Practising gratitude

[uka888]

Do any of you do this regularly? How do you do it? Have you found it’s given you a more positive outlook generally?

I think this is a big thing with law of attraction to be thankful for what is in your life. Even been thankful for small things can be a positive thing mentally. Of course everyone has days where they are fed up especially at the moment or they are facing big battles. I would say it is worth doing, even just feeling thankful for a coffee, hot shower, nice things can make a difference and make you feel more positive.

It's definitely a good attitude to cultivate. It redirects your attention to what you have instead of what you want. Read Pollyanna!

There's a gratitudes thread in the philosophy and religion section, I think.

I've been doing it for a couple of months, I just have a list on my phone notes app that I add to each evening with something from that day that was nice. Yesterday it was that I ran into an old colleague in the staff car park and had a nice catch up chat for 10 minutes. I've not researched how to do it or the benefits, but it definitely has improved my naturally very pessimistic outlook on life.

One of my colleagues sort of does it with her young kids; she asks them what's their favourite thing that's happened to them today while they're having dinner, which is quite sweet.

I also do it on the Notes on my phone. I call it Reasons To Be Cheerful and I add to it as and when.... Always grateful for big things- family, warm home etc but also put little things- like s'th funny someone said or hearing from a friend or having s'th nice to eat, or clean bed sheets ( all laundered by myself of course...)

Well. My parents hardwired me to feel nothing but gratitude. And if I wasn't feeling grateful enough, I used to feel ashamed. So actually, although I am genuinely grateful for what I do have (so much so that it stopped me taking the leap/risk to apply for or ask for more) I have gone back to the drawing board a little, and worked on a bit of shame resilience. I have listened to Brene Brown's I thought it was just me but it's not and Gabrielle Bernstein's Judgement detox a few times. Because, as my psychotherapist said to me ''gratitude is a narrow emotional range''.

I don't mean to 'dis' gratitude. I do think it's important not to be dissatisfied all the time, but I think you can only generate a truly grateful energy when you're not feeling shame or resentment. So, for me, I needed to go back to the scaffolding beneath the gratitude that I felt obliged to feel.

I think it can actually have physical affects...something to do with firing up the positive neural pathways (I may be wrong!). We have so much to be grateful for in this country, even things like running clean water, a bed to sleep in. I try to do it regularly as I am naturally inclined to feel hard done by . It does help.
Today I am grateful for the ingredients to cook a nice curry for tonight, the hot chocolate I had at a nice cafe earlier and the fact I have been able to start my Christmas shopping already and have stashed a few bits away already.

I build it in to my morning meditation time . I also try and spot things to be grateful for during the day, even with things that seem very small. It really helps with a positive out look but it really Really helps if you put it together with a wider spiritual practice.

I think another way of putting your question is whether you can train yourself to be a "glass is half full" person by making a conscious effort to focus on the positives. I was brought up in a generally positive, optimistic environment where we focussed on the good things (my parents had their worries but largely shielded is from this as kids) and I'm lucky to have this attitude.

DH, by contrast tends to be glass half empty, but is trying to get better as he can see his attitude rubbing off on our oldest DS, who is 7, and DH knows it's not nearly as happy a way to live.

I’ve decided to download an app and see if I can get into the routine of practicing gratitude everyday to see if it will help me become naturally more positive!

It's hard work at first- you have to acknowledge that some things are not as they should be, but find a positive in them- a bit of a silver lining. It soon becomes a habit, IMO.

Good luck! And never feel you have to be relentlessly positive- it's ok to be thoroughly pissed off and angry! Just try and find something good that can come out of it even if it's only 'well now I know to never do that again!'.

That’s great advice, thank you Pickle.

It really works! I have "the 5 minute journal". It's hard to get used to doing it, and it might seem silly, but I wrote every single small thing such as "I had an amazing coffee with my friend today", or "snuggled for 30 mins with DH on the sofa", or "I got home just before the storm started". It's not always huge things

Law of Attraction is bollocks spouted by MLM coaches to get you to part with your money.

However, on the days when I wake up in a terrible mood, I mentally list what I'm grateful for in the shower eg.

I have a job I like
My family are well and happy
I have enough food and a roof over my head
I live in a peaceful place
I have running water

Etc. It does make me feel more positive.

Yes, it is a very good thing to do. Our brains are wired to notice the negative more - the negativity bias - this is what would keep us safe(ish) back in the days when being eaten by a lion was a genuine day to day threat. You remember and note the things that make you feel unsafe or unhappy in order to use this knowledge at a later date to save yourself.

But our brains are also really adaptable - neural plasticity - so we can train ourselves to be more positive. Gratitude practices are a really good way to do this, as is mindfulness.

Which app are you going to download op?

I think it’s just called Gratitude and it has a red/orange background with a flower on it. Happy to hear if anyone else has found any other good apps :-)