Learn and Master the Science of Gratitude NOW; 立即解鎖感恩的科學秘密，徹底改變你的生活！

In this engaging episode of Taiwanica, Host Eric turns the mic to Host Anita, who unpacks the science behind gratitude practices. From rewiring your brain to focus on joy to building resilience through reframing challenges, Anita shares evidence-based insights on how gratitude transforms mental and emotional well-being. Eric’s thoughtful questions spark a lively discussion, blending Taiwanese cultural perspectives with practical tips, like starting your day with gratitude for a cup of coffee or finding peace in Taiwan’s chaotic traffic. Tune in to discover how a simple gratitude practice can shift your mindset, foster peace, and enhance your daily life. Listeners are invited to reflect on their own gratitude moments and connect with the hosts via Line or Instagram.

在《Taiwanica》的這一集引人入勝的節目中，主持人Eric將麥克風交給主持人Anita，由她來解析感恩實踐背後的科學。從重新訓練大腦以專注於快樂，到通過重新詮釋挑戰來建立韌性，Anita分享了基於科學證據的見解，說明感恩如何改變心理和情感健康。Eric的深思熟慮問題引發了熱烈的討論，融合了台灣文化視角與實用的建議，例如以感恩一杯咖啡開始你的一天，或在台灣混亂的交通中找到內心的平靜。收聽本集，探索簡單的感恩實踐如何轉變你的思維，促進內心平靜，並提升你的日常生活。聽眾被邀請反思自己的感恩時刻，並通過Line或Instagram與主持人互動。

Transcript

F1 S1 0:01
This is episode 94 talking about gratitude from a scientific point of view. Anita is going to be the main host today. Welcome everyone. This is Eric and we are here at Taiwanika podcast welcoming the one and only Anita. That's going to help us learn more about why gratitude is so important and also it's scientific benefits that have been discovered. I'm very excited about learning this and I can't wait for what we're going to, uh, unpack together. Anita, thank you so much. 

F1 S0 0:40
Hello everybody. This is Anita. Welcome to today's episode. This is going to be a fun one because most people thinking about, you know, gratitude practice is kind of just like, you know, spiritual practice is some kind of magic power to Like, but actually today we are going to unpack what are the benefits from the scientific point of view. So it will be very, very easy for everybody to comprehend and immediately practice right now. 

F1 S1 1:11
Wonderful. Let's get started. What is, uh, something about gratitude that science has discovered that you want to share with us today? 

F1 S0 1:19
Yeah. Like gratitude, right? Gratitude practice is very simple. You just put your mind for a few seconds or minutes to something that you are grateful for. I mean, it could be something so small and simple, like a wonderful coffee in the morning. You can just take a moment and say, I'm so grateful for this wonderful, delicious coffee in my hand. Right? So that's basically the gratitude practice. So what we're actually doing in our mind is you just train your brain, literally train your brain to redirect and reframing the fact, right? So that's what we've been, we've been, um, teaching and learning at the same time. Like, you know, you can wake up one day without awareness about what's going on in the world, or you can pick up the things that really matters to you and you address it for a few seconds. That's what keeps you moving, uh, keeps you move forward, right? So if you wake up in the morning, just starting, uh, you're ready to practice saying, I'm so grateful for this wonderful cup of coffee. You're starting your day with a wonderful feeling. So when you are doing this, you are helping, you're teaching your brain to focus on the things that gives you joy. That's usually what we're doing, right? We only send our gratitude to the things because deep down we feel joyful. So you are teaching your brain to just focus on those things, uh, to keep happening to you. Just bring the awareness and the focus to the things that really matters to you. 

F1 S1 2:54
Interesting. So what you're saying is, is that if I practice saying I'm grateful for a cup of coffee, or I'm grateful for, uh, this beautiful, uh, sunny day, uh, every time these things happen again, I'm going to automatically feel more positive towards those circumstances. And also I'm going to be aware that these are really important to me at the same time. 

