Gratitude

Learning to find time to be mindful (as much as we tend to despise the word I’ve learnt its importance) of the situation I am dealing with has really taught me a lot. I mean often we spiral into negativity and complain about things that aren’t actually so bad. We’re then told it’s okay and to be more positive. But as you spiral you feel as though nothing can fix your feelings.

I recently got sent this gratitude journal from @fitrahdesigns which I did not think would be something that useful at first. I was pleasantly surprised.

We often forget the importance of gratitude. I mean sure we are taught to say please and thank you to others. But genuine gratitude is so important. Realising how blessed we are to just be who we are, talking, typing, breathing, eating and just living a healthy life. Don’t get me wrong everyone has their own hardship and suffering but ultimately we should all be happy with what we have. We need to learn to count our blessings as opposed to our problems. Believe me, the rest follows naturally. Try spending this week with the idea of gratitude in your mind. Every time you go into complain/negativity mode spend some time just thinking of all the things you are happy to have, your blessings, the people in your life, maybe even your life. I mean it shouldn’t take something extreme to happen for us to appreciate what we had. We can re-programme ourselves. Outweigh the bad with the good because I am sure that we all have so much good in our lives we just are blinded by our own negative cycles.

Break the cycle. Appreciate the little things. I mean you are reading this right now. That alone is something to be grateful for. You have a beautiful functioning mind!! Love yourself and the blessings surrounding you. All the things you want to complain about or them negative thoughts poking away at your sanity, are they really worth your energy? Does it really matter that you are going to be late or that you’re cold? I mean there’s some good in everything, I mean it is cold but you have a warm home and clothing, there are people that do not yet here we are in a constant complaining cycle! The world is beautiful and what would life be without changes. There is good right in front of you, you are just blinded by your bad vibes. Learning to overcome them is such a blessing and you can. Just spend a few minutes throughout your day counting your blessings.

Gratitude is defined as

‘the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.’

I absolutely love The Gratitude Journal from @fitrahdesigns it is actually really useful. Shout-out to @mrmews for making such a helpful book. The journal is pocket-sized which means you can keep it in your bag or nearby for when you need it most. The book is full of motivational positive quotes which are really up lifting. More than anything it works you through the process of expressing how you’re feeling in that moment and then focusing on what you are grateful for in that moment. It sounds odd I know BUT having tried it and being someone who isn’t the best at expressing emotions, I’ve really found this process both useful and super helpful in my day-to-day life. Would definitely recommend the Journal, it is super adorable and worth every penny (it’s only £4.99!!!), it also acts as a cute gift (I’ve been getting them for everyone). You can get one online or in Waterstones.

What are you grateful for? Ask yourself how often do you actually spend the time to just count your blessings?