The Power of Gratitude

Conventional Western medicine is based largely on Newtonian science, and is considered very reductionist. It focuses solely on the problem at hand, giving little, if any, consideration to the greater body at large, not to mention other circumstances like stress or support systems. Unfortunately, many times doctors defer to medication as a quick, easy fix to whatever ailment you might have, never fully uncovering what is actually causing the symptom to begin with. You may think that sounds harsh, or that I’m painting all doctors with a broad brush, but I have gone through this time and time again (I’m currently going through it, in fact), with both myself and my children. I would actually go so far as to say that my experience with Western medicine, compared to that of traditional medicine, has been the most influential reason for becoming a holistic nutritionist (more than even my kids, and they’re a pretty big influence!).

You see, we are not just made up of individual parts that somehow connect together arbitrarily to make a person. We are a thinking, breathing, moving, feeling organism that are more than a brain here and a foot there. In fact, for thousands of years, some cultures have believed greatly in the power of the mind-body connection and the healing (or destructive) powers it has on the physical body. And believe it or not, while we may think we know best, those ancient cultures actually knew what they were talking about 😉

The Hip Bone’s Connected to the…

You know the song, “the hip bone’s connected to the…back bone!” I can’t help but think of it when I think of the mind-body connection. We know that our skeletal system is all connected by tendons and muscles, and our internal organs are all in there somewhere, too. But we rarely, in my experience, give thought to, well, our thoughts.

The idea of the mind-body connection can also be called the neuroendocrine system. This is the connection between our nervous system (neuro) and our hormonal (endocrine) system. Our endocrine system regulates our stress hormones, like cortisol, and our sex hormones, like estrogen & testosterone, among others. Our nervous system is our hub, it oversees and ultimately controls everything from our movement to our thoughts. So why is it a surprise that our thoughts might have an impact on our bodily functions?

Gratitude and…Quantum Physics?

I mentioned at the outset that our current medicine is based mostly on Newtonian theory. Yes, that’s Isaac Newton, the person who figured out gravity among many other important theories (many that are still true today). But then came Albert Einstein, who discovered that energy is a relevant phenomenon, too. Thus was born quantum physics, which explores the energy of atoms and thereby the general world around us. The human body is made up of atoms, in fact everything around us is made up of atoms, but what are the atoms made up of? Energy. Protons, neutrons and electrons are all little particles of energy. So it kind of makes sense that we can feed off of other people’s energy, or our own energy, or the sun’s energy, or react to the energy given off by cell phones & other devices.

Building off of Einstein’s theory of energy and quantum physics, there’s a whole field of study dedicated to researching how our thoughts, emotions and environment affect our genetic makeup. It’s called epigenetics. To go even further, the field of study that researches specifically how nutrition impacts us is called nutrigenetics. Because while genetic mutations do happen, the vast majority of mutations actually happen because of environmental circumstances. Things like our food, our sleeping habits, our work environment, toxins & pollutants, alcohol consumption, stress levels, mood and social support all make up our environment which has a significant & profound influence on our overall health.

So even though you may have a family history of heart disease, depending upon your lifestyle, eating choices, stress levels, etc., the gene that codes for heart disease may never turn on for you. Ever wonder how you ended up with a condition that no one in your family ever had? Somehow, something suppressed or activated a gene, which resulted in this condition. It’s really hard to tell what may or may not have activated a gene, which is all the more reason to eat a whole foods diet, prioritize sleep, reduce your stress and exercise when you can.

Have you ever noticed that when you’re stressed about something, you start having a physical reaction, too? Maybe you start to sweat (those are your hormones, by the way), or maybe your heart starts to race, maybe your stomach tightens? These are physical (bodily) reactions to the thoughts in your mind. So if stressful or upsetting thoughts can trigger such unpleasant reactions, why is it so hard to believe that gratitude or “positive thinking” might impact us as well, but in the opposite way?

Have you heard of serotonin? It’s a neurotransmitter (which essentially means it carries signals from neurons to other areas of our body) that regulates our mood, among other things. So we’d think it would mostly be in our brain, right? Wrong. About 90% of our serotonin is actually produced in our GI tract, so it should be no surprise that when we’re having GI troubles, we’re not in the greatest of moods; or vise versa, if we’re not in a great head space, then we’re likely experiencing some sort of GI upset. Interesting connection, no? Coincidence? Also no.

So how does this all relate to gratitude? Well, studies are showing that some form of gratitude, ideally practiced daily, has an overall healthy impact on our bodies. Finding some happy nugget of your day to focus on helps your body release neurotransmitters and/or hormones, in particular serotonin and dopamine, both of which can help to improve your mood. These happy, calm, relaxed signals help to improve sleep, lower inflammation and reduce stress levels. Chronic stress and inflammation are significant markers of many of today’s ailments and disease, including heart disease, so really, any means of reducing it should be taken.

What if I Don’t Feel Grateful?

I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about gratitude, especially recently, and I’m just one more person telling you to be thankful for everything you have, even when you don’t feel grateful for anything. I get it. And you know what? There’s a term for this: toxic positivity, or toxic gratitude. It’s like when someone says “yeah but, it could be worse…” or “if it makes you feel any better…” or “but you should be thankful you’re not xyz.” While these comments are usually well-meaning, they’re actually really detrimental and not helpful at all. In my opinion, they’re right up there with unsolicited advice. As someone I admire tells me, “it’s not necessarily malintent, it’s just lacking intent.” All feelings are valid, and I am by no means telling you to be grateful every minute of every day.

So with that said, when I invite you to practice gratitude, I don’t always mean finding something in each and every day, because while that’s helpful, I understand that for some of us it can actually be really challenging. So instead, maybe look at the bigger picture. Did you have heat during this latest cold snap? Did your car turn on this morning? Except for the endless viruses going around, are you generally healthy when it comes to the big stuff (heart disease, cancer, etc)? Did you text or talk with someone you love today? Did that meeting you really didn’t want to attend get canceled? Those things count too, even if the day felt like sh*%.

Once you start rewiring your brain and how you think, those moments of gratitude become easier and easier, but sometimes it can take some work to get started.

What’s the Best Way to Show Gratitude?

There’s really no right or wrong way to be grateful. Some people like to journal, some people express their gratitude verbally to others. I personally do a mental rundown at the end of the day of the things I’m grateful for: my kids, their health, my husband, our families, living someplace safe. Throughout the day I try to pause on moments that make me feel happy or grateful: being able to take a walk and feel the sun, talking to a friend, hearing about my kids’ days at school, watching a movie with my husband. None of it is earth shattering stuff, but I also recognize how fortunate we are to have it and try hard not to take any of it for granted. Does that mean I never get down about stuff? Nope. But I recognize those feelings as valid, and do what I can to shift my mentality. It’s a process, just like any other healthy habit. But just like those other healthy habits, it’s certainly worth it in the long run.