Have you ever wondered “what’s so great about having an attitude of gratitude?” There are many benefits to maintaining a sense of appreciation and thankfulness in your life, including physical, mental, and spiritual health benefits. There are many ways you’re your giving gratitude can be a gift for others, but here are 5 ways that being grateful can be a gift for you:
- Use Gratitude to Put Your Life Into Perspective – Many times we view everything in our lives as so significant that we fail to see the bigger picture. We may feel like our situation is “The Worst” and NO-One understands. We may feel as though we just don’t have what it takes or what we need to move forward. We may even be creating more of what we don’t want by focusing on whatever we feel we are lacking in life. When you are always focused on what’s missing in life you fail to miss the beauty that is present right in front of you. A Daily gratitude list can shift that perspective and help you to be in the present moment with what is. Saying ‘thank you’ for whatever you current have has you begin to recognize that you truly are blessed in life wherever you are, and when you begin to recognize the blessings you currently have, you attract more blessings in turn.
- Use Gratitude to Ease A Worried Mind – If you are a worry-wart, like so many people I see in my practice, it’s easy for your mind to fall down the rabbit hole of obsessive thought patterns like “what if” or “what’s missing” or “what could happen”. This “worst case scenario” cycle can bring massive amounts of mental anguish and physical stress upon the body. Conditions such as insomnia, anxiety, depression, and even obsessive compulsive disorder can often arise out of that initial state of fear and worry. A great practice to stop that obsessive process is to practice in the moment gratitude. A great exercise (and one you will hear me refer to very often) is the Gratitude Alphabet in which you go through the alphabet naming one thing you are grateful for with each letter. You can do this exercise alone, with a partner, or in a group. It’s not only very effective in bringing people to the present moment, but it’s a wonderfully fun way to listen and get present to gratitude in others. Shared gratitude has just as much value as the gratitude you express in solitude.
- Use Gratitude to Improve Your Relationships – Taking a position of gratitude in your relationships whether romantic, professional, or family can really give you a new connection with the people in your life. A great exercise is to choose a person in your life with whom you want to transform your relationship and start by writing 3 things about them that you appreciate or are grateful for each day. You may keep a private journal or you may share it with them a few times a week. Keeping it private will transform you view of them, but sharing it with them will make the greatest difference in shifting the relationship in a positive direction. Try it with a spouse, children, a parent, a boss, or a colleague. Giving acknowledgement to others is truly a gift to all parties involved.
- Use Gratitude as An Act of Kindness to Another – Much like previously stated, gratitude can be used as an act of kindness to another. I’m not speaking of using gratitude in order to get something you want…that’s not gratitude, that’s manipulation. I’m speaking of being kind for no reason. This may be a word of gratitude, or an act of gratitude such as a gift, card, or act of service for the person you are acknowledging. Whatever the case, gratitude in this way is an act of generosity, and can be an unexpected blessing for the person to which you direct it. You’ll find that random acts of gratitude (similar to random acts of kindness which we will discuss later on in the month), are as much of a gift to you as they are to the person to which you are giving the gratitude.
- Use Gratitude to Help Dissolve Feelings of Fear, Sadness, & Anger – It is normal to have feelings of fear, sadness, and anger sometimes as we are human beings and that is part of the human experience. However, when experiencing the feelings becomes wallowing in the feelings, then a downward spiral can be imminent. This an area where engaging the attitude of gratitude can really take the edge off of a seemingly hopeless situation. At first it may not take away the feelings (and I’m not suggesting that it should… swallowing your emotions is just as dangerous as wallowing in them). However, when consistently practiced, gratitude during times of pain and sorrow can truly make a difference in shifting the energy with which you move from the situations that may cause such negative emotions. You may find that speaking gratitude or showing acknowledgement to another takes your mind out of the anger or sadness and brings a level of peace and contentment. It shifts away from the “victim” mode and brings a sense of empowerment into being. Next time you find yourself in an extreme negative or stressful state, try the A-Z gratitude list mentioned above, and you’ll guaranteed be shifted to a less intense state of negative emotion. If you still have some leftover contempt, do it again…Each time you go through the exercise you’ll notice less and less of the negative emotion. What will make this exercise more powerful is to call someone ELSE and request that they DO IT WITH YOU to support your coming out of this funk. Not only will you be transforming your state of being in the moment, you’ll also be making a major difference in the life of the person you called; both by empowering them with whatever is going on in their world, AND by allowing them to be a support for someone they care about (THAT’S YOU)!
In conclusion, gratitude can be very useful in shifting and transforming various areas of being. It’s such a simple practice, yet often overlooked as a daily tool. You can begin to add this and other practices into your life by joining our challenges each month.
In the month of February, we are focusing on developing a daily practice of LOVE in our lives. This includes being loving to ourselves as well as appreciating and being loving towards others.
THIS WEEK’S CHALLENGE: You guessed it! It’s gratitude week. This week start a written gratitude journal. Write 3 things that you are grateful for in your life each morning upon awakening or each night before you go to sleep. Notice how this practice affects your sleep and your day to day way of being. I acknowledge you for being willing to take on new challenges and ways of being in 2012! God Bless!
Join the challenge! Visit www.drmaiysha.com daily and connect with us through Facebook and Twitter for daily inspirations and dialogue about your and others successes and challenges each week.
Maiysha Clairborne MD
Copyright 1/23/12
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