Give + Be Grateful

Move your body. Quiet your mind. Take a deep breath.
Reconnect with your authentic self and find your true purpose.
Someone once said to me, “Life is short, but it is also long.”
You have time to come back to you, and that time is now.
It’s time to give and be grateful.
It’s time to reflect on what you have gratitude for.
It’s time to increase your feelings of self-love, mindfulness and become even more aware of you and all that you have to give and be grateful for.

Why Give and be Grateful?

• Gratitude motivates contentment. It also improves mood by enhancing feelings of optimism, joy, pleasure, enthusiasm, and other positive emotions. Conversely, gratitude also reduces anxiety and depression. 

• Gratitude promotes physical health. Did you know that there are studies that suggest gratitude helps to lower blood pressure, strengthen the immune system, reduce symptoms of illness, and make us less bothered by aches and pains? 

• Gratitude enhances sleep. Grateful people tend to get more sleep each night, spend less time awake before falling asleep, and feel more rested upon awakening. If you want to sleep more soundly, instead of counting sheep count your blessings. 

• Gratitude strengthens relationships. It makes us feel closer and more connected to others. When we feel and express gratitude for one another we become more satisfied with our relationships. 

• Gratitude encourages “paying it forward.” Grateful people are generally more helpful, generous of spirit, and compassionate. 

Two specific ways you can practice the skill of being grateful are by writing gratitude letters and making gratitude lists.

A gratitude letter is one you write to someone in your life to express appreciation for ways they have helped you and/or been there for you. Gratitude letters can be about events that have happened in the past or are happening in the present, and often help to strengthen or repair relationships.

A gratitude list consists of writing down 3 – 5 things for which you’re grateful every day, each week, at other intervals, or under situation-specific circumstances.

Try one of these methods and then take notice of how you feel and if your mood has shifted.

Let me know what you experience!