Gratitude and Anxiety Cannot Coexist
Posted on May 24, 2023 by Cindy Stellar, One of Thousands of Health and Fitness Coaches on Noomii.
We can train our brain to focus on positive thoughts, improving our well being and reducing the impacts from stress and anxiety.
The brain cannot respond to anxiety and gratitude at the same time. It is an “either/or” situation. We can feel anxious and other negative feelings, or we can feel grateful and all of the positive emotions that are associated with it.
Our brain operates in either a sympathetic (fight or flight) or parasympathetic (rest and digest) mode. The purpose of the sympathetic mode is to protect us in life-threatening emergency situations, so our body can respond quickly (think hunter about to be attacked by a lion). The parasympathetic mode is our “rest and digest” mode and this is the state we should be in most of the time. However, in modern society, the constant stressors in our life can cause us to stay in the “sympathetic/fight or flight” mode. So, how do we train ourselves to move out of fight or flight and back to a restful, calm state? Being in a state of gratitude has a potent effect on moving us to a parasympathetic (rest or digest) stage. When we express gratitude and receive the same, our brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotransmitters responsible for our emotions, and they make us feel better, immediately enhancing our mood.
There are a number of health benefits to regularly practicing gratitude. In Alex Korb’s article, “How Gratitude Shapes your Brain,” he shares how studies have shown that a consistent gratitude practice helps with the following:
1. Releasing negative emotions
2. Reducing pain
3. Improving sleep quality
4. Reducing anxiety and depression
Being aware of the powerful benefits of a gratitude practice, some people consider creating a gratitude journal to list the things they are thankful for on a regular basis. While this activity is helpful, a more powerful way to deepen your positive neural circuitry is with story. In the Science of Gratitude podcast by Andrew Huberman, we learn about the latest neuroscience about gratitude and a method for repeating a gratitude story as a practice. Remembering a time when you received sincere gratitude for something and repeating that memory on a regular basis is more positively impactful to your neurocircuitry than simply being thankful for something (although being thankful certainly has its purpose too—counting our blessings is beneficial to our spirit and approach to life).
By consciously practicing gratitude, we can train the brain to focus on positive thoughts and emotions, moving us into the restful parasympathetic state, thereby improving our overall health and wellbeing.
