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32 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k n o v e m b e r / d e c e m b e r 2 0 1 8 SAVVY SELF-CARE best practices 3 Ingredients to Mastering Appreciations By Heath and Nicole Reed One of the most revolutionary acts of self- care and loving kindness is generating appreciations. Learning to give and receive appreciations is an investment in who you are and in the people you surround yourself with. Appreciations require your sensitive awareness and emphasize the unique qualities you and others bring to the moment. Appreciating is a way to focus on what's going well and to add value to everyone involved. Appreciation is defined as "adding value." Just like when we invest time, money, or our attention in our home, business, or relationships, our investments appreciate in value. Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Free Press, 2004), feels strongly about appreciation. He writes, "Next to physical survival, the greatest need of a human being is psychological survival, to be understood, to be affirmed, to be validated, to be appreciated." When relationships are not nurtured by a sense of appreciation, relationships suffer and even fail. THRIVING VS. TOXIC RELATIONSHIPS Research conducted by husband and wife team Drs. John and Julie Gottman reveal that the distinguishing features that delineate thriving relationships from toxic relationships are the proportion of appreciations