![]() 6,7 Expression of gratitude towards team members is associated with improved workplace engagement and better team performance. 5 Among other populations, gratitude has been found to be associated with higher quality of life in patients with advanced cancer and with lower internalizing psychiatric problems in single mothers (during COVID-19). They also found that gratitude may be associated with better medication adherence through a positive impact on self-efficacy. 4 In a group of patients with heart failure, those randomized to the gratitude journaling arm not only had higher gratitude trait scores but also lower inflammatory biomarker index. 3 This group then studied an intervention targeted at increasing cultivation of gratitude through an 8-week gratitude journaling exercise. Mills et al, in a population of adults with heart failure, showed that gratitude trait was associated with better sleep, less depressed mood, less fatigue, and lower inflammatory biomarker index. But the medical and cardiovascular benefits of gratitude and thankfulness are fascinating and go to show that gratitude can be so much more than a buzzword. As a junior-faculty working in a cardiac critical care unit in Texas, I will be the first to admit that gratitude has become somewhat of a buzzword in recent times-alongside wellness, burnout, and resilience, all words generally followed by a link to online training on the topic. 2 This feeling may be expressed for things, actions, people, situations-for anything that is. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines gratitude as a feeling of appreciation and thanks. But, in the midst of the sense of time simultaneously flying and yet standing still, in this time of reflection, there is also an opportunity for gratitude. This year, these words carry more weight: COVID-19 has seemed to dull the sense of time, through the multiple waves, travel restrictions, and hospital visitation rules. Many have uttered the words “Can’t believe it is already Thanksgiving!” many times over the past years. In almost all these scenarios, there is an undercurrent of reflection on the year past and planning for the year ahead. ![]() It also signals the start of the season of “Out of Office” emails and a renewed discussion on how soon is too soon for Christmas music. 1 In some ways, it may harken the end of yet another year and perhaps a rise in pace of activities to accomplish the “to-do list” before December 31. ![]() The lack of sunshine may at times lead to sadness and discontent. Every year, as leaves change color, days shorten, and clocks fall back an hour, the vibe and flow of life have an undeniable shift in gears. ![]()
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