Gratitude Practice For Happiness

Feeling like crap or maybe life gave you a raw deal in one way or another?

You’re creating this narrative for yourself.

It’s the perspective/spin you’ve put on the situation.

 

The power here is that you get to decide.

You have the freedom to choose how you think about things.

 

Daily gratitude practice is a very basic easy free practice that can take less than a minute a day that will help you to shift your perspective over time. You can go from a half glass empty to full if you want.

 

I used to be a pessimist in order to be a realist.

Today, I have metamorphosed into someone who believes the impossible and stays away from naysaywers.

 

Much of this shift was catalyzed by daily gratitude practice.

Now how do we practice?

 

I’m not a big fan of daily journaling

It seems to just add to my to do list. So I tend to just recite 5 things I’m grateful for daily. Usually when I’m in the shower.

 

Our brain tends to go to the negative and focus on the bad in order to troubleshoot and survive. But during a time when we are no longer cave people, this survival mechanism actually harms us. Makes us unhappy and pessimistic.

 

By focusing on what is going right, we can redirect the brain to the positive. We can put rose colored glasses on. No I just want to clarify that I am no proponent of toxic positivity; but I also don’t support being an Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh. There is definitely a balance. In a world where there are a lot of terrible things happening right now it is helpful to focus on what is going right.

 

There is so much that goes right. Often we forget we have a roof over our heads or running water. Or the kids who make a big mess, there was a time we wanted them so badly. Our brain is an expert at taking things for granted. Because it’s built to protect us. I challenge you to see your life with a grateful lens everyday.

 

It will change how you see things.

 

The length of time the shift will take really depends on how deeply ingrained pessimism is within us. But I promise you’ll see a change.

 

I’ll add in a tip for feeling good immediately.

Try acknowledging something you wanted for so long and didn’t have.

Here’s one of my examples:

I was at H and M in the kids’ clothing and I was looking at the girls stuff. It was so cute! I was so happy and grateful to be in that section.

I remembered 3 year prior while being in Bloomingdales shopping in the kids section and there being very little stuff for boys

Meanwhile, there were a ton of adorable girls clothing and I had a boy.  I couldn’t buy girl clothes for my daughter bc I didn’t have one

And for as long as I can remember I wanted a girl.  Three years later, here I am with a daughter.  Something I wanted and now I have.

Also, the career of medicine isn’t what I thought it would be, but there was a time when I desperately wanted to get into medical school. It’s a real privilege to be a physician and deal with people’s health.

Can you take a second to think of something you always wanted and now have?

And how do you feel when you think about that?

Kind of warm and fuzzy inside right?

It’s so easy for us to want something and then when we have it we take it for granted or forget about how badly we once wanted instead of just being grateful.

A huge happiness hack and factor lies in the feeling elicited by gratitude.

By shifting our brains into gratitude, we put on rose colored glasses for our lives and boom-we become happier.

So

When you’re feeling like crap

Or

Having a bad day

Or

In a rough spot?

You can shift yourself to a place of gratitude in an instant.

You can name 5 things you’re grateful for to yourself and get a quick boost.

Let me give you some information about the benefits of gratitude before we delve into how:

Gratitude

  • Your hypothalamus activated

  • Floods brain w dopamine

  • Natural high

  • More inclined to give thanks and do good

  • More gratitude healthier and happier

  • It is free! Free

  • Physical health better

  • Sleep better

  • Resilience increase

  • More likely to take care of health

  • Mental health is better

Dr. Robert Emmons, a leading gratitude researcher, has found that gratitude increases happiness and reduces depression.

Gratitude makes us more resilient to trauma and stressful events.

Now how can we get ourselves to a more optimistic place in the long run?

Get ourselves into the habit of gratitude practice

How do we cultivate this habit?

-saying it to yourself daily, pair it with brushing teeth or showering

(I like to list 5 things every day that I’m grateful for and why)

-write it down daily put a notebook on your nightstand to do before bed or first thing in the morning

-create a gratitude jar at the end of each week you could put something that went well or what you’re grateful for and read it at the end of each year (Jay Shetty mentioned that in his IG)

-practice gratitude with the family/kids at dinner table or bed time

We make it a family affair at bedtime.

Try any of these tips for a month and see how you shift.

I used to consider myself a pessimist and realist and I am far from that today.

These happiness hacks can help you. Even if you’re in a dysfunctional relationship or dissatisfying career. They will get you in a better direction to a happier.

Prianca Naik