How the Gratitude Attitude Helps Healing in Your Chiropractic and Healthcare Practice
- Ed Petty
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
The Gratitude Attitude: Proven to Speed Healing and Grow Chiropractic and Healthcare Practices
I don't know about you, but I just like saying…" Gratitude…Attitude."
There are plenty of studies on this subject – how just being grateful can improve health outcomes.
Here are just a few highlights:
Fewer aches and overall better health – Grateful people report less pain and are more likely to take care of themselves (exercise, regular checkups, etc.) (Emmons & McCullough, 2003 – UC Davis. My old alma mater!)
Heart failure patients who kept a gratitude journal for 8 weeks showed reduced inflammation, better heart-rate variability, and improved sleep (UC San Diego, 2015)
Lower blood pressure in grateful individuals (Teixeira et al., 2024)
Reduced depression and anxiety (Seligman et al., 2005)
Better sleep quality (Wood et al., 2009)
Improved diabetes management (multiple studies, 2010s–2020s)
Stronger immune function (University of Utah & others, 2003–2021)
The list can go on and on.
Two Simple Ways To Use This In Your Practice Right Now
With patients – At the end of a visit, ask your chiropractic and healthcare patients to name 3 things they're grateful for today (family, a sunny day, the fact they can walk into your office, etc.). Studies show this tiny habit alone can accelerate their healing.
With your team – End your next team meeting by going around the room: everyone shares one thing they're grateful for in the practice. I have seen this done, and the practice has grown as a result!
The benefits of gratitude may seem obvious and something we already know, but they can be easily overlooked. We focus on our daily challenges and can take for granted the people who support us, and who have done so in the past.
Faced with patient and practice demands, we can under-appreciate the opportunity we have to live an extraordinary life helping others.
So it is good to take time – right now -- to give thanks.
Best wishes to you this week, wherever you are.
All of us at Petty Michel & Associates are truly grateful for you – and all you do to make the world and your community a better place!
Sincerely,
Ed
P.S. (On the other hand, you have to be careful!- You know you've overdone the Gratitude Attitude when you stub your toe and automatically think, "I'm so grateful I have toes to stub! And a chair to stub them on! And nerve endings that let me feel pain! Pain is a gift. This is so much amazing!" Ha-Ha! A little humor for ya! :-)
More P.S. Here's an old-fashioned poem:
Thanksgiving (Edgar Guest 1881 – 1959)
Gettin' together to smile an' rejoice,
An' eatin' an' laughin' with folks of your choice;
An' kissin' the girls an' declarin' that they
Are growin' more beautiful day after day;
Chattin' an' braggin' a bit with the men,
Buildin' the old family circle again;
Livin' the wholesome an' old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.
Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother's a little bit grayer, that's all.
Father's a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an' to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin' our stories as women an' men.