The Benefits of Gratitude

Thanksgiving and the upcoming holiday season can be a joyous time, filled with family gatherings, religious celebrations, & feelings of optimism as 2023 approaches.

But some of us may struggle this time of year. Overloaded schedules, unrealistic

expectations, and/or the inability to be with family and friends can leave you feeling stressed, lonely or sad.

Practicing gratitude can make a positive difference. It can help decrease depression, help you feel more optimistic, boost your immune system, lower your blood pressure, and provide numerous other health benefits.


Here are a few Gratitude exercises and activities:


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. In this way, you are focusing on all the good things that happened to you in a given set of time.

Gratitude Jar

The gratitude jar is a simple exercise that can have profound effects on your wellbeing and outlook. It only requires a few ingredients: a jar (a box can also work); paper and a pen or pencil for writing your gratitude notes; and gratitude!

Think of at least three things throughout your day that you are grateful for. It can be something as benign as a coffee at your favorite place, or as grand as the love of your significant other or dear friend. Do this every day, write down what you are grateful for on little slips of paper and fill the jar.

Over time, you will find that you have a jar full of reasons to be thankful for what you have and enjoy the life you are living. It also will cultivate a practice of expressing thanks.

If you are ever feeling especially down and need a quick pick-me-up, take a few notes out of the jar to remind yourself of who, and what, is good in your life.

Gratitude Rock

This exercise may sound a little silly. You may be thinking, “A rock? How can a rock help me practice gratitude?” The secret to this exercise is that the rock is a symbol, a physical object you can use, to remind yourself of what you have.

The instructions are simple: just find a rock! Make sure to pick one you like. If you have another small object you’d rather use instead, feel free to substitute that for the rock.

Carry this rock around in your pocket, leave it on your desk where you will see it. Whenever you see it or touch it, pause to think about at least one thing you are grateful for. Whether it’s something as small as the sun shining down on you in this moment or as large as the job that allows you to feed yourself or your family, just think of one thing that brings you joy or fulfillment.

When you take the stone out of your pocket at the end of the day, take a moment to remember the things that you were grateful for throughout the day. When you put it in your pocket again in the morning, repeat this process to remember what you were grateful for yesterday.

Not only will this help you remember the things you are grateful for, but also it can trigger a mini-mindfulness moment in your day. It will bring you out of your head and into the present moment, giving you something to focus your attention on. It can also act as a switch to more positive thinking.

Gratitude Prompts

This is also a relatively simple exercise, with only one instruction: fill in the blank!

These prompts provide several ways to begin a gratitude statement, with infinite possibilities for completion:

  • I’m grateful for three things I hear:

  • I’m grateful for three things I see:

  • I’m grateful for three things I smell:

  • I’m grateful for three things I touch/feel:

  • I’m grateful for these three things I taste:

  • I’m grateful for these three blue things:

  • I’m grateful for these three animals/birds:

  • I’m grateful for these three friends:

  • I’m grateful for these three teachers:

  • I’m grateful for these three family members:

  • I’m grateful for these three things in my home:

  • I’m grateful for these three people who hired me:

Pick one prompt for each day of the week or one per week. Post your responses on a board or your refrigerator. This will remind you of the things that you were grateful for through the week.



Blessings to you for God’s peace and joy this Holiday season!

Beth Ewing, RN, MSN, CNM, WHNP-BC; LSIM Faith Community Nurse

Beth Ewing