What are You Thankful for This Thanksgiving?
by www.SixWise.com

On Thanksgiving Day families, friends and individuals across the nation will sit down and give thanks for the good fortune in their lives. It's a tradition that happens, for many, just once a year but here at Sixwise we would like you to consider making gratitude a part of your daily life instead.

Have you ever noticed how giving thanks, when done from the heart, makes you feel warm and happy? This is not a coincidence. In fact, research by Robert Emmons, a psychology professor at the University of California Davis, and colleagues has described gratitude as the "forgotten factor" in happiness research.

According to their work, being grateful is a boon to humankind, showering benefits on both your mind and body.

Five Reasons Why You Should be Grateful This Year

1. Relieve Stress: "Gratitude research is beginning to suggest that feelings of thankfulness have tremendous positive value in helping people cope with daily problems, especially stress," Emmons said in a WebMD article.

2. Become Happier and More Fit: People who keep gratitude journals tend to exercise more, feel better physically and be happier and more optimistic about their lives in general.

3. Reach Your Goals: People who kept gratitude lists for two months were closer to achieving their personal goals than those who did not.

4. Acquire a Sense of Well-Being: Grateful people report higher levels of positive emotions, vitality and life satisfaction and lower levels of depression and stress.

5. Cope With Illness: Emmons found that a 21-day gratitude intervention produced more high-energy positive moods, a greater sense of feeling connected to others, more optimistic ratings of one's life, and better sleep duration and quality in people with a neuromuscular disease.

Not Sure What to be Thankful For? Take a Hint From These Elementary School Students ...

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Times are rough for many people this year, as employment rates drop and the economy continues to slump. Amidst all of this stress and financial worry, you may be feeling like you don't have one thing to give thanks for this Thanksgiving.

Well, sometimes it takes a bit of inspiration to remember what the spirit of the holiday season is all about ... and to remind yourself of the many good things in your life. The following passages came from students from Thorne Elementary School in Dearborn, Michigan, and were published in the area's paper Press & Guide.

We've included just a few of the responses here. To read the entire list, please see the original article.

I am thankful for having a family that cares for me and spends money on things we really really need like food. My mom and dad put family first. My mom and dad are always going to be there for us. I love them just the way they are. I am proud of this writing even if it is not in the newspaper.
-- Vanessa A. Jimenez

I am thankful for my mom. Have you ever had someone that you are thankful for? I have, that person is my mom, Andrea Shae Glazur. The reason I am thankful for her is when I was little my dad moved out, so my mom had to take care of me and my little sisters, Jewel and Latia Smith. While he was gone my mom was sick. Even though my mom was sick she would still take care of us.

Here are five things my mom did while she was sick: she took me to my friend's birthday party, my mom took me and my sisters to Chucky Cheese's, drove me to school every day, made us dinner, and last but not least she helped me do my homework. Even though those were probably dumb reasons, those reasons will never be dumb to me.

p.s. Moms out there your child/children are proud of you, even when you punish them and they say I hate you no matter what they say they will always remember you.
-- Shae Smith

What are you thankful for this holiday season?

I am thankful for always cheering for the other team.
-- Savien Bonam

I am thankful for my big brother Greg. Greg is nice to me. Greg doesn't put me down. He helps me with my homework. He helps me go to sleep. I look up to him. I think he feels the same about me. That's how I am thankful for my big brother Greg.
-- Issac Plascencia

I am thankful for my unique eyes that help me see.
-- Bree Ferguson

I am thankful to live in America because other countries have unfair laws and because our country is free. Another reason I am thankful is to have a mother. I am thankful to have a mother because she gives me food, shelter, most importantly she loves and cares for me. My mother is the best things life is given me. Those are the reasons I am thankful.
-- Emily Lominac

This year, no matter what circumstances surround your Thanksgiving, take a few moments to really give thanks. And while you're at it, why not make gratitude a part of your daily routine? It takes just a few minutes to jot down what you're thankful for in a gratitude journal each evening, but the benefits will last you a lifetime.

Recommended Reading

Have You Heard "The Thanksgiving Song"?

Your Play-by-Play on the Nutritional Values (or Lack Thereof) of Every Item on a Typical Thanksgiving Table

Sources

PressandGuide.com November 23, 2008

Dimensions and Perspectives of Gratitude, Robert A. Emmons, University of California, Davis and Michael E. McCullough, University of Miami

WebMD.com