Not a good way to start a post on gratitude, huh? Hate may be too strong of a word, but I certainly don’t want to be grateful most of the time. I get so wrapped up in all my shortcomings, all the things advertisers tell me I “need” to live my perfect life, all the stuff I tell myself I “have” to do, and there is no time for gratitude. I’m too busy feeling less-than, crappy, ugly, lazy, and a lot of other negative feelings. The struggle is real.
Taking the time to think about the good things in my life doesn’t seem like it would be helpful. Why should I waste valuable time thinking about what’s going right when there are so many things I should be working on, need to buy, and am striving for? I simply don’t have time to be grateful because I’m too busy do-ing.
Gratitude Stops Negative Thoughts
When I do stop and think about all I’ve got and all I’ve had the opportunity to do, it doesn’t take long to realize that I’m spending most of my time looking at the wrong end of a half-full glass. Then, my heart rate slows, I’m in the present moment, and all the things that were really important a moment ago are gone. I know they’ll be back, but maybe I can take a different perspective the next time they overwhelm me.
If you have ever suffered from depression, you know the fight that you wage every day just to get out of bed and get dressed. Your thoughts are your worst enemy and they seem to be coming from somewhere or someone else. Controlling them seems impossible. I know I had such negativity in my head that I didn’t want to be there anymore. But we can’t escape our thoughts. Or can we?
I found that while I couldn’t guide my depressed thoughts to think anything positive about myself or anyone else, I could focus on things outside of myself. I could distract myself from negativity by thinking about what I had that was good. I always start with my cats. They bring me nothing but joy. They are almost always happy to see me and love to snuggle with me and get pets. Many days they are my only reason for getting up and going to work – I have to feed the cats. I call them my angels, and they are.
Gratitude Brings Light to the Darkness
Gratitude moves our thoughts from the things we lack to the things we have. We can see how fortunate we are when we compare ourselves to those who have no home, no food, no warm clothes, no family, no friends, no job, etc. We see that what we have doesn’t matter as much as who we are and what we give to others. It’s like one of those visual illusions where you see a face in black, then once you see the other face in white you can’t not see it. Gratitude shows us the white in our life. It roots out the dark in our hearts and our minds, and shines the light of acceptance.
It isn’t a one time deal, you have to practice gratitude all the time, every day if possible. It’s the only way to keep the muscle strong and keep your view focused on the positive. If you find that you are slipping, take a deep breath and think of one thing you are grateful for, then move on.
Taking Action
Start a gratitude journal. It doesn’t have to be anything special. You can write in it every night or just as you need to. List 5 things every day that you are grateful for. If you really want to test yourself, don’t repeat the items from day to day.
Start right now. Write one thing you are grateful for in the comments below, and watch your attitude change!