How to Practice Gratitude

How do you practice gratitude? Hi, my name is Rachel Havocost. I'm a writer and mental health advocate. And gratitude has been a huge part of my therapeutic journey. And so I wanted to share with you, if you're just starting out, how to practice gratitude. Gratitude is a really lovely way for us to reflect on all the things that are going well in our lives. So oftentimes when we're experiencing depression or anxiety, our brains are hyperfocused on the things that are not going well. And so gratitude is a really lovely way for us to turn towards things that are going well, even if they're really, really small.

And the best way to practice gratitude is to do just that, to start small. Oftentimes when we are having a hard time seeing things that are good in our life, it's very difficult to think of these wonderful, beautiful things that are happening. And so instead, when we start practicing gratitude, it's really good to start focusing on really small things. So the way that I practice gratitude, especially when I'm starting out, is first thing in the morning, I sit down and I have my cup of coffee or tea or whatever it might be.

I play some gentle music, maybe light a candle and create a safe and loving space for myself. And I take out a pen and paper or a journal and, and I write down five things I'm grateful for. And these can be things I'm grateful for in my day to day life. It can be things I'm grateful for in the moment, it can be people, it can be experiences. And I just write down five things. And again, they can be small. So it could be, I'm grateful that I have a hot cup of coffee that I like to drink in front of me.

I'm grateful that I'm able to even sit down and write out something that I feel grateful for. I'm grateful that I can see outside of my window and that it's a clear day. And they can be really small things that even if they don't feel like, well, that won't make my life better. The idea is that we're starting to turn our minds towards things that are going well. And the more frequently we turn our mind towards those things, the more our mind actually starts to see those things and look for them.

The second thing I like to do is do gratitude in the evening. And in the evening when I practice gratitude, I like to think about what has transpired throughout my day that I'm grateful for. So right before I go to bed again, maybe I take out a notepad or it could be on my notes app, on my phone, and I simply write down my five things that I'm grateful for from the day. So it could be an interaction I had, it could be something that went well at work, it could be that I got out of bed that day. Anything that you can experience some small amount of gratitude for at the end of the day, from the day that has passed.

And you'll find that the more that you do this, the easier it is to find those moments of gratitude. Not just when you're making your lists, but throughout the day. I hope you found this helpful, and I'd love to know what you're grateful for in the comments.