How Gratitude Impacts Your Brain, Body, & Success

The Model Health Show

Shawn Stevenson

Nutrition, Health & Fitness, Fitness

4.8 • 7.2K Ratings

🗓️ 26 November 2025

⏱️ 50 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A growing body of evidence has shown that having a simple gratitude practice has the potential to improve everything from your sleep to your immune health. On today’s show, you’re going to learn the science behind gratitude, plus tangible tips and strategies you can use to cultivate more gratitude in your life. On this compilation episode, you’re going to learn about the transformative power of gratitude and how to implement gratitude strategies to improve your life. You’re going to learn from some of the most influential neuroscientists, learning experts, and psychologists, including Dr. Daniel Amen, Jim Kwik, Dr. Elissa Epel, and more. Gratitude is a powerful muscle you can build, and I hope these insights help you live a more grateful and fulfilled life. I’m grateful to you for tuning in to this special episode of The Model Health Show. Enjoy! In this episode you’ll discover: How gratitude can help you reach your goals. (1:01) Why gratitude is grounding for your nervous system. (4:25) A simple exercise you can use to cultivate more gratitude. (5:17) How gratitude can activate your reticular activating system. (7:24) The importance of celebrating your successes, even the small ones. (16:30) Why thankfulness is one of the key parts of manifestation. (17:47) How gratitude can improve immune function. (21:17) Why seeking happiness doesn’t work. (25:57) The importance of bookending your day with joy and happiness. (26:23) A daily exercise you can use to practice gratitude. (32:55) How to set up your environment for more happiness. (34:55) The difference between information that informs and transforms. (37:43) How changing your perception can change your life. (42:25) Items mentioned in this episode include: Beekeepersnaturals.com/model - Get 30% off plus a free gift during the Black Friday sale! Fromourplace.com/model - Get 10% off toxin-free, ceramic coated cookware with code MODEL! The Secret to Learning Faster - Watch the whole interview with Jim Kwik! Why Big Sean Made Health His Priority - Check out the full interview with Big Sean! Reprogram Your MIND to HEAL - Watch the full interview with Dr. Joe Dispenza! This Is Making You Fat - Watch the entire interview with Dr. Elissa Epel! The Risk Factors That Are Destroying Your Brain - Learn more from Dr. Daniel Amen! The Secrets to Manifest ANYTHING - Watch the full episode with Dr. Michael Beckwith! Go Higher by Big Sean - Read the national bestselling book here! Be sure you are subscribed to this podcast to automatically receive your episodes: Apple Podcasts Spotify Soundcloud Pandora YouTube This episode of The Model Health Show is brought to you by Beekeeper’s Naturals and Our Place. Reinvent your medicine cabinet for with clean, effective products powered by the beehive & backed by science. Shop the Black Friday & Cyber Monday Sale to claim 30% off, plus a free bag of #1 pediatrician recommended Throat Soothing Pops at beekeepersnaturals.com/model. Shop Our Place’s biggest sale of the year! For a limited time only, save 30% off toxin-free, ceramic coated cookware by using my code MODEL at fromourplace.com/model.

Transcript

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0:00.0	You are now listening to The Model Health Show with Sean Stevenson. For more, visit themodelhealthshow.com.
0:09.7	It's a special time a year again where people are getting together, communing, giving thanks,
0:15.2	celebrating, gift giving, all that good stuff. But I'm telling you right now, this episode is
0:20.1	timeless. No matter when you're
0:22.5	listening to this, re-listening, it's going to be immensely valuable. But since it's that special
0:28.1	time of year, I really wanted to lean into some of the science and practicality of gratitude.
0:36.0	Why is gratitude so powerful? And so I have some incredible experts to share
0:42.8	their insights and also strategies on cultivating gratitude and also the transformative power
0:51.6	that it has, whether it's on your brain health, whether it's on
0:54.8	manifesting better results in your life. And I don't say these things lightly. In fact,
1:00.9	a study conducted by researchers at UC Davis revealed that people who utilize gratitude,
1:06.7	specifically a gratitude journal, i.e., keeping track of things that they're grateful for
1:11.9	for a two-month study period were significantly closer to reaching their goals than people who
1:18.7	did not. A gratitude practice works in a myriad of ways. It helps to keep you resilient. It helps
1:25.3	remind you that you have the power to affect change.
1:28.4	It recharges a positive frame of mind and it tends to support adaptive thinking.
1:35.1	All of these start to stack conditions in our favor when we're talking about manifesting and creating the life that we want.
1:41.1	Gratitude has more and more emerging signs around it. While other studies have found
1:46.5	that a regular gratitude practice can reduce levels of stress hormones, improve immune system
1:51.6	function, improve sleep quality, decrease inflammation measured by C-reactive protein. For example,
1:59.3	a 2011 study cited in the journal applied psychology revealed that
2:03.5	writing in a gratitude journal helped test subjects to improve their sleep quality. All right,
	...

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