Happy Summer!
I hope you’re able to embrace the joyous expansiveness of summer – to be big and bright like the sun.
Part of my own joyous expansiveness lately has truly been centered on gratitude. I’m incredibly grateful for so many things – from the stability of my home to the unwavering support of my wonderful tribe of friends, the nourishment of healthy, fresh food, and the profound privilege of doing the work that I do alongside all of you.
There’s a wealth of compelling research surrounding gratitude, and what’s particularly fascinating to me, especially from a yoga therapy perspective, is how gratitude is not just a thought, but a feeling within the body. It’s often experienced as an expansive sensation, frequently in the heart area, and words only serve to guide us toward that deeper, embodied sensation. We genuinely want to feel gratitude more than simply think it.
The scientific community has extensively studied the profound benefits of cultivating gratitude. For cancer survivors, these findings are particularly resonant:
- Enhanced Mental & Emotional Well-being: Research consistently shows that practicing gratitude can significantly increase feelings of happiness, optimism, and life satisfaction, while also helping to reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression. A landmark study by Emmons and McCullough (2003) demonstrated that individuals who regularly listed things they were grateful for reported higher levels of positive emotions and greater overall well-being.
- Increased Resilience: You’ve already navigated immense challenges with incredible strength. Gratitude can further bolster this inherent resilience, helping you to cope with adversity and cultivate a more positive outlook even amidst life’s difficulties (Rash & Bono, 2019).
- Improved Physical Health: Beyond the mind, gratitude has tangible benefits for the body. Studies suggest it can contribute to better sleep quality and may even support a healthier immune system (Digdon & Koble, 2011; Mills et al., 2015).
- Stronger Social Connections: Gratitude fosters deeper, more meaningful bonds with others, encouraging prosocial behaviors and reinforcing feelings of support and community – which are incredibly vital during and after cancer treatment (Algoe et al., 2010).
If you’d like to experience this embodied gratitude for yourself, try this simple practice: Just close your eyes and bring to mind something you’re grateful for – it can be something small and simple, like the warmth of your morning coffee, or something big and profound, like a loving relationship. Allow yourself to relax into this practice; invite your analytical mind to take a backseat for a moment. As you continue to contemplate these objects of your gratitude, gently sense your heart space, deep inside your rib cage. Is there a pleasant, expansive, or warm feeling there? It might be quite subtle. Stay with it for a moment, just breathing and feeling.
May your summer be filled with moments of peace, joy, and profound gratitude.
References:
- Algoe, S. B., Gable, S. L., & Maisel, N. C. (2010). It’s the little things: Everyday gratitude as a booster shot for romantic relationships. Personal Relationships, 17(2), 217–232.
- Digdon, N. L., & Koble, E. (2011). Effects of gratitude journaling on sleep quality in military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, 3(2), 173–191.
- Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2), 377–389.
- Mills, P. J., Redwine, L., Wilson, K., Pung, M. A., Chinh, K., Greenberg, B. H., … & Chopra, D. (2015). The role of gratitude in spiritual well-being in asymptomatic heart failure patients. Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 2(1), 5–17.
- Rash, J. A., & Bono, G. (2019). Gratitude and well-being: The benefits of appreciation. In C. A. Stebbins (Ed.), The Wiley encyclopedia of personality and individual differences: Vol. IV. Clinical, educational, and industrial/organizational psychology (pp. 219-224). John Wiley & Sons.
Michelle Stortz 