Celebrating a New Year: Stepping into the Unknown with Gratitude

It’s time for a fresh start, a blank page, a new chapter in life waiting to be written. Since ancient times, the new year has been a time for reflection and resolution. Jews observe the high holy day of Yom Kippur, the day of public and private atonement, a sacred withdrawal from the world for twenty-four hours in order to become right with God and others so that real life might be renewed with passion and purpose.

I submit that as you move forward in this new year with a heart and mind filled with gratitude, you will witness miracles, and you will thrive in the face of adversity, no matter what comes your way. Author Melody Beattie wrote, “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

Countless studies have been conducted on the effects of gratitude. I’ve listed just four, researched by HAPPIER Humans. They are:

1. Gratitude improves sleep.

Gratitude has been shown to improve sleep quality, decrease the amount of time needed to fall asleep, and increase sleep duration. In a study of sixty-five individuals with a chronic pain condition, those who completed a daily gratitude journal each night reported half an hour more sleep than the control group. In a study of 400 healthy individuals, higher scores on a gratitude test were significantly correlated with better sleep. Also, those participants who ranked high on the gratitude measure also fell asleep faster, had better quality sleep, had increased sleep duration, and had less trouble staying awake throughout the day.

2. Gratitude can strengthen your physiological well-being.

Gratitude has a positive effect on health. Research indicates that a person who practices gratitude is more adept at coping with and managing terminal conditions, such as cancer and HIV. A grateful person experiences positive changes in immune system function and a faster recovery from some medical procedures. Gratitude is associated with healthier behavior and has been found to reduce pain. Other benefits of gratitude include less frequent visits to the doctor, lower blood pressure, and decreased likelihood of developing a mental health disorder—all great reasons to keep counting your blessings!

3. Gratitude can increase longevity.

Although not technically “proven” to be the case, evidence suggests that gratitude may lead to a longer life. This is because optimism and positive emotion have been used to successfully predict a person’s mortality, and gratitude is strongly correlated with positive emotion.

4. Gratitude increases your energy levels.

Grateful people are much more likely to report physical and mental vigor. Gratitude makes people more likely to exercise. In an eleven-week study of ninety-six Americans, those who were instructed to keep a weekly gratitude journal spent an extra forty minutes exercising than the control group. This study also concluded that those with higher levels of vitality were also apt to be socially connected in positive and helpful ways. In other words, their energy was used to serve and bless those around them.

Your fresh start—your blank page—is a page in your journal of gratitude. As you journey through this new year, intentionally live the law of gratitude; you won’t be the same person two months from now. You will have set in motion a universal law: the more you express gratitude for what you have received, the more you will be given. Begin today to explore and integrate this beautiful, lifeaffirming grace into your life, and to your wonder and amazement, the miracles you have been seeking will unfold.

About the Author

Brigit Atkin–Brigit of Brightworks helps improve the lives of others facing challenges and difficulties. She is certified in the SimplyALIGN™ method and was trained by founder Carolyn Cooper herself. For more information, visit www.brightworksbybrigit.com.