Being Thankful Beyond Thanksgiving: 7 Powerful Gratitude Practices That Cultivate Joy
Gratitude has become one of those buzzwords we hear everywhere. It’s easy to dismiss it as some hippy-dippy practice if spirituality is not really your thing. But, the more gratitude is studied, the more it becomes clear:
Gratitude matters!
● A study from the Review of Communication found that gratitude positively affects our mental and emotional states, physical well-being, and behaviors!
● One study in Psychological Science found that gratitude helps people display financial patience. The researchers also noted that gratitude is the specific state that makes a difference, not just general happiness or other pleasant feelings.
● According to UCDavis Health, gratitude is connected to 23% lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
These are just a few of the amazing side effects of gratitude.
“Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.”
~Eckhart Tolle
Our brains are hardwired to look for the negative. In cavepeople days, this trait might have saved our lives. Being in a constant state of hypervigilance protected us from giant, hungry animals. We needed to constantly scan our environments for danger just to stay alive.
Unfortunately, this negative predisposition can be harmful in our modern world. It can cause unnecessary stress and anxiety within us and in our relationships. Most of us are pretty safe most of the time. We need to retrain our brains to scan for what’s good instead.
How do we do this? By priming our brains for gratitude. We can retrain ourselves to look for the good that surrounds us.
Even if you’re already convinced, gratitude can only benefit us if we infuse our lives with it. Here are a few ways to get started or fine-tune your current gratitude practice.
1. Practice presence.
It’s hard to be grateful if we are not fully in the present moment. Sometimes the kids are running around us screaming, the phone is ringing, and the dog is barking his head off. It can be easy to overlook the cup of coffee our spouse lovingly placed in front of us or the four-year-old hugging our leg.
Practice pausing to take deep breaths and look around you throughout your days. Notice what you hear, taste, smell, and feel too. This little reset can train your brain to stop and appreciate the good. Breast Cancer Symptoms
2. Try gratitude meditation.
Another helpful practice for staying present is meditation. More specifically, gratitude meditation can prime our brains to notice and reflect on all the good in our lives.
This practice can be as simple as focusing on all the people and things we are grateful for, and it doesn’t have to be for any specific amount of time. Start with a timeframe you know you can stick with on a regular basis, whether that’s one, three, or five minutes.
If you prefer guided meditations, YouTube is your best friend. There are tons of gratitude meditations of varying lengths and styles to choose from.
3. Start savoring.
Just as it can be easy to overlook the good, it can be easy to notice it, check that noticing off our to-do list, and keep it moving.
Fred B. Bryant and Joseph Veroff literally wrote the book on savoring. They define savoring as noticing, appreciating, and enhancing the positive moments in your life. It is the practice of actively focusing on delighting in your experiences.
Think about that first bite of your favorite dessert. Letting it roll around on your tongue and melt in your mouth. Then lying in bed, blissfully recalling that delicious moment and looking forward to the next time you treat yourself. Imagine bringing that kind of energy to all of life’s sweet moments. THAT is savoring!
4. Write it down.
Capturing our thoughts and experiences in writing can help us stay in the present and savor precious moments.
Kent State University researchers found that the simple act of writing down what we’re grateful for can promote well-being and happiness. These positive effects are probably related to slowing down and really focusing on these uplifting moments. Writing a gratitude list can help us feel grateful for these moments instead of just going through the motions of saying what we’re thankful for.
All you need is a pen and paper, but some other options to get you started or switch up your routine are:
● A premade template
● An app
● The Five Minute Journal
5. Sharing is caring.
Gratitude practices can be even more powerful when we share them with others. That can look like talking about what we savored that day around the table or sharing one appreciation in bed with our partner each night.
Expressing gratitude is another way of spreading the bounty of appreciation. A study on nurses in the Journal of Positive Psychology found that nurses reported more job satisfaction, better sleep quality, fewer headaches, and other benefits when they were thanked more often .
Sharing and expressing gratitude can multiply its power. Try looking to catch people doing good. Then thank them and offer some positive feedback. This uplifting habit creates a positive backdrop for our relationships.
6. Find what works for you.
If you’re anything like me, you might now be feeling pressured to do a gratitude meditation every morning, share what you’re grateful for around the table every evening, savor every joyous moment, and write in your gratitude journal every night.
Try one practice and see how it goes. Nothing is wrong with changing gears if that one doesn’t feel right. Personalize your gratitude practice to work for you. It’s meant to add positivity to your life, not stress you out.
7. Call in reinforcements.
This blog post might be enough for you to get started on your gratitude practice. If you feel like you want to learn more, there are tons of great resources available. The Little Book of Gratitude by Dr. Robert A. Emmons is a wonderful place to start.
This tiny resource unpacks everything you need to know about gratitude in a beautiful, short, easy-to-read package. Best of all, the author is the founder of the Gratitude Lab at the University of California, Davis. He knows what he’s talking about!
One of the most beautiful aspects of gratitude is its equal opportunity. It does not discriminate. It is available to all of us: rich or poor, sick or in good health. It’s not about everything being good. It’s about affirming all in our life that is good.
Gratitude is, first and foremost, a way of seeing that alters our gaze.”
~Dr. Robert A. Emmons
Starting any new habit can be daunting. Remember to start with a gratitude practice you know you can succeed at. It can be as simple as thinking of three things you’re grateful for before bed. You can always pick up the pace as you go. Whatever you choose, don’t wait for Thanksgiving to roll around each year to show appreciation. The benefits of a grateful heart are always available to you.
Today and every day, I am grateful for you.
❤️ GG
Sources:
PsychCentral | Greater Good Science Center | Positive Psychology | Forbes
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