Gratitude is a positive emotion that involves being thankful and appreciative and is associated with several mental and physical health benefits. When you experience gratitude, you feel grateful for something or someone in your life and respond with feelings of kindness, warmth, and other forms of generosity.
The word gratitude can have a number of different meanings depending on how others use it and in what context.
Gratitude is something that has interested religious scholars and philosophers since ancient times. Research on gratitude didn't take off until the 1950s, as psychologists and sociologists began to examine the impact that gratitude could have on individuals and groups. Since then, interest in the topic has grown considerably as the potential health benefits became increasingly apparent.
While gratitude is generally viewed as having a host of wide-ranging benefits, there are situations where it may have some downsides. For example, if you view it as a situation that creates a debt, it may make you feel a sense of obligation that could potentially contribute to feelings of stress.
The pressure to feel grateful, particularly around certain times of the year such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, can also contribute to feelings of stress.
And sometimes putting all your energy into feeling grateful can cause you to neglect things that actually do require some criticism. For example, if you are so focused on feeling grateful for your partner, you might overlook or accept certain behaviors that are harmful to your well-being
However, it is important to remember that these potential pitfalls are relatively minor compared to the overwhelming benefits of practicing gratitude. You shouldn’t put too much pressure on yourself, but making an effort to cultivate a sense of gratitude is something worth adding to your daily life.
If you or someone you know is having a mental health crisis, please reach out for support.
Call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255