Who Knew Expressed Gratitude Lights Up My Brain?!?!?

Stance for Health

In this podcast, Dr. Rodney and Karen talk about the power of gratitude to impact your physical and mental health. In fact, your brain literally lights up when you express gratefulness.
How do you define gratitude?
Gratitude is a very real psychological phenomenon with measurable benefits for both your mind and body as you become aware of what you appreciate in others. It is more than a fleeting emotion and should become a stable trait we can become known to possess.
The more you practice gratitude, the more you strengthen the brain’s neural circuits for gratitude, making it easier to focus on feelings of gratitude.
What are some of the results of gratitude in your body?
We all know that gratitude causes us to focus on positivity. It also results in ways

• Strengthens connections
• Improves mental health
• Enhances sleep
• Reduces fatigue
• Lessens stress
• Upgrades cardiac health

According to research published by the American Psychological Association
How does gratitude rewire your brain?
Research from Frontiers in Psychology - MRI
Areas of brain with increased activity are as follows:

• Anterior cingulate cortex
• Medial prefrontal cortex

These parts of the brain stimulate happiness or relief, and play a role in how you make moral decisions and judge other people. These areas of the brain are also involved in self-processing.
An active practice of gratitude can increase neuron density and lead to greater emotional intelligence because the “neurons that fire together wire together.”
There is an increase in brain activity in these two areas when you express your gratitude.
Gratitude is self-perpetuating — the more you practice gratitude, the more you notice opportunities to be thankful.
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