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Giving thanks during the holidays can be beneficial for your well-being, according to a Texas A&M professor

Although some may see Thanksgiving and the holidays as a stressful time, holiday gatherings and feelings of being thankful are beneficial for our overall well-being.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — As of late, it feels as if the holidays have become much more busy and complicated, which has in turn added more factors of stress that can dull the excitement and sparkle of family-oriented holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.

However, according to Texas A&M psychology professor Dr. Joshua Hicks, these family gatherings--and the feelings of gratitude that come with attending them--are important for our overall well-being and allow us to feel a greater sense of meaning in our lives. These feelings are brought forward in our minds more during holidays like Thanksgiving, which traditionally bring people together to assess the things that bring them happiness and comfort.

“It’s an easy way to appreciate things for most people,” Hicks said in an article on Texas A&M Today. “You have all these things available for you: Often you have authentic interactions with loved ones, you have good food and even a soothing sense of nostalgia related to previous Thanksgiving gatherings. All of these things are ripe for the experience of meaning.”

Over the past few years, Hicks has studied how difference experiences affect our individual ability to find meaning in our own lives. Previously, he theorized there to be three sources of meaning for how we are able to define meaning in our own personal lives. They are:

  1. Coherence: The feeling that one's life makes sense
  2. Purpose: The formation and pursuit of clear life goals
  3. Existential Mattering: The concept that what you do actually matters when it comes to the big picture 

However, Hicks's research has brought a fourth pathway to light. He calls the fourth source "experiential appreciation." While the definition of "experimental appreciation" is a fluid one in the context of Hicks' research, there are still factors that make it stand out from the other three.

Some of the examples Hicks gave were (re)connecting with a friend, spending time in nature, or savoring a small moment over a meal, like what often takes place at Thanksgiving. 

However, barriers do exist that can restrict your ability to make this connection, according to Hicks. Conflicts with family members--which was noted to include political disagreements--are among the most common disrupting factors when it comes to being able to define meaning in our own lives. 

Spending too much time on social media was also noted as another common barrier, which can drive a figurative wedge between parties and ultimately create a divide in a gathering meant to bring others together.

“You have to resist the urge to get lost in your phone,” Hicks noted. “This is a time to connect and come together, and I think when you do that, all this other stuff becomes trivial in many ways.”

Hicks also goes on to mention that even after the holiday has passed, it's still a good idea to reach out to other acquaintances and loved ones that don't have anywhere to go during the holidays due to the ease of connecting with others and how it could be an easy way to find that fourth source of meaning to better your own well-being.

Click here to read the original article on Texas A&M Today.

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