Positively affecting mental health through expressing gratitude

THANK YOU, CHELSEA. WELL, THIS TIME OF YEAR, MANY OF US REFLECT ON ALL THE THINGS WE’RE GRATEFUL FOR. BUT DID YOU KNOW THAT BEING THANKFUL AND EXPRESS GRATITUDE CAN ACTUALLY HAVE A POSITIVE EFFECT ON YOUR MENTAL HEALTH? THAT’S OUR MARYLAND PEACE OF MIND TOPIC THIS MORNING. AND HERE TO EXPLAIN IS DR. LAQUITA CARTER, A LICENSED PSYCHOLOGIST IN PRIVATE PRACTICE IN BALTIMORE COUNTY. GOOD MORNING. SO THERE ARE ACTUALLY STUDIES ON THIS SUBJECT OF GRATITUDE AND MENTAL HEALTH. WHAT HAVE THEY FOUND? YEAH, THERE’S BEEN A REALLY WONDERFUL STUDY IN 2017 THAT LOOKED AT GRATITUDE AND ADULTS THAT HAD LOW LEVELS OF DEPRESSION. SO MILD SYMPTOMS OF SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION. THEY BROKE ADULTS INTO THREE GROUPS. ONE, A GROUP OF ADULTS PRACTICED A MINDFULNESS OR A GRATITUDE EXERCISE. AS OF WRITING A JOURNAL LETTER OR A LETTER TO OTHERS TO EXPRESS THEIR GRATITUDE. ANOTHER JOURNAL SHOWED THEIR NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS, AND THEN THE THIRD GROUP DID NOTHING. AND THE RESEARCH STUDY FOUND SOME REALLY COOL FACTS. ARE SOME SOME REALLY COOL INFORMATION. ONE OF THEM WAS THAT THE GROUP THAT ACTUALLY PRACTICED JOURNALING OR WRITING A LETTER ABOUT GRATITUDE HAD LOWER DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS AT FOUR WEEKS AND 12 WEEKS, POST STUDY. AND THEY ALSO FOUND THIS REALLY UNIQUE PART OF THEIR RESEARCH, WHICH WAS THAT PEOPLE WHO PRACTICE THIS DON’T ACTUALLY HAVE TO SEND THEIR GRATITUDE LETTERS. SO SENDING IT WAS NOT NECESSARILY ONLY ABOUT ONE THIRD OF THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE LETTERS SENT THEM. IT WAS MOST IMPORTANT THAT THEY EXPRESSED GRATITUDE. WHAT THEY DID AFTER THEY WROTE THE LETTER WAS IN CONSEQUENTIAL. WELL, DEFINITELY I CAN SEE HOW THAT WILL WORK, BECAUSE IT’S SOMETHING YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT AND THEN IT GETS INTO YOUR MIND. AND EVEN THOUGH YOU’RE PUTTING IT ON PAPER, NOT NECESSARILY SENDING IT OUT IS THE PART. BUT DO POSITIVE EMOTIONS LIKE GRATEFULNESS? CAN THEY CHANGE YOUR BRAIN CHEMISTRY? ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE EMOTIONS. WE DO HAVE RESEARCH TO SHOW THAT POSITIVE EMOTIONS DO CHANGE YOUR YOUR BRAIN CHEMISTRY. WE ALSO KNOW THAT GRATITUDE BUILDS JUST LIKE NEGATIVITY BUILDS. RIGHT. SO IF YOU ARE IN A NEGATIVE SPACE, THEN IT SEEMS LIKE YOU CAN ALWAYS FIND THE NEGATIVE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN THAT SPACE. BUT THE SAME IS TRUE FOR GRATITUDE. WHEN YOU ARE IN A GRATEFUL PLACE, YOU CAN FIND OTHER THINGS TO BE GRATEFUL FOR. WELL, THAT’S LIKE THE THE OLD SAYING THAT MISERY LOVES COMPANY. SO IT DEFINITELY CAN WORK THE OTHER WAY TOO. THEN THE MORE NEGATIVE YOU ARE, THE MORE UNHAPPY YOU ARE. YES, ABSOLUTELY. AND THAT BREEDS NEGATIVE MENTAL HEALTH. MENTAL HEALTH SYMPTOMS. RIGHT. AND SOMETIMES THOSE CAN COMPOUND AND COMPOUND IN THAT THEY STAY WITH US TOO LONG OR THEY’RE TOO SEVERE. THEN WE CAN END UP HAVING MAINTENANT END UP NOT JUST NEEDING TO SEE SOMEONE. AND THAT’S OKAY TOO. BUT IF WE CAN PRACTICE GRATITUDE, IT’S POSSIBLE THAT WE CAN WARD OFF BEFORE THOSE NEGATIVE EMOTIONS GET TOO