03/02/2024
What you think about a lot tells your brain, I want to think about stuff like this. So, you basically are telling it, let’s look for things like what i think about a lot. Your brain will obey! So, if you think about how bad your life is a lot, your brain will be on the lookout for more evidence and examples of this. What do you think the result of this is? Satisfaction, perhaps? See, i really do have a crappy life!
The thing is, this won’t make you feel very good, will it? And everywhere you look, because of the instruction your brain has received, you will find yourself focusing on just those things in the world, even though there are many other things to notice, too!
On the other hand, if you focus on something else, such as things that make you feel grateful, your brain will look for more things to feel grateful about. And the feeling of gratitude is like a gateway to lots of other positive emotions—like joy, awe, love, peacefulness, even a sense of motivation (which we sure can lose when focusing on the crappy parts of our lives—or ourselves ❤️)
Starting a gratitude practice is a powerful way to shift your brain’s focus and can help improve mood, lower stress, even improve relationships. This is why it’s a go-to strategy for stress reduction, depression, even anxiety.
Stress is not what happens around you, but a condition that arises when a particular part of your brain, the amygdala, takes over. This is the part that looks for danger, threat, which is very important for survival—if you live in a dangerous world where you could be attacked and need to be able to fight off the attacker or run away. Most of the time, though, what triggers the amygdala to go on alert are things we cannot physically fight or run from, such as … being stuck in traffic & worrying about being late, worries about whether you will have enough money for the bills, regrets about what happened in the past, and a lot of thoughts about ourselves (i’m not good enough, does he really love me, is she going to leave me, why don’t i ever get a break, my life would be better if i had had different parents/friends/upbringing, if i were thinner, taller, had a different complexion, different hair, more money, _______fill in the blank. )
All these things may be true, or not. That’s not the point.
The point is that we can’t beat up or physically run away from such negative things, but they all will turn on our brain & body responses for doing just that.
This worked when our survival depended on fight or flight, like, when needing to run away from wild animals! but not so much in the modern world…!
When we have such worries and thoughts, we will be in a state of stress—which includes our negative emotions and, importantly, changes in our body that if sustained for a long time, year after year, leads to serious common health issues: Cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal issues, and more.
Mind affects body.
(and it goes the other way, too!)
Try adding a gratitude practice to your day for a week or two, and see what happens!
Try using a gratitude-sharing activity for team-building at work! Or at home with the family. Notice how your brain begins to look for things to be grateful for as it begins focusing on gratitude evoking things, knowing it will need to have a list for your next practice!
Enjoy!👍🏻❤️
