by Dr. Lorin Bradbury
Question: It’s Thanksgiving time. Is there any research on the benefits of being thankful?
Answer: It seems intuitive that thankful people would navigate life better than someone who is unthankful and ungrateful. I searched and found an article in Psychology Today by Amy Morin, LCSW, in 2015. Even though Psychology Today is not peer reviewed, it is well respected. And Ms. Morin cites peer-reviewed literature in each of her reasons listed below.
1.Gratitude opens the door to more relationships.
2.Gratitude improves physical health.
3.Gratitude improves psychological health.
4.Gratitude enhances empathy and reduces aggression.
5.Grateful people sleep better.
6.Gratitude improves self-esteem.
7.Gratitude increases mental strength.
The seven reasons for being grateful or thankful listed above are only the reasons given by Ms. Morin. If you would like to explore her justification for those reasons, I encourage you to read the article at https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do/201504/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-gratitude.
Lorin L. Bradbury, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist in private practice in Bethel. For appointments, he can be reached at 543-3266. If you have questions that you would like Dr. Bradbury to answer in the Delta Discovery, please send them to The Delta Discovery, P.O. Box 1028, Bethel, AK 99559, or e-mail them to [email protected].
