Gratitude

If you follow our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/becomingbalancednd, you will know that we have started a Gratitude Challenge for the month of November.  November is the month we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States and we thought it would be fun to help people focus on things going well in their life as the busy holiday season approaches.

Gratitude is defined in scientific research as “an acknowledgement that we have received something of value from others.  It arises from a posture of openness to others, where we are able to gladly recognize their benevolence (Emmons & Mishra, 2011)”.  Merriam Webster defines it much more simply as the “act of being appreciative of benefits received”.  In general, gratitude is being aware of the blessings we have in our life, regardless of what else is happening in our lives.

Research has identified that engaging in a gratitude practice can improve a person’s overall well-being, improve life satisfaction, increase optimism, decrease depressive symptoms and negative affect, and can have health benefits.  It is unclear why expressing gratitude can have these effects on people or if it is any different than other behaviors focused on being more positive.  I have noticed my personal gratitude practice helps me be on the lookout for the positive things in my day or the things that bring me peace (sunrises and sunsets are big ones for me).  This practice has helped me to not get as wrapped up in the things that don’t go right during the day and I believe has made me more pleasurable to be around!

You can practice gratitude in a variety of ways.  Here are some examples:

• Use a gratitude journal—there are lots of options, including one that is included in our November Challenge prize ?.
• Expressing appreciation to someone in your life each day.
• Writing down 3 things you are grateful for each day.
• Being mindful during the day of the things that are going well.
• Using an app on your phone, there are lots of free gratitude apps available.
• Writing a thank you note to people in your life.
• Engage in a mindfulness practice which focuses on gratitude or taking a mindful walk to appreciate nature.
• Write a kind online review.
• Donate to a non-profit.

Below are my 2 favorite pictures of the sunset for which I am always grateful.  We would love to hear what you are grateful for on our Facebook page!  Please feel free to share how you practice gratitude in the comments below.