April is the month to show your gratitude. Gift yourself and your community by pausing to reflect on someone or something you are grateful for. Write your appreciation on a window or poster-board stop and bring your department’s “Gratitude Graffiti” wall to life.
The Gratitude Graffiti Project is a practice of purposeful reflection and appreciation expressed through interactive art. Over the past decade, hundreds of studies have documented the social, physical and psychological benefits of practicing gratitude. Here is a partial list of the benefits of practicing gratitude:
- Happiness and life satisfaction: Practicing gratitude is the most reliable method for increasing happiness and life satisfaction;
- Reduces anxiety and depression;
- Good for our bodies: Research suggests that it strengthens the immune system, lowers blood pressure, reduces symptoms of illness and makes us less bothered by aches and pains;
- Encourages us to exercise more and take better care of our health;
- Helps us to sleep better: If you want to sleep more soundly, count blessings, not sheep.
will participate in the Gratitude Graffiti Project for its second consecutive year. Let us share the benefits and bring the beauty of this form of gratitude sharing throughout our community. To learn more about the Gratitude Graffiti Project and to order your free kit from the Employee Wellness office, simply visit the Gratitude Graffiti webpage and complete the .
In preparation for the April Month of Gratitude, gratitude stops should be ordered by March 19 and in place at your designated location by April 2. If you have questions, please contact Kim Hauge, director of employee wellness, at 330-672-7505 or wellness@kent.edu.