Gratitude is Healing
Shifting Focus to What Nourishes Us
I’m always struck by the ways we can heal—especially those practices that are scientifically validated yet often overlooked by our culture. Instead, society seems to perpetuate qualities that are not only counterproductive but maladaptive, presenting them as natural or even necessary. It’s fascinating to think about how much healing could happen if we shifted toward embracing what truly serves us.
One of the qualities of the heart-mind that helps us heal, or stay healthy, is incorporating a habit of gratitude.
We may have grown up with caregivers or teachers who were always telling us how we could be better, criticizing us more than complimenting, which has led to an internal critic who is quite loud. Society at large tells us how we are not enough, how we need to look different or have this material object in order to be truly happy, which also leads to a habit of looking at what we don’t have more often than what we do.
While our lives will never be perfect, they are often quite good.
I remember reading a book by Thich Nhat Hanh many years ago, and he said that if you never think about your elbow (or insert body part), it is healthy and doing its job without much effort. He then encouraged his readers to be grateful for this beautifully working part of the body and even give actual thanks to it. After reading that, I remember instituting a practice of thanking each one of my body parts as I washed them in the shower.
It does seem to me that often what is working for us gets overshadowed by what is not working for us. However, if we count it out, it’s probably likely that what is working for us greatly outweighs what isn’t. A few things one might list: clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, friends or family we can connect with, a safe place to sleep at night, having regular access to food, our bodies not being in pain, being able to see, being able to speak, or the sun shining.
I could keep going, but I am curious what you could come up with.
Incorporating a gratitude practice is not the same as the power of positive thinking or positive vibes only. Instead, gratitude can help us calm down and feel more at ease which allows us to deal with life in a more clear-minded way. Gratitude can also help nourish us and build resiliency which allows us to handle life’s hiccups and disasters with more ease. It’s scientifically proven.
But outside of the science, it is important to understand that there is nothing inherently wrong with us and that falling ill is not something that needs to be killed off or destroyed. Instead, the way that holistic healers approach illness is by trying to find what is out of balance and helping to nourish the system in order to support it moving back toward health. Because the body-mind is always inclined toward healing, it just needs the right supports to do so.
Yes, there are issues in life, and this reality is rife with all sorts of terrors, but that isn’t the only thing. And for a lot of us reading this article, they’re not even the majority of this experience. It’s important for us to find balance, which will lead to healing and true health. If you are seeking perfection, that will also make you sick, as it is not a real state of being, and we live on a planet whose primary lesson is about balance.
Gratitude can help us remember the divine balance of all things and bring us into greater harmony with ourselves, with others, and with the earth.
Here are some other examples of the healing power of gratitude:
Studies show it can ease depression, reduce anxiety, and even lower stress levels by shifting our focus away from negativity and toward what nourishes us.
When we practice gratitude regularly, our physical health improves too. Grateful people report fewer aches and pains, lower blood pressure, and better sleep. It’s a reminder of how deeply connected our minds and bodies really are.
Gratitude has a remarkable way of enhancing relationships. Whether it’s a simple thank-you or a heartfelt acknowledgment, expressing gratitude deepens our connections and makes others feel valued.
Taking a few minutes to jot down what you’re grateful for before bed can significantly improve both the quality and duration of sleep. Reflecting on positive moments helps reduce stress, calming the mind and body for a more restful night.
So as we move through this week which has been dubbed the “Thanksgiving” holiday, why not let that extend out beyond this week into every day of your life? As we incorporate new ways of thinking, over time they become the habitual ways of thinking. We can slowly shift ourselves from a state of fear and paranoia to one of calm and pronoia. The beauty and curse of the human mind, how malleable it is.
But ultimately, if we decide to, we are the ones who get to shape our future.
“It is noted that from 1967 to 1995 essays on negative emotions far outnumbered those on positive emotions in the psychological literature. The ratio was 21:1. Even those supreme perpetrators of pop nihilism, The New York Times and The Washington Post, have a better ratio than psychological literature. They average 12 negative stories to every one that might be construed to be non-negative. Many of their non-negative stories, however, cover success in sports and entertainment.
I demand that the purveyors of despair who pretend to be dispassionate observes of the human condition go ahead and disclose that the 10 most beautiful words in the English languages are chimes, dawn, golden, hush, lullaby, luminous, melody, mist, murmuring, and tranquil; that Java sparrows prefer the music of Bach over that of Schoenberg; that math experts have determined there are 1/96 trillion ways to lace up your shoes; that the Inuit term for making love is translated as ‘laughing together in bed;' and that according to Buckminster Fuller, “pollution is nothing but resources we’re not harvesting.”
― Rob Brezsny, Pronoia is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You With Blessings