Gratitude

WHAT IS GRATITUDE

Simply put, gratitude is the act of being thankful.

It’s the acknowledgement and appreciation for the things, people, and circumstances of your life.

But we don’t need to wait for a surprise or act of kindness from a friend to feel grateful for what we have.

We can exercise gratitude every day, celebrating the small things we have that we often take for granted.

That said, cultivating gratitude doesn't come easy for most of us. Especially when we are living with health issues... we don’t wake up every morning feeling like a million bucks and endlessly grateful for the good things in life.

It is important to note that gratitude is not just about being thankful for the good things in your life, but it is about being thankful for everything in your life. There are things in your life which might initially seem bad, but upon further reflection, give you an opportunity to learn and grow. For instance, I can be grateful for the gut issues I have had for many years, because it allowed me to build the career that I have today, which I love and am extremely passionate about.

We take a lot of things for granted without realising it. When we focus on the things that go wrong, we often overlook the great multitude of things that are actually going right in our lives.

One study showed that imagining how things could’ve been worse made people view themselves as lucky and elicited feelings of gratitude.

BENEFITS OF GRATITUDE

There are over 40 research studies showing the many benefits of gratitude on many aspects of our lives.

Improve your physical health. People who exhibit gratitude report fewer aches and pains and a general feeling of health.
Improve your psychological health. Grateful people enjoy higher well-being and happiness and suffer from reduced symptoms of depression.
Increase in mental strength. Grateful people have an advantage in overcoming trauma and enhanced resilience, helping them to bounce back from highly stressful situations.
Improved relationships. Gratitude makes us nicer, more trusting, more social, and more appreciative. As a result, it helps us make more friends, deepen our existing relationships, and improve our marriage.
Improves self-esteem, improves sleep, and much more.

So in short, the practice of gratitude is one that can have a deep and lasting impact on our wellbeing. The small investment of time it requires is well worth the effort, and with regular practice, gratitude can become a daily habit that permeates your life.

Whether you choose to write a few sentences in a gratitude journal, or simply take a moment to silently acknowledge all that you have, giving thanks can transform your life.

HOW TO PRACTICE GRATITUDE

There are infinite ways to show our gratitude to others, to ourselves, and to a higher power or even “the universe” itself.

However, it can be tough to get started without practical ideas, so I've included below some of the most well-known gratitude exercises.

But before we get to these exercises, let me share a few general tips.

Be specific

When expressing your gratitude, avoid being too general, such as 'I feel grateful for my husband' or 'I feel grateful for my kids'. Instead, choose something more specific, such as 'I feel grateful that my husband did the dishes yesterday', or 'I feel grateful that my kids let me sleep in this morning'.

Try writing a few sentences about only one thing, rather than making a long lists of things you feel grateful for.

As an example, instead of saying 'I feel grateful for my work', I could say:

I feel grateful that I look forward to going to work every day.
I feel grateful for all the amazing people (my clients) I have met through the Happy Gut Program.
I feel grateful for the passion I have for what I do.
I feel grateful for the gut issues I have had for so many years (yes!!), because without it I wouldn't have started this amazing business and do work that I love every single day;-)

Gratitude prompts

“I am grateful for my family because…”
“Something good happened this week…”
“I am grateful for my friendship with… because…”
“I am grateful for who I am because…”
“Something silly that I am grateful for…”

Something that we love doing is simply thanking the Universe!!

GRATITUDE EXERCISES

Below are a few simple ways you can bring more gratitude into your life.

Journaling

Writing down a few things you are grateful for is one of the easiest and most popular exercises available.

The purpose of the exercise is to reflect on the past day, few days, or week, and remember 3-5 things you are especially grateful for. Do it is as often as you feel like!

Gratitude Jar

Find a jar or box.

If you want, decorate it to make it look beautiful (use glitters, ribbon, stickers, etc).

Get into the habit of writing down things that you feel grateful for and adding to the jar on a regular basis.

When you need a pick-me-up, take a few notes out of the jar to remind yourself of who, and what, is good in your life.

Gratitude Letter

This might be the most powerful gratitude exercise.

Write a letter to a person you are particularly grateful to have in your life. Be detailed. Express all the wonderful qualities about this person, and how they personally have affected your life for the better. Ideally, write a hand written letter and deliver it in person.

However, a simple email would also offer incredible benefits.

Gratitude Meditation

Gratitude meditation is a type of meditation that focuses on expressing gratitude for the things in your life.