Gratitude, derived from the Latin word gratia (meaning grace, graciousness, or gratefulness) is the feeling that embodies the word "Thank you". Gratitude is the experience of counting one's blessings. The unexpected reward of a kind deed that is magically produced by your brain. It's the cute, tingly feeling in your body that makes you smile at strangers. 

In the world of brain science, there's a study that illustrated the immediate effectiveness of gratitude - and it turns out that gratitude directly influences our 'happiness'. This study was done on subjects experiencing gratitude and it was found that they were influencing their hypothalamus in real-time. The hypothalamus is the teeny part of your brain that directly influences sleep, eating, and stress. Gratitude also stimulates the part of the brain associated with the neurotransmitter dopamine. 

When you ask yourself "What am I grateful for?" or "What would make today great?" you are taking a step to build new pathways in your brain. You are creating a happiness response. Doing this consistently gives you consistently better days. Can you take a few minutes each day to count your blessings? What are you grateful for today?

With love & gratitude,
​Hannah