Research

Emotionally expressive journaling
Mindfulness
Self-compassion
Gratitude
Mindset
Compassion
Positive affirmations
Connection
Deep breathing
Neuroplasticity

Emotionally Expressive Journaling

Emotionally expressive journaling, focusing on emotions while writing your story, can build internal resilience. One study found that writing in a journal, even for just three days, helped depressed college students feel better. Another found that “brief autobiographical storytelling exercises” improve both psychological and physical health, even months later. Results from yet another study found people who write about traumatic and stressful events while focusing on trying to make sense of it (i.e. what you tell yourself to deal with the event) “increased positive growth from trauma over time.” A 2018 study by UCLA’s Leiberman and Torre found that putting feelings into words, referred to as “affect labeling,” helps our brains regulate our emotions and demonstrates “a modulation of emotional output effects in the same experimental, autonomic, neural, and behavioral domains as found in other forms of emotional regulation.” The study found both immediate and long-term benefits. In other words, writing our feelings while describing a traumatic or stressful event helps us feel better because it is literally changing our brains.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Baikie, Karen A., and Kay Wilhelm. “Emotional and Physical Health Benefits of Expressive Writing | Advances in Psychiatric Treatment.” Cambridge Core, Cambridge University Press, 2 Jan. 2018.

Gortner, Eva-Maria, et al. “Benefits of Expressive Writing in Lowering Rumination and Depressive Symptoms.” Behavior Therapy, vol. 37, no. 3, 2006, pp. 292–303., doi:10.1016/j.beth.2006.01.004.

Hamby, Sherry. “Resilience And.....4 Benefits to Sharing Your Story.” Psychology Today. Sussex Publishers, n.d.

Harvard Health Publishing. “Writing about Emotions May Ease Stress and Trauma - Harvard Health.” Harvard Health Blog.

Pennebaker, James W., and John Frank. Evans. “Expressive Writing: Words That Heal: Using Expressive Writing to Overcome Traumas and Emotional Upheavals, Resolve Issues, Improve Health, and Build Resilience.” Idyll Arbor, Inc., 2014.

Torre, Jared B., and Matthew D. Lieberman. “Putting Feelings Into Words: Affect Labeling as Implicit Emotion Regulation.” Emotion Review, vol. 10, no. 2, 2018, pp. 116–124., doi:10.1177/1754073917742706.

Mindfulness

Research professors Brené Brown and Kristin Neff use the term “courageous presence” as a way to think about mindfulness, because it takes grit to stay present in a specific moment when you are facing difficult emotions. Noticing feelings and sensations that are in our orbit, that it in and out of our brains, is a mighty task. But to be mindful of these conditions, without judgment, leads to important growth because this begins to train our brains to focus more on the present moment. It’s been scientifically shown that meditating for ten minutes a day, for thirty days, supports increased positive emotions, reduces stress and increases self-compassion. For some, its benefits can be felt with only a few days of practice.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

“20 Scientific Reasons to Start Meditating Today.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers.

“Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by... : Psychosomatic Medicine.” LWW.

Bialylew, Elise. “This Is Exactly How Long You Need to Meditate to Feel the Benefits.” Thrive Global, 27 June 2018.

Kabat-Zinn, Jon. “A Study in Happiness—Meditation, the Brain, and the Immune System.” Mindfulness, vol. 9, no. 5, 2018, pp. 1664–1667., doi:10.1007/s12671-018-0991-3.

Lutterveld, Remko Van, et al. “Meditation Is Associated with Increased Brain Network Integration.” NeuroImage, vol. 158, 2017, pp. 18–25., doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.06.071.

Powell, Alvin. “Harvard Researchers Study How Mindfulness May Change the Brain in Depressed Patients.” Harvard Gazette, 27 August 2018.

Seppälä, Emma M., Jack B. Nitschke, Dana L. Tudorascu, Andrea Hayes, Michael R. Goldstein, Dong T. H. Nguyen, David Perlman, and Richard J. Davidson. "Breathing-Based Meditation Decreases Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms in U.S. Military Veterans: A Randomized Controlled Longitudinal Study." Journal of Traumatic Stress 27, no. 4 (08 2014): 397-405. doi:10.1002/jts.21936

Self Compassion

Offering ourselves compassion—just as we would for a friend—is an important step in building our own internal resiliency. It can be an antidote to our critical internal thoughts and the strong emotions that arise from difficult situations in our lives, scientifically proven to calm and ground us.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Arimitsu, Kohki, and Stefan G. Hofmann. "Effects of Compassionate Thinking on Negative Emotions." Cognition and Emotion 31, no. 1 (09, 2015): 160-67. doi:10.1080/02699931.2015.1078292.

Ehret, Anna M., Jutta Joormann, and Matthias Berking. "Examining Risk and Resilience Factors for Depression: The Role of Self-criticism and Self-compassion." Cognition and Emotion 29, no. 8 (12, 2014): 1496-504. doi:10.1080/02699931.2014.992394.

