Recent research indicates our brains have evolved to soak up negative feelings… but happy thoughts have a much harder time sinking in. It’s a survival tactic. When you’re well aware of the risks facing you, you tend to err on the side of caution.

The problem is, this may keep us alive, but it makes us miserable. To combat this, we need a systematic approach to putting happy emotions into our brain. One of the best ways to do this is to show gratitude on a regular basis.

Here’s what Retirement Insider Editor Bob Irish writes about the power of gratitude in shaping happier lives…

 

Dr. Robert A. Emmons of the University of California, Davis, is the leading researcher and an acknowledged scientific expert on gratitude. His findings reveal a host of benefits for those that adopt an “attitude of gratitude”… including a 25% increase in happiness.

In his book, Thanks!: How Practicing Gratitude Can Make You Happier, he dispels the myth that gratitude is just a simplistic emotion. He says:

 

While the emotion seemed simplistic even to me as I began my research, I soon discovered that gratitude is a deeper, more complex phenomenon that plays a critical role in human happiness. Gratitude is literally one of the few things that can measurably change peoples’ lives.

According to Dr. Emmons, people who actively practice gratitude:

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Have stronger immune systems and are sick less frequently

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Exercise more and take better care of their health

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Sleep longer and feel more refreshed upon waking

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Feel more alert, alive, and awake

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Experience more joy and pleasure

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Are more optimistic

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Are more forgiving and compassionate

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Feel less loneliness and isolation.

Why is the active practice of gratitude so effective? Dr. Rick Hanson tells us it has to do with the negativity bias of the brain. “Our brains are like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones,” he says. “Given that, it takes an active effort to internalize positive experiences and heal negative ones. When you tilt toward what’s positive, you’re actually righting a neurological imbalance.”

For most people, the best way to make that “active effort” is with some sort of gratitude ritual. It can be a regular journal entry or evening bedtime ritual. The main thing is to practice it, daily. Bob shares his own gratitude ritual with all Retirement Insider subscribers, right here.