F1 S0 3:21
Exactly. If you can notice what is really matters to you, your mind and your brain, you'll immediately go search this and present it to you because your brain is a problem solving mechanism, right? It works for like solving problems. So if you just pay attention to the things that brings you joy and make you feel grateful for it, then your brain will start to find out those things to, you know, showed up in your life. So you mentioned about something that's really important, which is you would just start to get used to good things that happen to you because whatever you're thinking, either it's a thought you want to go get that or your thought of saying, I'm going to learn a new language. Doesn't matter which one you are sending the electric signal to your brain. That's how your brain works, right? And that's like, Oh, I really want to get that. So your brain say, Oh, I know. So now you have to get up and go to the store, order  真 珠 奶 菜, you'll be very happy, right? That's a problem solving process. Same thing for the language learning is the same. Oh, you want to learn a foreign language and now you have to do the research, maybe find a tutor, so on and so forth. So that's how your brain works, either way, even though you're thinking about a good thing or a bad thing, that's how your brain just, you know, started to work. 

F1 S1 4:44
It's interesting that you just said bad thing. And that was something that I wanted to ask you is when I'm thinking about something negative and I want to express gratitude towards it, is this dangerous? Because am I telling my mind to be aware of this negative thing? And I'm going to be attracting that negative thing to happen again in my life? Or am I doing something else? 

F1 S0 5:12
That's a really good question. That's very dangerous for you to just either surpass or overlook the negative event or the things that make you have negative feelings. That's very dangerous because one, you are suppressing your feeling and you suppress your emotion. We already know that's not the best way to treat your emotions. So how are we going to incorporate gratitude practice when we're noticing negative feelings? Right? Right. What I said, I mentioned about that, it's about reframing and redirect. Like I said, if you just wake up one day, you didn't have any awareness. Your day was still going. The whole point of being gratitude, practicing gratitude, that is you give yourself a better momentum. You are giving yourself kind of like the energy juice. Like you give yourself the gas to move forward. That's positive. So one positive things will lead to another one. So now if you're the same thing, right? If the things that happen that gives you negative feelings and you want to do practice gratitude on this thing, it's very great because not only right now you are practicing gratitude, you're also building your resilience because not life is not about just happy, happy, joy, joy, all the time, right? It's about how we overcome difficult challenges. So when the negative things happen, makes you feel negative. You can say, I'm aware this thing bothers me, but right now I am very grateful for this thing happened to me because I learned this, this, and that. So you already direct your mind to focus on once again, how you overcome this discomfort experience and they teach your body how to see things from a very different perspective. So not only you can help yourself get out of there, get out of the negative spiral, and also you can train your mind saying, okay, I can always showed up in a better, more resilient version of myself. That's another benefit of doing this gratitude practice. 

F1 S1 7:28
I So it's very much into the idea that no matter if it's a negative or positive thing that just occurred in your life, practicing gratitude helps you have awareness about what just happened. And that awareness can guide you to either generating more positive things and avoiding the negative things from occurring again, because they're just happening outside of your awareness. But this gratitude is the stepping stone to help you open your awareness. So if that's the case, then, uh, my next question about awareness is what, uh, I'm sorry, gratitude. What are some tactics that you would recommend people to do to help generate more gratitude in their life? Is there like a method that you like to use on a daily basis that you think is really helpful? Or maybe you have learned something along your way to help you, uh, practice gratitude that you'd like to share? 

F1 S0 8:34
Well, thank you so much for, for asking, uh, just like every important things in your life, you're going to make time for it, right? Like dinner time, uh, spend quality time with your, with your family, you know, with your kids, so on and so forth. If it is important, you're going to make time for it. So same thing for this gratitude practice, because you are training your brain to redirect and reframing how you view the world and how to view, uh, the things that actually happen in your life, you know, always from the more powerful point of view, right? That's why it will help you with your resilience. So if you wanted this to be part of your life, you just going to make time for it. Just like you make time to go to the gym. So the best time, sorry, the best way to do it is you set a time for it. For example, the first thing you do in the morning, when you first wake up in the morning, you find three things that you're grateful for. Or you, before you, before your bedtime, what are the three things that you're grateful for, for today, or even before mealtime, right? So you have to find a set time for it. And that's what I usually do, you know, before, before bedtime that you can start journaling, like, you know, let's look at today. Sometimes something that happened today wasn't ideal, but I'm still grateful for, you know, that the situation is over and I'm able to survive. I'm able to survive through the, the situation. So always looking to your life at the more powerful way, then you can start it to train your brain. Like your brain will get used to always look at the things from the positive side of the fact and more powerful, more supportive, more constructive way to see things. So you just have to make time for it and incorporate with the things that you like. For example, somebody likes to do, uh, walking after dinner. When doing your walking hour, just open your mind, open your eyes as well. Like what are the things that you're grateful for? Right. Maybe just the tall trees that you used to not pay attention to these tall trees. But today you look at these majestic trees and just like, I'm so grateful for this tree. You're so beautiful. Simple as that. Right. 

