Knowledge of what the brain is doing during the experience of gratitude provides a window into gratitude’s relationship to mental health and resilience. This is your brain on gratitude.

Dopamine is one of the main neurotransmitters in the brain. It is most commonly recognized for its role in reward, motivation, and pleasure, but also plays a crucial part in modulating focus, motivation, cognitive flexibility, and emotional resilience. In addition to these creative-productive capacities and states, dopamine is one of the main regulators of motor control and coordination of body movements.