Gratitude Lowers Cortisol & Helps Lower Heart Rate & Blood Pressure
You’ll be thankful that you made the change (and you’ll sleep better too)!
Introduction
Staying calm when stressed with high cortisol can help you improve your life and increase your life force. If you’re a living being, you have daily stress in your life. In fact, stress is a part of life. Because stress is a part of life, dealing with it and its symptoms are of great importance. Learn the things you can do today to combat stress and live a longer more abundant life!
There are two stress chemicals released in the body (by the adrenal glands) when you feel low vibration feelings (i.e., anger, fear, etc.). They are cortisol (which is a hormone), and adrenaline (which is a neurotransmitter that is like a hormone but works through the nervous system).
Cortisol and adrenaline help your body adapt to stressful states. The more environmental stress you have, the more your adrenals are activated to help your body survive better.
The adrenal glands do not make these chemicals for long-term treatment of chronic stress, rather they are temporary in nature (at least they are supposed to be). These chemicals are designed to turn off as you are more and more mentally capable of fending off stress without them.
When the adrenals do not stop producing cortisol and adrenaline, the body becomes resistant to them making them dangerous and the leading cause of chronic illness. Memory loss, arthritis, high blood pressure, muscle breakdown and much more may affect an individual’s life in the long run.
Ways to Lower Stress
Gratitude Meditation
Gratitude lowers stress thereby lowering the levels of cortisol and adrenaline the adrenal glands produce. In a study conducted by Kyeong Sunghyon and associates on the effects of gratitude meditation on heart rate, it was found to lower heart rate.
Writing thoughts of gratitude and appreciation on paper also offered a better mental outcome over an initial 4 weeks and 12 weeks after the study’s conclusion according to the study done by the Joel Wong and associates.
Gratitude increases mental strength. For years, research has shown gratitude not only reduces stress, but it may also play a major role in overcoming trauma. A 2006 study published inBehavior Research and Therapy found that Vietnam War veterans with higher levels of gratitude experienced lower rates of post-traumatic stress disorder. A 2003 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that gratitude was a major contributor to resilience following the terrorist attacks on September 11. Recognizing all that you have to be thankful for —even during the worst times—fosters resilience.
Physical Work to Lower Mental Stress
When you feel stressed, that’s the worst time to sit still if you don’t have to. Get up and do something with the negative energy. Go for walk, get on the treadmill, do some pus-ups, do some jumping jacks…do anything to redirect that energy, it takes your mind off the stressor and increases your lifeforce at the same time! When you stay moving, you become tired which will aid you when it’s time to sleep so that your body can repair itself. This counteracts insomnia as well, which helps get your circadian rhythm (wake and sleep cycle) back in order.
Breathing Exercises Before You Sleep
It is good practice to slow your breathing down before you go to sleep at night. Many times, people fall asleep while they are still upset. When you do this, you increase your chances of waking up in the middle of the night. This is because the cortisol is still being produced. Ever been bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 3 AM? That’s cortisol and you can control it!
It is a good practice to focus on our breathing before we sleep. Focus on breathing in and out slowly. You will begin to become more relaxed and have a higher quality of rest for the night.
Take Supplements & Adaptogens to Help Regulate Stress
Vitamins
Vitamin B1 counters cortisol. Vitamin D1 is a powerful antioxidant that helps fight depression because it is an anti-inflammatory that boost the immune system.
Other Supplements
Magnesium and Potassium are also important as we get a better handle on stress.
Please make certain that you seek medical advice from your primary care provider if you are experiencing health issues.
One of the most important things you can do is appreciate your life. Show thankfulness for your ability to live in that very moment and you will add to your lifeforce and the life forces of others. You are what you radiate and will attract what you radiate.
Small Steps to Increasing Your Thankfulness
- Throughout your day, say “I am thankful for my life,” as often as you can remember to say it. If possible, say it over and over for at least thirty seconds each time you remember to say it. For example, in your car, in the bathroom, before a nap, during a work-out are all good times to say how thankful you are.
- Smile for at least 30 seconds when you can. The act of smiling (whether real or fake) releases good neurochemicals in your brain (i. e. endorphins) that trigger a reduction in problematic neurochemicals. This all works to increase your life force making you feel better. Don’t just break out smiling in front of people for no reason…it’ll make you look crazy. The smiles are personal and should be done at appropriate times.
- Make as many physical steps as you can daily. Being active makes you feel good and vibrant.
- Know that every second is a new beginning! You can literally select a better feeling thought in each second of your life.
- Treat your feelings like a gauge that will keep you focusing on the best feeling you can feel in that moment. You may not be able to shake a bad feeling off instantly in the beginning, but just like with muscles, if you use your thankfulness muscle it will grow.
Try the Adult Coloring Hobby that you can develop to help foster more gratitude in your life.
- Adult coloring books that are centered on positive mantras. Adult coloring books have increased in popularity lately. I personally like the single-themed mantra for beginners trying to grow their thankfulness. Get Yourself an Adult Coloring Book
- Have a relaxing cup of rose tea with a teaspoon of the rich superfood – Manuka Honey. Manuka honey has many great health benefits and it taste amazing. Check out these links to products that have been soothing for many Rose Tea and Manuka Honey
Conclusion
When you lower stress, you lower your body’s fight or flight response. That response includes chemicals produced in the adrenal glands called cortisol and adrenaline. These chemicals are short-term responders to environmental stress. If you stay in a stressed state your body becomes desensitized to the effects of the chemicals. Chronic stress makes people more susceptible to illness. Gratitude has been clinically shown to reduce cortisol, thereby reducing inflammation, heart rate and blood pressure.
Remember, no one thing is going to bring you wholeness. You have to dedicate yourself to loving enough to pay attention to how you feel. Then you must make feeling better about yourself the most important thing you do!
Thank you for reading this post!
Be blessed!
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