F1 S1 10:56
And by doing that, you're going to, in the future, not only look at that one tree thinking it's majestic, but then later on, you're going to see other things in nature that are majestic because you're training your brain to look out for majestic things. Exactly. That's very cool. So now what is something that, uh, with gratitude that has happened in your life, that was a significant change that you would be willing to share with us today? Uh, like an example that might be, it's like when you, before you did gratitude practices, uh, there was this constant problem that was occurring in your life. But then as soon as you started doing this gratitude practice, you noticed a big shift to give something like a testimonial of doing gratitude is great. 

F1 S0 11:46
Well, no, the most, you know, the, the first example that came out to my mind is the traffic in Taiwan. Okay. You know, well, it's very convenient. Nobody is, it's, you know, everybody, nobody's going to argue with that. But at the same time, it's very dangerous. You know, this is most common, um, feedback we're going to say about traffic in Taiwan. So I was also every time around the street, especially in rush hour, my mind was like, oh my God, this is so dangerous. It's so dangerous. Is it going to be a car accident happen? Oh my goodness. This is my mind going down a spiral. Right. So then this time I would just practice gratitude, you know, especially with my son, you when you're a mom and you're going outside seeing the environment since very, very unfriendly to your little child and your mother instinct will kick in. That's why you feel like worries and doubts and seeing the world as a dangerous place. But that's not how I wanted to view the world. Right. And so I used the gratitude practice. Actually, it's very challenging in the beginning because you're like, I don't see anything I can be grateful for. Right. But once you start asking this question, like I said, your brain is problem solving. You know, it worked that way. So when you first start asking, like, even when you cannot say the sentence saying, I'm grateful for this and that, you just ask yourself, what am I grateful for right now? When you start this question, even though the situation seems, I'm very, it seems very, you know, against the idea that you wanted to practice gratitude. But once you started asking this evoking question, your mind, your brain will find the answer. Your brain will literally like scare the whole thing. I'm grateful that I'm still holding my son's hand crossing the street. Right. I'm grateful that I get to protect my son. So once you start doing this, more things that can bring you peace. So there's another benefit when you start practicing gratitude as you find the peace in your mind. So once you can find peace in your mind, and then that's just the rest is just projection. And you see everybody on the street before you see them as driving crazy on the street. Now they are just, just like you. They wanted to go home and spend time with their families. So you also have more compassion towards them. So this is kind of like a report of facts, right? So you, you, you start not to give them dirty looks. And when everybody who's driving past by you, you show some, you know, um, nice gesture, like thanks, um, showing them some smiles on your face. Maybe they smile back and also share the, the, the peace at that moment. Right. So it's a report of fact. And now when I'm on the street, I'm just doing the same thing that gratitude practice. And then I would just bring myself in this peaceful, peaceful mind. 

F1 S1 14:49
Well, that is very nice sharing. And you know, what I'm hearing right now is that you could even in that situation, look at the traffic and be grateful for it. I'm grateful for this traffic that it is reminding me how important it is to keep my child safe or grateful for this traffic. Because it reminds me that if I'm going to drive, I'm going to drive safely. Safely. Yeah. So in any way, whatever, what you do with gratitude, whether it's positive or negative, you're going to be able to find a way to perceive a even greater version of life that you want to start focusing on instead of lingering in the problem. 

