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Thanksgiving Rewires The Brain:
The Neuroscience of Gratitude
There are so many things to look forward to in the fall season of each year. That candy holiday that so many love, cooler weather, my second 19th birthday and Thanksgiving! Looking over my life, I have so many ups and downs, and so much to be grateful for. The highs absolutely outweigh the lows. I complain sometimes, and sometimes I complain a lot, and then am instantly convicted because really, there is so much to be thankful for, even when things are tough. A core principle of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the interconnectedness of one’s thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Thoughts influence feelings, and feelings directly impact one’s behaviors and reactions. It is safe to say that our thoughts are actually responsible for creating our feelings. An easy example would be being stopped by a train when in a hurry. The go-to-thought when this has happened to be is “who builds a train track in the middle of town!? What a waste of time.” This type of thinking could lead to feelings of frustration, impatience and irritability or anger. The behavior related to those uncomfortable feelings could result in aggressive driving, rude words and poor attitude the rest of the morning or day. If the negative thought was immediately addressed “who builds a train track in the middle of town!? What a waste of time” and replaced with a helpful thought such as “what a good opportunity to listen to a podcast” the feelings would shift from anger and frustration to comfortable feelings such as calm or motivation which then influences the behavior as a result, which would not be aggressive driving and rude words and poor attitude, but the opposite. Where your attention goes, energy flows! This simple sentence explains that what you focus on directly impacts your feelings, actions and reality.
Gratitude can be an extraordinary tool if regularly practiced because it can alter our bodies’ chemistry, reshape our brain and assist in building resilience. When practiced on a consistent basis, neurotransmitters are stimulated and stress hormones are lowered, our vital brain circuits are made stronger and the brain structure changes in a way that supports long-term psychological well-being. Practicing gratitude is nothing new, however neuroscience has now proven something that Philippians 4:8 has taught for many years; intentional thinking is powerful. Paul wrote “finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is admirable; if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think on these things.” He goes on to encourage putting this into practice and the result will be peace. Science backs this because when we concentrate or focus on “what is pure or right” we will bypass unnecessary thoughts or distractions because we are intentionally focused on specific things. When this happens, the selective attention system of the brain is then activated which then allows for mental energy to be conserved by reducing the strain on the prefrontal cortex. Intentional thinking allows us to make space for what matters, allowing us to have more peace and for us to be more productive.
Emotional well-being is significantly improved as well. Thinking about what is “admirable and lovely” lessens the activity that occurs in the amygdala, which is the part of the brain that is responsible for stress and fear; the brain is legit rewiring when we do this. Besides this, our cortisol levels lower, which significantly assists in emotional regulation. Scripture’s command to think on things that are praiseworthy perfectly aligns with the neuroscience discoveries related to anxiety reduction. Meditating on praiseworthy (positive) thoughts makes neuropathways related to optimism and gratitude stronger in the cingulate cortex. Science has shown time and time again that intentional positivity impacts resilience, also reflecting the transformation detailed in Philippians 4:8.
Instead of focusing on what he could not control or his current condition or situation, he chose to focus on what was pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy; and this is what his instructions were when he wrote this letter, the book of Phillipians. By replacing negative and/or unhelpful thoughts with positive and/or truthful thoughts, we change our brain development! Our brains are very moldable and when we engage in being intentionally thankful and consistently practice gratitude, we engage the neuroplasticity of our brain; which is just a fancy way to say our brain structure changes and has the ability to form new, healthier neuropathways. This is helpful in breaking the cycles of fear, anxiety, negative rumination; renewing our mind (Romans 12:2); allowing us to have peace, long term. Both science and scripture confirm and affirm the power in thinking; it truly does transform not only our thinking patterns, but the way we live.
I had no intentions to write this month’s piece in this specific direction, specifically one of the many ways science has confirmed Bible teaching. I had all intentions to go deeper on the parts of the brain that are impacted and chemical production such as dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin that are impacted by practicing gratitude! Maybe we can have a guest expert to go deeper into this area in the future, after all I am a forever student and would love to hear how this is all impacted from a medical doctor, a very experienced therapist or if we are lucky, a neuroscientist. Dream big, folks! There isn’t enough space in this November 2025 article to go much further, but we have something to look forward to!
I’m thinking if this is what thinking does to our brain development and our actual lives and reality, can you imagine how our words influence our lives? Also, I’m reminded of the biblical and scientific parallels concerning what words we say and their impact on our mental health and resilience! I have a whole month to research and write about the power words have and how they impact our mental health and world we live in. And who knows … maybe December’s piece will be precious and about the joy we get from giving and the impact getting and giving gifts has on mental health. So many possibilities and I am excited!
If you or someone you know needs mental health assistance of any kind, please feel free to reach out to your local community mental health agency or call or text 988, the suicide and crisis lifeline or call 911 for immediate emergencies.
Take care of yourselves, and each other,
– Relo Adams, Mr. Ponca City
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