Marshall, Emma-Jane, and Robert N. Brockman. "The Relationships Between Psychological Flexibility, Self-Compassion, and Emotional Well-Being." Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy 30, no. 1 (2016): 60-72. doi:10.1891/0889-8391.30.1.60.

Neff, Kristin D. "Self-compassion and Psychological Well-being." PsycEXTRA Dataset, 2005. doi:10.1037/e633942013-240.

Samaie, Gh., and H.a. Farahani. "Self-compassion as a Moderator of the Relationship between Rumination, Self-reflection and Stress." Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 30 (2011): 978-82. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.10.190.

Gratitude

Documenting specific moments that we feel thankful for can help retrain our brain and deepen our positive neural pathways. Current research shows that writing down three things every day for twenty-one days significantly increases our level of optimism, the benefits lasting for up to six months. We include a place for you to do this in the journal. Although we can feel thankful for things that are going right or for supportive friends and family, research has found that the most beneficial form of gratitude is when train our minds to be grateful for the small moments: the warmth of a cup of tea in our hands or the smell of freshly cut flowers, and hold on to these impressions for twenty to thirty seconds.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Achor, Shawn. “The Happiness Dividend.” Harvard Business Review, 23 July 2014.

“The Grateful Brain.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers.

“How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain.” Greater Good.

Kini, P, et al. “The Effects of Gratitude Expression on Neural Activity.” NeuroImage., U.S. National Library of Medicine, Mar. 2016, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26746580.

Mindset

Mindset is the lens that colors our perception of every experience. Our mindset very often determines our reality because it impacts each and every choice we make. To begin to change our mindset, we need to begin to question our limiting beliefs, those thoughts we (often repeatedly) tell ourselves about what we can/or can not do, what we deserve or not. New research shows that our mindset really matters, altering the biochemicals in our brain, impacting how we feel both emotionally and physically. We now know that our bodies believe those stories we’re telling ourselves. If we’re able to notice when we’re having negative thoughts, a negative mindset, we will be able to reframe them into something positive, deepening neural grooves that move us towards health. Take Two has prompts that lead you through the process of recognizing your limiting beliefs, and helps turn them into positive thoughts through affirmations.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Crum, Alia J., et al. “Rethinking Stress: The Role of Mindsets in Determining the Stress Response.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 104, no. 4, 2013, pp. 716–733., doi:10.1037/a0031201.

Crum, Alia J., et al. “The Role of Stress Mindset in Shaping Cognitive, Emotional, and Physiological Responses to Challenging and Threatening Stress.” Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, vol. 30, no. 4, 2017, pp. 379–395., doi:10.1080/10615806.2016.1275585.

Jamieson, Jeremy P., et al. “Optimizing Stress Responses with Reappraisal and Mindset Interventions: an Integrated Model.” Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, vol. 31, no. 3, 2018, pp. 245–261., doi:10.1080/10615806.2018.1442615.

Park, Daeun, et al. “Beliefs About Stress Attenuate the Relation Among Adverse Life Events, Perceived Distress, and Self-Control.” Child Development, vol. 89, no. 6, May 2017, pp. 2059–2069., doi:10.1111/cdev.12946.

Compassion

Connection is critical to our well-being. Research shows that the combination of high-quality personal relationships and hearty, face-to-face community support makes for better health, both physically and psychologically. Feeling connected to others helps our nervous systems to experience lower stress levels, which contributes to overall contentment and long-term happiness. One way to find connections to others is through compassion: an emotional response to someone’s suffering with the desire or urge to lessen it. Research has found that a compassion practice rewires our brain circuitry, strengthening positive neural grooves and creating better, more healthful behavioral patterns.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Aknin, Lara B., and Elizabeth W. Dunn. "Wealth and Subjective Well-being: Spending Money on Others Leads to Higher Happiness than Spending on Yourself." Activities for Teaching Positive Psychology: A Guide for Instructors.: 93-97. doi:10.1037/14042-015.

Jazaieri, Hooria, Ihno A. Lee, Kelly Mcgonigal, Thupten Jinpa, James R. Doty, James J. Gross, and Philippe R. Goldin. "A Wandering Mind Is a Less Caring Mind: Daily Experience Sampling during Compassion Meditation Training." The Journal of Positive Psychology 11, no. 1 (03, 2015): 37-50. doi:10.1080/17439760.2015.1025418.

Klimecki, Olga M., and Tania Singer. "The Compassionate Brain." Oxford Handbooks Online, 10, 2017. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190464684.013.9.

Kok, Bethany E., Kimberly A. Coffey, Michael A. Cohn, Lahnna I. Catalino, Tanya Vacharkulksemsuk, Sara B. Algoe, Mary Brantley, and Barbara L. Fredrickson. "How Positive Emotions Build Physical Health." Psychological Science 24, no. 7 (05, 2013): 1123-132. doi:10.1177/0956797612470827.

Seppala, Emma, Emiliana Simon-Thomas, Stephanie L. Brown, Monica C. Worline, C. Daryl Cameron, and James R. Doty. The Oxford Handbook of Compassion Science. Oxford University Press, 2017.

