RESEARCH & DATA

WHY A MINDFUL GRATITUDE WORKSHOP?

Gratitude and mindfulness provide potent antidotes to stress. Research shows that stress and anxiety are on the rise among nearly every age group, and stress has serious consequences on health including increasing the risks for heart disease, diabetes, depression, addiction and a host of other physical and emotional challenges.

According to data compiled by officevibe.com, 77% of Americans regularly experience physical symptoms caused by stress, 73% experience emotional symptoms caused by stress, and 76% report that work and money are primary sources of stress.

Meanwhile, American employers spend $300 billion annually on stress related healthcare and missed work, and we are facing an aging population set to explode healthcare costs across the board in the coming decades. These realities have led to a growing recognition that more must be done to provide employees, students, seniors, and others with preventative self-care tools and practices that help keep people healthier and more resilient.

Mindfulness and gratitude have been scientifically proven to reduce stress and increase wellness in multiple studies

• Aetna, the health insurance giant, has implemented and evaluated a massive workplace mindfulness program. More than 13,000 employees participated in the initial study and reported the following:
•  28% reduction in perceived stress levels
•  20% improvement in sleep quality
• 19% reduction in pain
•  Increased PRODUCTIVITY:  Participants gained an average of 62 minutes per week of productivity each, which Aetna estimates is worth $3,000 per employee per year.   
                            
• Researchers who conducted another study looked at the impact of positive psychology interventions on a large group of university employees and found that self-guided, positive psychology interventions, particularly gratitude, enhanced employee well-being, reduced stress, and led to LESS employee absence due to illness. [researchgate.net]
   
• Another study followed 300 college students who were receiving mental health services for anxiety and depression. In addition to traditional therapy, one group wrote at least one letter of gratitude each week for three weeks, a second group wrote about negative feelings and emotions, and a third group did no writing at all. The group who wrote gratitude letters had significantly better outcomes 4 weeks and 12 weeks after the intervention. [tandfonline]
   
• According to the Harvard Health Publications of the Harvard Medical School “In positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.”