Gratitude |
Many of us feel stressed and anxious, and “busy”. Our lives are very fast paced and we can be lead down the path to adrenal burnout easily if we don’t manage our stress well. Yoga is a major contributor to stress relief, but I want to share with you another potent stress management tool: GRATITUDE. The effects of gratitude on one’s mental and emotional well being is tremendous. Below is a list of what gratitude has been found to do (taken from Mercola): -Lowers Blood Pressure -Improves heart health, reducing the likelihood of sudden death in patients with heart failure and coronary artery disease. -Lowers risk for heart disease -Improves general health by encouraging self-care -Improves sleep -Improves interpersonal relationships -Boosts productivity -Reduces materialism and increases generosity, both of which can increase happiness and life satisfaction Our nervous systems don’t know the difference between vivid imagination or reality. Our stress response can be triggered by thinking about a stressful situation before or after its happened. We can use this to our advantage by controlling our nervous system by using our imagination. Gratitude is one of many methods of influencing a positive nervous system response. Give it a try! Thanks to Liesel for sharing this article with me. Practice kindness & acceptance This time of year is full of social activities and with that can come social pressures of how and what to be. Allow yourself to be exactly who you are without apology, and allow others the same. For we are all on this earth taking the same curriculum – of being human. Be kind on your mistakes and even kinder of others’ mistakes. I found this video very inspiring for spreading love and acceptance, click the button below to watch. How to love yourself |