There Is A Lot To Be Thankful For

By ALICE O’BRIEN Alice O’Brien Counselling, Newmarket

Sometimes our days are just full. Full of tasks to keep the show on the road; ferrying children to matches, going to work, calling to elderly relatives and that’s all before you hoover the sitting room or clean the bathroom or decide what to cook for dinner for the fifth time this week. So, adding another daily practice might be the straw to break the proverbial camel’s back. Daily practices like meditation or journaling take time, time we often don’t have, so we try to do these things but end up squeezing them in and adding more stress to our packed day. But, one practice that doesn’t take a lot of time and is not overly Zen is the practice of gratitude. Practicing daily gratitude can help us to see that what we have is enough, therefore slowing the speed at which we peruse the next big thing.

There are so many benefits to taking a few minutes every day to notice what is good in your life:

- Practicing gratitude helps us to recognise our emotions and to notice our positive emotions, like joy, happiness and contentment.

- Slowing down to notice the good things can help us to really enjoy the positive experiences, instead of just passing them by on the way to the next thing.

- Gratitude practice can help us to manage stressful times easier. Stress occurs when we believe that the load exceeds what we are capable of carrying- gratitude can show us that we are more than capable.

- We can see our health and our bodies more clearly when we focus on what we are thankful for.

- Thankful for being free of illness or of getting through an illness, thankful for all the things our health allows us to experience.

- If we are lucky enough to be abundant, if we have a roof over our head, a car to drive around in, clothes on our back or shoes on our feet, then we are very fortunate, and gratitude practice can remind us of that.

So, take a few minutes during the busy times, take a deep breath and list the three things you are most grateful for in that momentthere is always something.