Gratitude Matters
Did you know?
In an experimental comparison, those who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events (Emmons & McCullough, 2003).
Wow! That’s something!
According to Deepak Chopra:
“Gratitude is a fullness of heart that moves you from limitation and fear to expansion and love.”
Gratitude is something to integrate into your life, to just for one day of the year, like Thanksgiving in the U.S. promotes, but on a regular basis.
A gratitude practice can be a mindfulness practice (and vice versa). As you get in touch with gratitude, you may notice that you feel more present, centered and, in a nutshell, happy!
What does this all have to do with food, eating, and body? When gratitude is cultivated and practiced, there is an opening of the heart that offers the deep comfort that there is indeed goodness in and around yourself and your life. That’s the place to find the truth about your life and your body. And in that truth, there is so much healing available.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll be sharing some more ideas about how to create a gratitude practice that’s meaningful and sustainable. So by all means, if you haven’t already, sign up to receive some inspiration your inbox!
For now, get your attitude of gratitude on by grabbing your journal and doing a little writing:
Who or what inspired me today?
What brought me happiness today?
What brought me comfort and deep peace today?
Think about gratitude from these perspectives:
Sensory: Starting with gratitude for just having senses, ask yourself: What do you see/hear/touch/smell/taste that you are grateful for? (Doesn’t have to be all at once!)
Worldview: These are the day-to-day things; the earthly things, such as a warm bed, dinner with friends, transportation…
Personal: All about you! Your breath, your muscles, your ability to think and daydream, an important project you completed…
Interpersonal: You + others—the beings in your life that you are grateful for–the interactions, the communication, the support…
Inspired: This is gratitude for who or what inspires you, including spiritual beliefs, the natural world, art, music, love…
Ideas to Enhance Your Gratitude Practice:
- Keep a gratitude journal- write down at least 5 grateful thoughts daily.
- Write cards, letters, post-it-notes, etc. with messages of gratitude for others and send them off!
- Go on a photo shoot and snap pictures of people, places, things, etc. that you are grateful for, or do a photo gratitude journal as a daily practice.
- Make a gratitude playlist—what music speaks to you of gratitude? What music are you grateful for? Sing out your gratitude!
- Create a gratitude box for home or work. Each day for a week, pen your gratitude about someone or something and put it in the box. At the end of the week, have a gratitude “party” and share the contents of the box. You can do this for yourself as well–a fun alternative to the gratitude journal.
- Go on a gratitude walk. Observe the world around you, engage your senses, and feel the gratitude in your body, mind, heart, and spirit!
I’m so grateful to you for reading this post! Looking forward to sharing more beauty and inspiration with you in the weeks ahead!
Cheers to you and yours!
Sibel