F1 S0 15:31
I think the big, big effect about this thing is if you're not practicing gratitude at that moment, you just let the environment decide how you're going to feel. And most of the time is your past experience. Why do I say, what in my mind said, like, you know, the traffic in Taiwan is dangerous? Because when I was a kid, I saw so many car accidents. But now, to be honest, it's relatively less, way less than when I was a kid. And then, you know, if I just keep on using my past experience to project my current situation, I'm not going to get out of there. And one thing that you can help you and your brain to grow is to challenge it. So that's why I say, when you start challenging your brain, right, you're asking questions. That's how we feel a sense of achievement. When we are students, we are solving, like, really, really complicated math equation, for example, or trying to memorize a very complex history. You know, when we were a kid, we've all been through the school system and asking us to remember everything, which year having certain war in history, whatever that might be, right? You keep challenging yourself to learn the unknown. You know, just like so many challenges. And right now, when you're doing a gratitude practice, it's also the same. You're challenging your brain. And that's a good thing, because that's how your brain grows stronger and more resilient. And also, that will help you just get familiar with always seeing the things from a very strong standpoint of view. 

F1 S1 17:15
Well, very And I'm glad to hear that with these kind of very easy gratitude practices, that in just a moment of time, it doesn't matter where you are or what you're doing. Every time you practice this, you are in a sense choosing the life that you wish to have rather than getting stuck in a negative pattern that you accidentally created before. And that means you are growing and developing into more of which way you actually wish to go, rather than just listening to the old voice in your head. So that's very interesting. So what would you say is one last thing as a takeaway or a highlight of gratitude that you would like to share with everybody to close off this episode? 

F1 S0 18:07
Yeah, we always praise the action of gratitude practice. But I think everybody should understand what's the fundamental reason why we are encouraging people to do this. That is very simple to help you have a peaceful mind. When you have peaceful mind, you will just have easier life. When you have an easier life, you just have happy day-to-day lives with your friends and families. You just have the capacity, mental capacity, to enjoy the things that really brings you joy, right? So it's, again, one simple action can lead to so much, you know, so many benefits. So I think today's takeaway that is using your brain power. That's basically what you're doing. Accelerate your mental energy to focus on the things that you want. Because so often we will just complain about our days, you know, and complaining is just you educate your brain to focus on the negative things. Like I said, either it's a positive things or negative things, you're sending the same amount of electricity, electric signal to your brain. Depends on how intense that is. So if you're very intense about complaining about things, that's how your brain just get used to your thinking patterns. Like, oh, you want your day to be miserable. All right, let's make it happen. And the same thing, the same amount of energy, if you just focus on the things that brings you joy, your brain can reciprocate it. And just, okay, you want your day to start with a really nice coffee, right? Or like really nice things that makes you feel joyful. Let's make it happen. So it's about reframing the truth in your life. And also redirect your mind to look at the things that really can help you feel peaceful, joyful, and happy. So that's the fundamental reason why we promote gratitude practice. 

F1 S1 20:19
Well, thank you very much for that final note on gratitude. I think it's a really important thing to understand. Now, I have one last question for you, and then we're going to call it good today. Anita, what is one challenge in your life right now that you are grateful for? 

F1 S0 20:39
Definitely my husband. 

F1 S1 20:42
Sounds like a great guy. 

F1 S0 20:46
I mean, it's unfair to say just one person. I should say it's everything because everybody knows that we are doing everything together. We've been juggling through a lot of challenges in our life. I think, you know, it appears to be overcoming difficulties over and over again. But I'm grateful that we can survive each fight and get to know more about ourselves and each other's and still get back up and try to find a solution and keep working. I'm truly grateful for you and this podcast and everybody who's listening. 

F1 S1 21:28
And I'm also grateful for you. And I'm also grateful for you. You should. Yeah. You should. It's not a should. It's a pleasure. And this podcast. And of course, all of you lovely listeners. So what is something that you are grateful for? Think about a couple things in your life today that are either good or bad and just connect with that and try to find a way to reframe it, like Anita said. And when you do that, you'll certainly find that you are growing as well. And if you feel so willing to share, find a way to connect with us, either through our line or through our IG. The links are in the description below. So if you'd like to do that, we would love to hear from you. So that's going to be it for today's episode. Anita, thank you so much for taking the time to be here and expressing gratitude. 

F1 S0 22:24
You're so very welcome. 

F1 S1 22:26
All right. Well, then we will see you all next time. 

F1 S0 22:29
See you next time.