The Benefits Of Practicing Daily Gratitude

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I mean, what's not to like? First of all, it happens on a Thursday which is awesome. Thursdays don't get enough love. On top of that, it's a holiday solely devoted to eating and being thankful for being #blessed. Finally, you get to take awesome naps (aka food coma) and watch T.V. with your family. Overall, it's a feel good happy full yummy comfy smiley cozy holiday, (as long as we disregard the holiday's origins. We should be ashamed.)

BUT anyways...

The only problem I have with Thanksgiving is that it is immediately followed with a day that is devoted to mass consumerism, Black Friday. Which is the opposite of Thanksgiving.

Even though Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, I don't think we should reserve one day out of the year for being thankful. We need to be thankful everyday, not just for the benefit of those around us, but also for our own personal benefit.

There are scientifically proven benefits to practicing daily gratitude, both physical and mental. 

According to Forbes.com, grateful people experience fewer aches and pains and report better overall health. The theory behind this is that people who are thankful for their health are going to take better care of themselves. It makes sense if you think about it. If you are constantly in the mindset that your body and your health are crap, you're gonna treat yourself like crap. So don't do that. Be thankful for your health. Even if your health isn't 100% there's always something to be thankful for.

Gratitude can improve your mental health, too. Grateful people report better overall satisfaction with their lives. Again, this makes complete sense. If you're constantly complaining about how you hate your job and your apartment is junk, you're not going to say you're very happy with your life. Conversely, if you keep the mindset that you are thankful for having a job and thankful for having a roof over your head, your outlook is going to be a lot more positive and you're probably going to be an overall more happy person.

Getting out of the "stinkin thinkin" mindset is easier said than done, though. Thankfully, you can start small. 

There's a wonderful app I used called Five Minute Journal. I have it set up to send me an alert each morning and each evening. The morning alert says "Are you ready to start your day with gratitude?" When I click it, it takes me into the app and asks me to write down 3 things I am grateful for, 3 things I'll do to make today great, and a daily affirmation. In the evening, it asks me to write down 3 amazing things that happened today and one thing I could have done to make today better.

Honestly, it takes less than 5 minutes a day. I do it when I'm waiting for my coffee to brew in the morning. I highly suggest you give it a try, it's an easy way to get started living more positively.