Giving thanks can make you happier and healthier, experts say
The Thanksgiving holiday is all about being grateful for what’s present in your life — and giving thanks can also provide an unexpected health boost.
Practicing gratitude has been shown to improve people's mood and mental health, according to experts.
In a conversation with Fox News Digital, M. David Rudd, PhD, distinguished professor of psychology at The University of Memphis, explained how emotional experiences are "defined by cognitive processes," or how people think.
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"Gratitude is a reminder that, in many ways, perspective in life is everything," he said.
When it comes to happiness, gratitude is a "central theme," according to Rudd.
"In general, optimists tend to be happier in life than pessimists, even if their optimism is considered ‘naive,’" he said. "Gratitude is more common in optimists as well."
The idea that there are "always things to be grateful for in life, regardless of hardships or daily challenges, is critical to an optimistic orientation in life and, ultimately, happiness," Rudd added.
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As happier people tend to be more disciplined and generally productive, this proves a "critical link" between emotion and motivation, the expert noted.
The concept of gratitude is intertwined with faith, according to Rabbi Pinchas Taylor of Florida, who spoke about the early settlers expressing both sentiments.
"When they arrived on these shores, their first instinct was gratitude," he told Fox News Digital.
"They gave thanks to a God who, in their eyes, had delivered them from danger and granted them the opportunity to live freely and faithfully in a new land."
Gratitude is more than "just a perspective," Rudd said — it is also a learned skill that can be "developed with practice," much like exercise and social connections.
The human brain is "wired to be kind of critical," according to clinical psychologist and NYU Langone Health associate professor Thea Gallagher.
"If there's a shirt and we see a stain on it, we're going to notice the stain before we're going to notice the rest of the shirt," she used as an example in an interview with Fox News Digital.
Instead of focusing on the negative, Gallagher suggested training the mind to extend attention to "things that are good."
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The goal is not to spread "toxic positivity" by pretending that "everything is fine," Gallagher noted.
While it's important to acknowledge and address challenges and stressors in life, she encourages people to highlight and identify the things that are going well or bringing happiness, and to be thankful for them.
This exercise can help "bring us back to the present," which is another way to practice mindfulness, according to Gallagher.
"I have toddlers, and sometimes I'm like, ‘Oh, my gosh, it's so stressful, so much work,’" she said. "But if I pause and laugh at something they've just done … it brings me back into that moment."
"And then I can say, ‘Yeah, parts of this phase are hard and challenging and overwhelming, but other parts are really fun.’"
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Mindfulness techniques are known to be important for mental health and a way to alleviate anxiety and depression, Gallagher added.
At the end of the day, Gallagher recommends writing down three things that you are grateful for, whether big or small.
"You actually are giving [these moments] the kind of honor they deserve," she said.
Rabbi Taylor added, "This Thanksgiving, let us not only celebrate our blessings, but also recommit to the faith and morality that make those blessings possible."
Fox News Digital's Maureen Mackey contributed reporting.