DEEP. WE CAN ACTUALLY HELP TO LIFT THEM. AND TALKING ABOUT SEEING SOMEONE, THIS PRACTICE OF WRITING DOWN WHAT YOU’RE GRATEFUL FOR, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT YOU RECOMMEND TO YOUR OWN PATIENTS? YES, 100%. SO GRATITUDE IS A CONSCIOUS ACTIVITY. IT IS NOT SOMETHING WHERE YOU JUST DO IN PASSING. IT IS A CONSCIOUS THING THAT YOU DO AND YOU CAN DO IT IN SO MANY DIFFERENT WAYS. YOU CAN PRACTICE GRATITUDE BY JOURNALING. YOU CAN STOP AND MEDITATE ON THE THINGS YOU’RE GRATEFUL FOR. THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS THAT YOU CAN DO. BUT THE POINT IS TO ACTUALLY CONSCIOUSLY DO THEM AND SET ASIDE TIME TO DO THEM. BUT IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE A LOT OF TIME AND SO I’M ASSUMING THAT YOU WOULD SAY ALSO FOR THOSE WHO ARE STRUGGLING. GRATITUDE AND THERAPY CAN HAVE A GREATER IMPACT ON THEM THAN JUST PRACTICING GRATITUDE ALONE. THAT IS WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS, THAT GRATITUDE IS HELPFUL. PRACTICING GRATITUDE IS HELPFUL. THERAPY IS HELPFUL. WHEN YOU COMBINE THEM. THEY HAVE AN EVEN GREATER IMPACT THAN JUST PRACTICING GRATITUDE ALONE. SO IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH MENTAL HEALTH SYMPTOMS, PLEASE DO NOT WAIT. PLEASE CALL SOMEONE. CALL A THERAPIST. TODAY. AND SO YOU DID GIVE SOME TIPS ON HOW PEOPLE CAN GET STARTED ON THIS GRATITUDE JOURNEY. IF PEOPLE ARE FEELING A LITTLE IFFY ABOUT IT, IT’S NOT REALLY HARD. IT’S NOT IT’S NOT HARD AT ALL. YOU CAN KEEP A JAR. I KEEP A JAR OF THINGS THAT I’M GRATEFUL FOR AND I STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF A DAY AND I JUST WRITE DOWN SOMETHING AS SMALL AS I’M GRATEFUL FOR HAVING NO PAIN IN MY BODY AT THIS PRESENT MOMENT. RIGHT. WE OFTEN THINK OF BEING GRATEFUL FOR THINGS THAT ARE HUGE, RIGHT? LIKE THE SHELTER THAT WE HAVE OR THE FOOD THAT WE EAT. AND THOSE THINGS ARE THINGS TO BE GRATEFUL FOR. BUT WE CAN ALSO BE GRATEFUL THAT THE WEATHER IS BEAUTIFUL TODAY. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. YOU’RE YELLOW IS BRINGING ME JOY. IT’S SO BRIGHT AND CHEERY THIS MORNING. I LOVE IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. IT WAS GREAT TO BE HERE. THANKS FOR HAVING ME AGAIN. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. AND A REMINDER, IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW NEEDS HELP WITH MENTAL HEALTH, WE HAVE LINKS TO RESOURCES RIGHT ON OUR WEBSITE. JUST SEARCH MERILYN PEACE OF MIND TO GET A LIST OF ORGANIZED OPTIONS AND OTHER MENTAL HEALTH

Being thankful, expressing gratitude can positively affect mental health

Updated: 12:05 PM EST Nov 27, 2022

This time of year, many people reflect on all the things we’re grateful for — and being thankful and expressing gratitude can actually have a positive effect on your mental health. Dr. Lakeita Carter, a licensed psychologist in private practice in Baltimore County, explains.

BALTIMORE —

This time of year, many people reflect on all the things we’re grateful for — and being thankful and expressing gratitude can actually have a positive effect on your mental health. Dr. Lakeita Carter, a licensed psychologist in private practice in Baltimore County, explains.