Weng, Helen Y., Andrew S. Fox, Alexander J. Shackman, Diane E. Stodola, Jessica Z. K. Caldwell, Matthew C. Olson, Gregory M. Rogers, and Richard J. Davidson. "Compassion Training Alters Altruism and Neural Responses to Suffering." Psychological Science 24, no. 7 (05, 2013): 1171-180. doi:10.1177/0956797612469537.

Weng, Helen Y., Brianna Schuyler, and Richard J. Davidson. "The Impact of Compassion Meditation Training on the Brain and Prosocial Behavior." Oxford Handbooks Online, 10, 2017. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190464684.013.11

Positive Affirmations

Cascio, Christopher N., Matthew Brook O’Donnell, Francis J. Tinney, Matthew D. Lieberman, Shelley E. Taylor, Victor J. Strecher, and Emily B. Falk. "Self-affirmation Activates Brain Systems Associated with Self-related Processing and Reward and Is Reinforced by Future Orientation." Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience 11, no. 4 (11, 2015): 621-29. doi:10.1093/scan/nsv136.

Cohen, Geoffrey L., and David K. Sherman. "The Psychology of Change: Self-Affirmation and Social Psychological Intervention." Annual Review of Psychology 65, no. 1 (01, 2014): 333-71. doi:10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115137.

Dutcher, Janine M., J. David Creswell, Laura E. Pacilio, Peter R. Harris, William M. P. Klein, John M. Levine, Julienne E. Bower, Keely A. Muscatell, and Naomi I. Eisenberger. "Self-Affirmation Activates the Ventral Striatum." Psychological Science 27, no. 4 (02, 2016): 455-66. doi:10.1177/0956797615625989.

Koole, Sander L., Karianne Smeets, Ad Van Knippenberg, and Ap Dijksterhuis. "The Cessation of Rumination through Self-affirmation." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 77, no. 1 (1999): 111-25. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.77.1.111.

Connection

Buettner, Dan. “The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest.” National Geographic Society, 2009.

Ford, Brett Q., Julia O. Dmitrieva, Daniel Heller, Yulia Chentsova-Dutton, Igor Grossmann, Maya Tamir, Yukiko Uchida, Birgit Koopmann-Holm, Victoria A. Floerke, Meike Uhrig, Tatiana Bokhan, and Iris B. Mauss. "Culture Shapes Whether the Pursuit of Happiness Predicts Higher or Lower Well-being." Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 144, no. 6 (2015): 1053-062. doi:10.1037/xge0000108.

Lieberman, Matthew D. “Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect.” Oxford University Press, 2015.

Porges, Stephen W. "Vagal Pathways." Oxford Handbooks Online, 10, 2017. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190464684.013.15.

Porges, Stephen W. “The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-regulation.” W.W. Norton, 2011.

Siegel, Daniel J. "Interpersonal Connection, Compassion, and Well-Being." Advances in Contemplative Psychotherapy, 05, 2017, 118-30. doi:10.4324/9781315630045-11.

Deep Breathing

“Breathing: The Little Known Secret to Peace of Mind.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers.

Philippot, Pierre, et al. “Respiratory Feedback in the Generation of Emotion.” Cognition & Emotion, vol. 16, no. 5, 2002, pp. 605–627., doi:10.1080/02699930143000392.

Sarkar, Anjali A. “Functional Correlation between Breathing and Emotional States.” MOJ Anatomy & Physiology, vol. 3, no. 5, 2017, doi:10.15406/mojap.2017.03.00108.

Yackle, Kevin, et al. “Breathing Control Center Neurons That Promote Arousal in Mice.” Science, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 31 Mar. 2017, science.sciencemag.org/content/355/6332/1411/tab-figures-data.

Neuroplasticity

Neuroscientists used to believe that the brain’s ability to change came to a halt when we were young. But in the latter part of the twentieth century, they discovered the concept of “neuroplasticity,” finding that the adult brain is more malleable than previously thought, and that governed by neural pathways that become deepened by our habitual thoughts. We now know that when our brain defaults to a negative thought, we can choose to positively rewire it.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Doidge, Norman MD. “The Brain That Changes Itself.” Scribe, 2010.

Greenberg, Melanie. “The Stress-proof Brain: Master Your Emotional Response to Stress Using Mindfulness and Neuroplasticity.” New Harbinger Publications, 2017.

Hebb, Donald Olding. “The Organization of Behavior: A Neuropsychological Theory.” John Wiley & Sons, 1949.

Kaschka, W.p., and M. Jandl. "How Can We Utilize Neuroplasticity to Overcome Treatment-resistant Depression." Journal of Affective Disorders 107 (03 2008). doi:10.1016/j.jad.2007.12.038. 

Shad Helmstetter. Ph. D. “The Power of Neuroplasticity.” BookBaby, 2014.

Taylor, Jill Bolte Ph. D. “My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey.” Hodder & Stoughton General Division, 2011