How to cultivate gratitude beyond the Thanksgiving Holiday
Photo by Pro Church Media on Unsplash
We've all heard, read and been told that practicing gratitude should be an everyday thing—just like practicing the gift of giving beyond Christmas Day or practicing love beyond Valentine's Day.
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If the daily grind of life is clouding your ability to regularly practice gratitude, this method may help:
Bring your awareness and your body into the literal present moment.
If you are constantly:
• Ruminating and getting consumed with things that happened yesterday, last week or months ago
• Subconsciously generating emotions of anxiety because of what "could" happen tomorrow or next week
• Stubbing your toe or getting upset as you speed through your long ass daily to-do list
STOP what you're doing, take two minutes and direct your focus to one of the following:
➤ Concentrate on the details of a thing in front of you (i.e. the leaf veins in a plant, the intricate skin patterns on your hand, drapery or blinds on a window, etc.)
➤ Listen to a sound happening around you (i.e. chirping birds, cars passing, music playing, etc.)
➤ Feel the lines on your fingertips, the texture of your jeans, the dryness of your elbows, etc.
➤ Close your eyes and take several deep, slow and deliberate breaths
After two minutes, pick one thing you're grateful for and see how you feel.
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If you think about it, the present moment is really the only thing that matters and what really ever mattered. What you think and do in the present moment are what determine the future.
When you practice being present with gratitude, you:
➤ Activate your vagus nerve (the axis connecting your head brain with your gut brain) and switch your parasympathetic nervous system ON (rest-and-digest and calm mode)
➤ Disrupt your subconscious programming so that you can make different choices
➤ Create neural pathways that serve rather than limit you
➤ Show yourself that YOU are the boss, NOT your thoughts
➤ Feel fucking good
Lastly, in order for this method to work, you have to first decide ahead of time that you will practice it, then commit and put in place. Every. Day.
Wishing you and your loved ones (in the US) a happy and peaceful Thanksgiving!
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