Embracing the Joyful Journey of Thankfulness
With Thanksgiving quickly approaching I thought this would be the perfect topic for a new blog post. Aside from the Thanksgiving holiday, this time of year always brings to mind a wonderful friend that, sadly, passed right before the holiday several years ago. Year after year my friend would take to social media each day during the month of November and post about something that she was grateful for. My friend’s life was full of challenges and a lot of heartbreak but her daily posts each November were so full of joy, happiness, and thanks. I would often notice her mood change as her “days of Thanksgiving” rolled through the month-she was happier, lighter, and calmer. Spending a few moments each day reflecting on the positives of her life lifted her, and shortly after, I started doing the same. After a few days I immediately noticed a difference in my mood, after a few weeks, I noticed a difference in my entire mindset-I was calmer, more focused, and even more productive. I have since turned this into a daily practice, taking just a few moments each morning, and I can honestly say, it has changed my life.
In this world of uncertainty, sad news, and constant daily challenges, we all could use a little boost to our mind, our mood, and our health. Studies have proven that a simple daily practice of finding gratitude can do just that. Taking a short amount of time to do this each day leads to an increase of serotonin and dopamine in the brain leading to feelings of happiness and pleasure. Stress hormones are also decreased, and this can result in reduced feelings of anxiety and relief from depression. Building a habit of practicing gratitude each day can have many benefits to your overall health including deeper and more restful sleep, better heart health, lower blood pressure, more clarity and focus, and improved patience. These health benefits can also have great impact on helping to cultivate healthy relationships and a stronger, more positive mindset towards all aspects of your life; work, family, exercise and eating habits, have proven to fall more easily into place after developing a habit of practicing daily gratitude. Finally-a simple, gentle, happy habit that can change your health and entire life without changing your diet, visiting a doctor, or taking a single step!
Embracing daily gratitude can be done very simply or explored more in depth through various ways. In the simplest way-just savor a moment each day to think of something that makes you happy, or something that you are thankful for. You can do this while enjoying a cup of morning coffee, taking a walk after a meal, waiting in line to pick the kids up from school, or even just before turning in for the night. Take that thought, hold it for a moment, express thankfulness, and move on. It’s that simple! If you’d like to be a little more involved in your practice, consider a daily journal to keep a running list of things you are grateful for. This journal can be extremely helpful during times in which you feel challenged, disappointed, or sad, as it provides a handy reminder of all the things that bring thankfulness and happiness to our lives.
If you’d like to be creative with your daily practice, or want to share the practice with family, friends, or community, try writing notes of appreciation to those around you, or simply express your gratitude to those you love. Thank a friend for their humor, thank a co-worker for supporting your ideas, thank a family member for simply being there to share your day. To be more creative, try art journaling-doodling or even drawing or painting the things you feel most thankful for. Perhaps even do as I use to do with my homeschool group and create a Thankful Tree-which was just small limbed branch that was anchored into a stone filled vase. Leaves were cut from colored paper and each member wrote what they were thankful for on them. They were then hung from the limbs of the branch with string-it made a beautiful decoration and was so joyful to read!
Finding joy in these trying times is not always easy, but this is one exercise that can definitely help. Try it for one day. Try it-RIGHT NOW! What is ONE thing that you are grateful for? It doesn’t have to be prolific; it doesn’t have to be monumental-it can be as simple as the sun shining in the sky or the pickle that came with your deli sandwich for lunch-What are you thankful for? What made you smile today? What made you feel happy? Warm? Nourished? Welcome? Alive? Noticed? Take this moment and be grateful-and then, perhaps do it again tomorrow, and the day after.
It’s a busy, stressful time of year-find more great reads on relieving stress and feeling your best:
Gift Yourself a Healthy Holiday
Wishing you the very best this holiday season! I am grateful for YOU! Thanks for following and reading! Please, as always, feel free to reach out to me with any questions or comments about your health, wellness, diet, fitness, or well-being. I’d love to connect!