How does gratitude impact our wellness?

November is National Gratitude Month, which encourages us to embrace the power of gratitude. It might not come as a surprise that National Gratitude Month is in November because people many are celebrating Thanksgiving. I love the idea of a month dedicated to embracing gratitude, however, I believe gratitude should be a regular practice in our daily lives. This not only because of the powerful benefits of gratitude on our wellness, but also because of gratitude allows us to focus on what we have instead of what we don’t have (which I believe is an ingredient for attracting more).

So often, it’s easy to focus at what we don’t have or all the things that are going wrong. Yes, I believe that we should feel and acknowledge our feelings about the challenges we face, but also taking a moment to step back and acknowledge how the challenges may be teaching us something, helping us grow, etc,

So what exactly are the benefits of gratitude?

• Boosts the immune system

• Improves Mental Health

• Improved Relationships

• Increased Optimism

Gratitude and Wellness

As mentioned above, gratitude has many benefits and each of those benefits relates to our wellness. Before, I go on think about how each of those benefits make you feel.

Let’s take it even further, I like to look at this through the lens of the 8 Dimensions of Wellness Framework. The above mentioned benefits relate to 3 of the Dimensions: Physical, Emotional, and Social. And since each of these dimensions are interconnected, that ultimately means that the positive benefits listed above also impact our other dimensions. For example, Improved Mental Health (Emotional), might lead to you being more focused and involved at work (Occupational).

Here are some ways that you can practice gratitude:

• Gratitude Journaling

• Gratitude Jars

• Gratitude Affirmations

• Paying attention to the little things in life

• Telling someone you’re grateful for them

• Doing something kind for someone in your life

• Meditating on the positive aspects of your life

• Giving thanks through prayer

Gratitude and Me

Personally, I practice gratitude in some of the ways listed above, including, gratitude journaling (with my Wellness Starts With You Journal), telling others that I’m grateful for them, and expressing gratitude through prayer. At the start of the day, I wake up and thank my Higher Power for life and throughout my day, I randomly express gratitude for things that happen throughout my day. For example, when at the gas station, I express gratitude for having a car and having enough money to be able to fill up my tank.

With that said, I want to encourage you to look a little deeper and starting at this very moment express gratitude for someone, something, a challenge, your life, etc.