The Thanksgiving holiday offers a special opportunity to adopt an attitude of gratitude for all the good things we’ve received during the current year, as well as for our families and friends. But Harvard Medical School wants people to know that incorporating a more frequent practice of expressing gratitude may provide year-round benefits.

Researchers found that those who expressed gratitude on a weekly basis “were more optimistic and felt better about their lives” after 10 weeks of simply writing down things for which they were grateful. In another study, subjects who wrote a letter of gratitude to a person who had never been properly thanked led to “a huge increase in happiness scores” for the letter writers—with the benefits lasting for more than a month. Expressing gratitude has also been shown to improve relationships.

The Mayo Clinic also reports more tangible and physical benefits to both our physical and mental health, including improving our sleep, immune systems, and a decrease in chronic pain and depression.

So don’t let the Thanksgiving meal be your only expression of gratitude for the year—pledge to keep it as a year-round way to improve your physical and mental health!

Family Story Month

November also happens to be Family Story Month, so take advantage of those Thanksgiving family get-togethers to encourage sharing some of your family’s favorite stories. If grandparents or older relatives are in attendance, consider writing or recording their stories as a way of preserving a corner of your family’s history—and as a great way to get to know and understand other family members better.

Most people are happy to tell their stories and—especially in the case of your elders—you and other younger family members will be glad you took advantage of the opportunity as you re-read or listen to their stories around the Thanksgiving table in the years to come.