Gratitude and How It Can Change Your Life
“It’s not joy that make us grateful, it’s gratitude that makes us joyful” - David Steindl-Rast.
How can practicing gratitude change your life?
Gratitude is a great way to move our state of being by helping us to refocus on what we have, instead of what we do not. This can be a powerful tool for healing. What we focus on expands, so as we focus on what we love or are grateful for, more of this shows up in our lives. Practicing gratitude also has emotional and mental benefits. Below are some of those benefits -
Reducing depression - people with a positive mindset have a higher satisfaction with their life, their interpersonal relationships and higher self-esteem than people who do not practice gratitude. This can be a simple switch as their gratitude practice takes their regular focus to what they love about their life.
Lessening of anxiety - regular practice of gratitude can combat the negative thinking patterns that often accompany anxious thoughts. Even though practicing gratitude will not release anxiety itself, it can be a circuit breaker to empower people to be more present and from that space, see things with more clarity.
Supportive of heart health - another benefit of practicing gratitude is heart health. Feeling stressed, depressed or anxious can increase the risk of heart disease. Dr Paul J. Mills completed a gratitude study in 2015, on people who had previous damage to their hearts. Blood tests showed that those that practiced gratitude had lower levels of inflammation - an indication of better heart health.
Improved sleep - practicing gratitude tends to help people to feel less stressed and more fulfilled with their life circumstances. Feeling stressed and/or anxious can prevent getting a good nights sleep.
Stress relief - stress can trigger the sympathetic nervous system response of fight, flight, freeze. Being in gratitude can help to calm the nervous system, bringing down blood pressure, heart rate and bringing in a sense of relaxation.
How to practice gratitude -
Keep a gratitude journal. This could be basic a notebook or a you may choose to buy a gratitude notebook with journal prompts. There are many options online starting from only $10.
Speak or write down gratitude affirmations. I have a few different affirmations written on my bathroom mirror that I repeat to myself whilst getting ready for the day. These affirmations don’t always have to be about gratitude - it may be something you are working on in your life. You can bring gratitude in with a simple “thank you, thank you, thank you” to finish.
Use an app. There are many different apps available for gratitude but there are also apps for simply writing down your wins. For me these two things, writing down your wins, or good things that have happened today, and gratitude, are two sides of the same coin. All of these exercises raise your vibration and bring joy into your life. Currently, I am using the free version of 3 Good things. As I finish my day, I write down 3 good things I experienced and how I felt about them. So simple, but I have noticed how much my outlook has changed. This daily act has helped me to completely change my focus and therefore my life.
How do you bring gratitude into your daily life? To you assist with journal prompts, feel free to download the free Gratitude sheet below. ⬇️