From My Perspective: Gratitude Continues

Last week, my column focused a lot on gratitude, which I'm going to continue with through the month of November. It just seems like the right month to do it.

I'm wondering if anyone accepted my invitation to write ten things you were grateful for over the last week or start writing in a gratitude journal? Of those who did, is anyone planning to continue for the month, and maybe even beyond that? Did you notice anything different in the way you felt, or how things around you may have been more positive?

I began mine again, and life got hectic (when doesn't it?) and I missed a day or two. In the past, I would have berated myself for not following through, but instead of getting upset, I decided to make peace with the fact that I'm human, and sometimes life gets in the way with things that are not in our control. I missed the couple of days and got back to it. Here's to a new week of being grateful.

For many people, the election may or may not have gone the way they wanted. The things I am grateful for, besides the election actually being over? My mailbox is back to normal with no political advertising pamphlets and I'm no longer receiving texts and phone calls from unsolicited politicians. Again, small things in the scheme of things, but I'm grateful just the same. Anyone else feel like this?

It turns out, in addition to the Law of Attraction purposes of gratitude, there are also many health benefits to expressing and practicing gratitude. Of those benefits (there's been a lot of research on it) below are the ones at the top of the list that had an impact on me personally, and I hope they will for you as well.

First, gratitude may enhance peace of mind and help with depressive symptoms, and it creates a buffer from stress and depression. This seemed especially important to me, not because I'm personally depressed, but because of the pandemic and its negative results increasing depression and suicide rates. I'm not saying gratitude will fix everything for these individuals, but it might help. It's even been studied and proven that practicing gratitude, specifically writing gratitude letters in addition to receiving psychological counseling, has greater benefits than just counseling alone.

For those of you with heart/coronary issues, listen up. A study conducted in 2015 shows patients who expressed optimism and gratitude two weeks after an acute coronary event had healthier hearts than those who didn't.

For those of us who have trouble with sleep, (yes, at times me included) another study in 2015 showed that gratitude and spiritual well-being are related to positive affect, sleep quality, better energy and lower cellular inflammation.

With all of the health benefits of being grateful, I thought I would offer a couple of other suggestions I've come across to help with the process of practicing gratitude, especially for those who may not like to write or sit down and list ten things each day.

In addition to writing in a gratitude journal, which is apparently the most recognized way to practice gratitude, here are three things someone can do to realize the benefits of practicing gratitude:

1. Think about something or someone you're thankful for right when you wake up.

2. At the end of each day, write down just three things for which you were grateful.

3. Practice saying thank you in a real and meaningful way (the key to this is to be specific).

4. Set a reminder on your phone to stop, just for a minute, to pause and think of something you're grateful for right in that moment.

Another idea, keep a gratitude jar and deposit a thought (written down) into it whenever something big or small happens. I have a friend who does wood burning, and a few years ago she began making "Blessings Boxes." The idea behind them was to write down one positive thing, or something you were grateful for, and put it in the box each day. Then, at the end of the year, open the box and read about all the blessings of the year. I gave those boxes to a few close people in my life as gifts. Now, I think it's time to do it for myself. While she no longer makes these wonderful little boxes, an article I was reading suggested a gratitude jar instead. Same premise, just a simpler approach. If you're already writing in a gratitude journal, you can take one of the things you write down there, put it on a separate piece of paper, and deposit it into your own gratitude jar. My recommendation, just pick a short meaningful one.

One last idea for this week: take pictures of things you're grateful for every day. Almost all of us have cell phones with cameras that can give us this opportunity. I'm always taking photos of my pets (yes, those of you who are friends with me on social media are quite familiar with my horse, Missy Moonshine – and I am grateful for her every day). You can then reflect on these pictures again at the end of the year, or if you share to social media, sometimes those apps have the "memories portion" that pop up year after year, which will give you continued reasons to express gratitude.

However you decide to practice or continue practicing gratitude, I encourage you to do it and keep your momentum. I'm also interested to see if it's something you're finding you like, if it's having any impact, or any other positive outcomes you're seeing so far.

You can write to me at the BVD office, or email me at [email protected].