The Science of Gratitude: How it Transforms our Brain
For me, the word gratitude has such an attractive tone to it. It encompasses wellbeing, positivity, gratefulness, pleasure, thankfulness and so many more beautiful things. As a result of societies growing need for consumption, ever increasing expectations and busy modern schedules, gratitude is a practise that falls vastly short in many of our lives.
What is Gratitude?
Gratitude is a feeling. It can also be cultivated as a practice or mindset. I describe gratitude as being a deep feeling of appreciation or thankfulness directed towards someone or something that has positively impacted your life. This includes self recognition of your own positive attributes or behaviours. When we feel gratitude, we are recognising the value or kindness shown, and this feeling fosters a sense of connection and goodwill. This emotional response is linked to improved well-being, stronger relationships and greater resilience. Gratitude can be expressed in many ways, from elaborate gestures, to smaller acts of kindness. We can be grateful for our loved ones and the people who champion us, for the things we have, for opportunities that come our way, or for the experiences and challenges we encounter that lead to our personal growth. Gratitude is the mindset of acknowledging the positive aspects of life, even in challenging situations, and as a result, encourages a sense of contentment and fulfilment.
The benefits of practising Gratitude
Making time for gratitude is so important. It is one of the most powerful tools we have when it comes to our mood and perception. It can be so easy to let one negative thought or event cloud our judgement of the entire day or experience. When we practise gratitude, our mood improves, we shift our emotional state for the better and we are less likely to catastrophise. Practising gratitude can be a hugely impactful and effective tool for helping you to reach your longer term goals which require your persistent effort. This is particularly useful when it comes to coaching because the objective is focused around reaching your desired outcome. For this reason I like to include dialogue around gratitude in coaching sessions with my clients.
The positive internal dialogue involved with gratitude feeds your brain’s reward system, which gives you the psychological and emotional strength required for the persistent efforts needed to reach your goals. This feedback system also helps to build your emotional resilience, which is useful when pushing ahead towards your outcomes. More on the brain next! When we practise gratitude, we are not only reflecting on the positive aspects of something, we are also acknowledging new perspectives, re-framing experiences and creating new narratives. This is hugely beneficial for our internal dialogue and opens the door to neural growth.
What happens in our Brain when we practise Gratitude?
Our brains are an incredibly complex organ, capable of extraordinary things. On the surface we appear to know so much about its function, but the reality is our existing knowledge of its intricacy is a drop in the ocean. If we can learn how to harness the opportunities to train our brain in a way that benefits us, then we are on to a winner! It can get complex when we talk about neural activity so I’ll keep this simple.
Dysfunctional neural patterns and unhelpful thoughts can hinder our ability to practise gratitude. These pathways form from past experiences, because this was our brains way of trying to protect us. What we might have developed as a coping mechanism or survival strategy can suddenly become unhelpful or even harmful, affecting our mental wellbeing and long-term goals by narrowing our perspective. The good news? We can rewire our brains!
Our brains are highly adaptable because their main purpose is to protect us in any given situation.
To move beyond these unhelpful patterns we need to create new, more helpful ones. Practising gratitude is one powerful way to do this. Each time we express gratitude, whether through thought, writing, or speech, we engage the brain’s reward system. This releases a small hit of dopamine*, giving us a pleasurable feeling or “buzz” that motivates us to want more and keep going. Over time and with consistency, this creates a positive cycle. The more we practise gratitude, the more dopamine we receive, reinforcing the behaviour. With repetition, these new positive pathways grow stronger and start to override the old, unhelpful ones. Eventually, your brain will default to gratitude more easily and automatically. This is great news for our goals!
* (Dopamine is a neurotransmitter which transmits chemical messages around the body, including the brain. It plays a key role in several important functions, such as reward, pleasure, motivation, emotional regulation and memory).
How we can practise Gratitude effectively
Incorporating gratitude into our daily lives can have a powerful impact on how we think and feel. The best part? It only takes a few minutes and can be done anywhere. There are many ways to practise gratitude, but two simple approaches are especially effective: writing and speaking. If you enjoy journaling or jotting things down, try noting a few things you're grateful for each day. You could use a dedicated notebook, a gratitude jar, or whatever format feels right for you. If you're feeling tense or distracted, it might help to do something that settles your mind first, whether that’s a few deep breaths, a short walk, or some quiet time. A calm mind often brings clearer reflections.
Gratitude can also be expressed verbally through small, positive shifts in language. For instance, replacing “I have to” with “I get to,” or “I should” with “I could,” turns a sense of obligation into opportunity. This simple change in wording can have a powerful effect on how we feel, helping shift our emotional state in a more positive direction.
When we consistently use this kind of language, we’re training our brains to adopt these patterns more easily over time. This strengthens new neural patterns and makes positive thinking more natural and automatic.
Why does this matter? Because this subtle shift in language and perception boosts our sense of pleasure and emotional resilience.
It supports our motivation and determination - key ingredients for achieving our goals. If we can open the door to gratitude, we unlock a more empowered way of thinking. Try taking a few minutes at the end of each day to reflect on what you're grateful for and notice the difference it makes.Ultimately, find a practice that feels natural to you. Gratitude doesn’t have to be complicated - it just needs to be consistent.
If you're interested in exploring how Gratitude can support your personal growth and development, please get in touch to learn how I can guide you through these mindset shifts. Click the link below to book your Complimentary Call.
