為什么懂得感恩對你的健康有好處

為什么懂得感恩對你的健康有好處

As a physician, I have helped to care for many patients and families whose lives have been turned upside down by serious illnesses and injuries.

作為一名醫(yī)生，我?guī)椭疹櫫嗽S多病人和家庭，他們的生活被嚴重的疾病和傷害攪得天翻地覆。

In the throes of such catastrophes, it can be difficult to find cause for anything but lament.

在這類災難的陣痛中，除了悲嘆之外，很難找到其他理由。

Yet Thanksgiving presents us with an opportunity to develop one of the healthiest, most life-affirming and convivial of all habits -- that of counting and rejoicing in our blessings.

然而，感恩節(jié)為我們提供了一個機會，讓我們養(yǎng)成所有習慣中最健康、最肯定生活、最歡樂的一種——數(shù)數(shù)自己的幸福，并從中得到快樂。

Gratitude's benefits

感恩的好處

Research shows that grateful people tend to be healthy and happy. They exhibit lower levels of stress and depression, cope better with adversity and sleep better.

研究表明，感恩的人往往是健康和快樂的。他們表現(xiàn)出較低水平的壓力和抑郁，更好地應對逆境，睡得更好。

They tend to be happier and more satisfied with life. Even their partners tend to be more content with their relationships.

他們往往更快樂，對生活更滿意。甚至他們的伴侶對他們的關系也更滿意。

Perhaps when we are more focused on the good things we enjoy in life, we have more to live for and tend to take better care of ourselves and each other.

也許當我們更專注于生活中我們所享受的美好事物時，我們會有更多的生活目標，也會更好地照顧自己和彼此。

When researchers asked people to reflect on the past week and write about things that either irritated them or about which they felt grateful, those tasked with recalling good things are more optimistic, feel better about their lives, and actually visit their physicians less.

當研究人員要求人們回顧過去一周，寫下讓他們惱怒或感激的事情時，那些負責回憶美好事物的人更樂觀，對自己的生活感覺更好，實際上也更少去看醫(yī)生。

It is no surprise that receiving thanks makes people happier, but so does expressing gratitude. An experiment that asked participants to write and deliver thank-you notes found large increases in reported levels of happiness, a benefit that lasted for an entire month.

毫無疑問，接受感謝會讓人更快樂，但表達感激也會讓人更快樂。在一項要求參與者寫感謝信和發(fā)送感謝信的實驗中，他們的幸福感有了很大的提升，這種提升持續(xù)了整整一個月。

Philosophical roots

哲學根源

One of the greatest minds in Western history, the Greek philosopher Aristotle, argued that we become what we habitually do. By changing our habits, we can become more thankful human beings.

西方歷史上最偉大的思想家之一、希臘哲學家亞里士多德認為，我們習慣于做什么，我們就會成為什么。通過改變我們的習慣，我們可以變得更加感恩。

If we spend our days ruminating on all that has gone poorly and how dark the prospects for the future appear, we can think ourselves into misery and resentment.

如果我們每天都在反復思考那些糟糕的事情，以及未來的前景是多么黑暗，我們就會認為自己處于痛苦和怨恨之中。

But we can also mold ourselves into the kind of people who seek out, recognize and celebrate all that we have to be grateful for.

但我們也可以把自己塑造成這樣一種人，去發(fā)現(xiàn)、認識和贊美我們應該感恩的一切。

This is not to say that anyone should become a Pollyanna, ceaselessly reciting the mantra from Voltaire's "Candide": "All is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds." There are injustices to be righted and wounds to be healed, and ignoring them would represent a lapse of moral responsibility.

這并不是說任何人都應該成為盲目樂觀的人，不斷地背誦伏爾泰的《老實人》中的咒語:“在這個世界上，在所有可能的世界中，一切都是最好的。”有需要糾正的不公平，有需要治愈的創(chuàng)傷，忽視它們將代表一種道德責任的缺失。

But reasons to make the world a better place should never blind us to the many good things it already affords. How can we be compassionate and generous if we are fixated on deficiency?

但是，讓世界變得更美好的理由不應該蒙蔽我們，使我們看不到世界已經(jīng)提供的許多美好事物。如果我們執(zhí)著于缺陷，我們怎么能富有同情心和慷慨呢?

This explains why the great Roman statesman Cicero called gratitude not only the greatest of virtues but the "parent" of them all.

這就解釋了為什么偉大的羅馬政治家西塞羅不僅把感恩稱為最偉大的美德，而且把它稱為所有美德的“父母”。

Religious roots

宗教根源

Gratitude is deeply embedded in many religious traditions. In Judaism, the first words of the morning prayer could be translated, "I thank you." Another saying addresses the question, "Who is rich?" with this answer: "Those who rejoice in what they have."

感恩深深植根于許多宗教傳統(tǒng)中。在猶太教中，早晨禱告的第一句話可以翻譯成“我感謝你”。另一種說法針對“誰是富人”的問題，回答是:“那些為自己擁有的東西而高興的人。”

From a Christian perspective, too, gratitude is vital. Before Jesus shares his last meal with his disciples, he gives thanks. So vital a part of Christian life is gratitude that author and critic G.K. Chesterton calls it "the highest form of thought."

從基督徒的角度來看，感恩也是至關重要的。在耶穌和他的門徒分享他的最后一餐之前，他表示感謝。感恩是基督徒生活中如此重要的一部分，以至于作家兼評論家G.K.切斯特頓稱之為“最高形式的思想”。