Using Gratitude to Overcome Anxiety and Stress

What can gratitude do for us?

Can gratitude help with anxiety? Does it reduce stress? Does it make our lives better and our mental health stronger?

In this blog, I’ll explain how gratitude can be a simple but powerful tool for overcoming anxiety and stress, reducing repetitive negative thinking, improving mental health, and experiencing more peace and joy in everyday life.

We’ll see why practicing gratitude can be a game-changer in managing stress and anxiety and give you practical tools to incorporate this positive outlook into your daily life.

What Does Gratitude Mean?

Gratefulness is more than offering the occasional “thank you.” It’s a consistent practice of being present with the blessings already in our lives and building a foundation of thankfulness that is part of our everyday attitude and approach to life.

It needs to feel genuine and sincere in both the giving and receiving. Otherwise, the therapeutic effects, including lower stress levels, won’t be felt in either the giver or the receiver.

Simply put, gratitude means appreciation: for the positive aspects of life, the kindness of others, and the positive things present in your everyday experience.

That means recognizing and valuing the good things, big and small, that enrich your world and reduce negativity bias. This mindset includes acknowledging the surrounding beauty, reflecting on the opportunities you’ve been given, and all the people who make a positive impact on your journey.

Learning how to be grateful in the present moment is an important life skill.

Why Does Gratitude Work?

The science of gratitude has consistently shown that having a grateful disposition can have a positive impact on overall mental health, happiness, and well-being.

According to a meta-analysis of studies on gratitude published by the Journal Einstein, grateful people tend to have positive moods and feel more optimistic and satisfied with life.

Additionally, longitudinal studies on gratitude interventions have been linked to higher levels of serotonin and lower levels of stress hormones, depressive symptoms, and less anxiety.

Modern stressors often shift us into the sympathetic nervous system mode despite a lack of a real existential threat. Gratitude is a great tool for activating the parasympathetic mode.

This brings up an interesting question is: can gratitude and anxiety co-exist?

Research shows that gratitude and anxiety cannot exist in the brain at the same time, as they activate different nervous system modes. While anxiety triggers the “fight or flight” response, gratitude activates the “rest and digest” state.

Anxiety vs. Stress

While anxiety and stress are often confused, the terms refer to a different experience in the body.

Anxiety is when you can’t stop worrying or feeling frightened about what’s to come in the future, which might show up as a racing heart, difficulty concentrating, digestive issues, muscle tension, and more.

This can show up in multiple ways and origins. For example, having an anxious attachment style can cause more frequent bouts of anxiety. Sometimes social anxiety is present for some people, who can experience intense fear in social situations. Further, while some people may appear calm on the outside, they may be churning with anxiety on the inside.

Stress, on the other hand, is triggered by life’s inherent pressures and expectations. It can either be short or long-term but tends to be in reaction to a specific event.

Not managing stress over the long term can lead to a host of illnesses, including high blood pressure and insomnia. Relationship trauma can also be a source of chronic stress.

And unlike gratitude and anxiety, stress and anxiety frequently coexist, can make each other worse, and frequently overlap.

Fortunately, gratitude is a powerful practice that can help to lessen both anxiety and stress.

How Gratitude Helps Anxiety & Stress

Gratitude is a useful strategy for stress and anxiety management achieved through:

1. Cognitive Reframing: Being grateful can help divert focus from stressful situations to enjoyable parts of life, which may lessen anxiety and promote positive feelings.

2. Emotional Regulation: Practicing gratitude regularly helps improve emotional intelligence and stress management.

3. Physiological Impact: Research suggests that being thankful can reduce cortisol levels, which may lessen the symptoms of physical stress caused by negative emotions.

4. Sleep Quality Enhancement: Gratitude practices before bedtime may improve sleep quality, often disrupted by anxiety and stress. A better night’s rest means a calmer and more focused mindset during the day.

5. Social Support: Expressing gratitude can to greater satisfaction in relationships, providing a robust support network during stressful periods.

How to Practice Gratitude

Gratitude is a prosocial behavior that can be easily incorporated into everyday life. Consider these practices as ways to incorporate more positive thoughts into your daily routine:

• Keep a gratitude journal by listing three items each day for which you are thankful.
• Regularly express appreciation for friends, neighbors, and co-workers helps build an orientation toward life that can reduce anxiety and stress and bring positive emotions.
• Be thankful in relationships. Express your gratitude to your partner by acknowledging your partner’s efforts in daily tasks, their unique qualities and their the emotional support they offer.
• Engage in a mindfulness practice. Set aside some time to mindfully observe your environment. Make sure to include appreciation, empathy, and compassion in your daily practice.

It's crucial to remember that anxiety and gratitude cannot co-exist. And while gratitude practice offers coping mechanisms that can improve mental and physical health and overall well-being, it does not eliminate difficult feelings.

However, using practical exercises to reframe events can be a very helpful addition to your emotional toolbox and challenge underlying negative thinking patterns.

Try this three-step exercise to improve your gratitude practice and even more stress relief:

Step 1: Choose a difficult event that occurred recently, then ask yourself, "What did this situation mean to me?"

Step 2: Ask yourself, "Can I be certain this interpretation is accurate?" to challenge your interpretation and any resulting behavior.

Step 3: Ask, "What are three other possible reasons for this situation?" This will help you come up with alternate explanations for what happened.

By separating oneself from negative thought patterns and making room for thankfulness, this activity can aid with emotional regulation.

Keep in mind that cultivating an attitude of gratitude calls for patience and perseverance. If you're experiencing extreme stress or anxiety, you might need to seek professional assistance.

Watch this quick video to easily manage daily stress:

Summary

• Several studies have shown gratitude practice leads to increased optimism, life satisfaction, overall health, and lower anxious and depressive thinking.
• Gratitude and anxiety cannot be present in the brain simultaneously, activating different nervous system modes.
• Anxiety is persistent worry about the future, while stress is a reaction to specific events and pressures.
• Gratitude helps address mental health issues through cognitive reframing, emotional regulation, reducing cortisol levels, improving sleep, and strengthening social support.
• Practical ways to practice gratitude on a daily basis include gratitude journals, verbal expressions, mindfulness, meditation, and using it in relationships.

Take a look at our Overcoming Anxiety for Peace of Mind course to discover tools to help you manage and overcome anxiety and stress!

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