness habit is to implement daily gratitude into our lives. By taking a few moments each morning or night to think of 3- 5 things that we are grateful for, we are wiring our minds to focus on these types of thoughts and we become less likely to fixate on negative thinking. Neuroscience has shown the act of being thankful releases dopamine and serotonin in your brain. Dopamine is what makes you feel good and Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that activates the happiness center of your brain.
If you like to write, then begin a gratitude journal, like this one which includes prompts, and write down at least 3 things each day that you are grateful for. The list should be different each day and the benefit of writing it down is that you can reread what you have written and upon reading, experience the gratitude all over again.
The list of things you can be grateful for is wide and varying and can be anything you choose. The sky is the limit. Some examples may include, being grateful for your eyes so you can view beautiful colors. Possibly you are grateful for some kinds word a colleague bestowed upon you. Maybe you are grateful because you have achieved somehting you have been working towards for some months. Look around you, there is an endless resource in our surroundings that we can be grateful for.
The Challenge
Today I challenge you to begin a gratitide journal and to find three things you are grateful for. To lean into the feeling of gratitude and then place that journal right beside your bed. That way you can remember to journal tomorrow and reinforce the habit of journalling 3 things each day. It takes 28 days to truly add a habit to our day. Stay strong and by Christmas you will wonder how you ever got by without your journal!
If you love instagram, post what you are grateful for today and tag us @_mindbodylife with the hashtag #healthymindpowerweek so we can see your daily gratitude.
We look forward to seeing you back here tomorrow for Day 2 of our Happiness Habits, Healthy Mind Power Week. Be sure to subscribe for our free newsletter jam packed with inspirational content, nutritional advice, motivation and yoga expertise!
Have a wonderful day
Love and Light
Lauren x
