How To Practice Gratitude & The Amazing Benefits

Gratitude is such a beautiful practice to learn about. It comes with many amazing benefits and honestly just makes life so much more enjoyable. Learning how to practice gratitude is actually quite simple, but the actions and commitment taken into the practice is what will really make all the difference.

Living your life with gratitude helps you acknowledge and celebrate the simpler things like that hot cup of coffee in the morning, the sun shining through your window, a warm relaxing bath and spending time with your favourite people. When we take the time to acknowledge and appreciate these simpler things more, it can truly amplify our sense of gratitude and contentment of life.

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What Is Gratitude?

Gratitude is acknowledging and appreciating the good in our lives and all that we have. It’s taking the time for those simpler things and really enjoying those moments doing them as well as spent with the one’s we love.

Robert Emmons is a scientific expert on gratitude and he breaks gratitude down into two components:

1. We affirm the good things we’ve received
2. We acknowledge the role other people play in providing our lives with goodness

The truth is, we can’t always choose what happens in our lives, but what we can do is choose how we respond. Learning how to workout the gratitude muscle can definitely help us respond in more positive and gratifying ways.

The Amazing Benefits

There are so many benefits to channeling our inner gratitude so it’s no surprise that so many people want to know how to practice gratitude in their own lives. Practicing gratitude can be beneficial in the following ways:

• strengthens immune system
• improves sleep quality
• helps you become more generous and helpful
• less feelings of loneliness and isolation
• increased joy and pleasure
• reduces stress levels
• improves emotional regulation
• increases optimism and positivity

Now I don’t know about you but ALL these benefits are something I’m interested in! I’ve started practicing this more in the last few months and I can for sure say that it’s definitely help me change my thought process and overall mood. I highly, highly recommend you give it a try yourself.

But wait, how do we actually practice gratitude?

The little moments in life are what create the biggest impacts. Holding the door for someone, paying for someone in the drive thru, enjoying the smell and taste of your morning cup of joe, holding hands with your partner in the car – these are the moments that are worth holding onto and embracing.

Do you ever think to yourself when you’re sick from a cold or healing from an injury how happy you would be if you were just feeling better?

It’s during times like these where we truly seem to recognize the value of being grateful, especially when we are feeling good in our health.

Here are 5 ways you can practice gratitude:

Start A Gratitude Journal

A simple way to start this process would be to journal about 3 things you’re grateful for every day. It could be that extra 5 minutes of sleep you had, the taste of your evening tea, the chat you had with your bestfriend, that you got your workout of the day done. Whatever it is, take a moment to write it down and feel the gratitude of that memory flourish.

Share Your Gratitude With Others

Expressing gratitude to others has the potential to improve your relationships. It can be as simple as your partner making your morning cup of joe and you expressing your gratitude and love for that kind action. Just as much as you like to hear you’ve improved someones day, they do too! So the next time someone does something you appreciate, go ahead and let them know.

Look for positives in the negatives

Trying to find the positives in negative situations can sometimes feel impossible. But changing the way we think, practicing radical acceptance and trying to navigate through the situation with a bit more positivity can help us get through the hard times quicker, with less stress and with a greater sense of gratitude.

Running late for work because of traffic? Take this opportunity to listen to your favourite podcast or playlist. Feeling a cold starting? Okay yes, this sucks, but it’s a great way to tune in to some well needed self-care! Plus there are many remedies and teas you can drink to help kick it to the curve (check out the benefits to epsom salt baths, here!).

There are positives to be found, you just have to look for them.

Savour the moment

I will always refer back to my morning cup of joe for this kind of example. Why? Because honestly, that time I get to sip on my morning coffee is one of the more gratifying parts of my day. It’s a time for me to be still, to take in the morning light and maybe get some reading in. It just puts me into a place of pure bliss, where I can really savor that moment. Maybe to you this looks like your yoga exercise, the time spent eating your nutritious breakfast or your morning walk. Take that moment and savor it, really tune in, and allow yourself to absorb the good feelings that come with it.

activate Gratitude Daily

I bet if you take a look around you right this second, there are plenty of things to be grateful for. For me, as I’m writing these words, I’m grateful for my dog being cuddled up right next to me, for the sun beaming through my window, for the sound of the birds playing on the tv, for my plants that liven up my room, the roof over my head and my glass of water. I could continue, but you get the point.

Practicing gratitude every day will remind you that there is so much to be grateful for in your life. You don’t need a 2 week vacation to be able to start looking for the great things in your life, they are all around you right at this moment. Activate gratitude daily and watch as your mood and your appreciation for your life increases.

There are so many beautiful things to be grateful for in this life. By practicing gratitude more, you’re choosing and allowing yourself to live a happier and healthier life. With all the benefits that come with this practice, why wouldn’t you want to start applying it to your life more? Remember to take a moment to just stop, take a look around yourself and appreciate all the beauty and greatness that exists.

THANKYOU for reading this post. I’m very grateful and appreciative to have an audience who enjoy diving in and reading my content. 😊

Tiffanie