Gratitude Practices to Change Your Mind: Discover 5 powerful gratitude practices—from journaling to mindful walks—that can rewire your brain, boost happiness, and support lasting mindset shifts with insights from a certified hypnotherapist.

 

 

 

It is always a great time of year to re-kindle or start a gratitude practice, but for me, Thanksgiving is a joyful reminder to get back into a daily gratitude practice. If you haven’t developed a consistent gratitude practice yet, or you need to get back into the habit, I suggest you start with one of these five methods.

 

Research shows that gratitude improves our mental health and can change our brains.

 

Starting a gratitude practice is something that comes up a lot in my hypnotherapy sessions because self-compassion is something a lot of people have a hard time doing – even when they know the benefits. I often suggest to my clients that starting with gratitude for others and the beautiful things in our lives can help us transform our pessimistic views into more optimistic ones.

 

There are a few different practices that have helped me over the years that I want to share with you.

  1. Daily Gratitude Journal
  2. Gratitude Jar
  3. Mindful Expressions of Gratitude
  4. Gratitude Walks
  5. Gratitude Meditation

 

You certainly don’t have to do all of these at the same time, but I suggest starting with either a gratitude journal or jar and then gradually adding other methods.

 

“I promise myself that I will enjoy every minute of the day that is given me to live.”

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

 

A daily gratitude journal is an easy habit to start.

Find a journal to write in – anything from a plain notebook to a beautiful inspiring journal. Keep it simple and easy. I suggest starting with 3 – 5 things a day that spark gratitude for you. I find that writing at the end of the day helps clear my mind of my to-do list and fill it with happy memories from the day. Once you are easily coming up with 5 new things each day, challenge yourself to come up with 10 each day. Here are a few prompt suggestions to get you started:

  • Is there something I learned today that I am grateful for?
  • What do I love about my home?
  • Is there something I love about my hometown?
  • What am I grateful for in my family members?
  • What am I grateful for in nature?
  • Did something or someone make me smile today?
  • Special Challenge: Write down 5 good things about yourself (new things every day!)

 

A gratitude jar is a fun way to see gratitude growing in your life.

No need to buy a new jar, just upcycle one. Find a larger empty jar like a pickle jar (just make sure it is clean and dry! 😉), and if you are creative, maybe you want to cover it in artwork or colorful paper. Every time you notice positive moments, something good happens, small accomplishments, write it down on a piece of paper and put it in the jar to revisit later. At the end of the week or month, take a few minutes to re-read all of your notes. Allowing yourself to smile while you do.

 

Mindful expressions of gratitude can be challenging for a lot of people. We don’t always say a meaningful thank you to our friends and family. Verbally expressing appreciation of others in person, on the phone, text or my favorite option sending physical thank you notes is a great way to bring gratitude into your life and those around you. Even a heartfelt thank you to your barista can change someone’s day for the better.

 

If you enjoy walking or want to develop a regular walking practice, a gratitude walk can be a great way to inspire more gratitude.

You don’t have to walk in nature, even a city walk can give you plenty of things to be grateful for. This one is about being mindful and attentive of your surroundings. What do you see, hear, smell, or touch?

 

Gratitude meditation is when you focus on feelings of gratitude during a quiet meditation.

This is like the gratitude walk, which is essentially a walking meditation, only seated with your eyes closed or cast down softly focused. Spending time focused on what you are grateful for, even just 5 minutes a day, can help build more optimistic feelings. Focus on all the events and people that made you feel grateful today. Visualize them in your mind’s eye and send all the people some gratitude.

 

Scientifically, the mind is rewiring while in meditation similarly to hypnosis. The difference is hypnotherapy helps transform your mind faster by incorporating creative visualizations, positive affirmations and other creative techniques designed to replace outdated thoughts and emotions that are no longer serving you with positive ones, such as gratitude, happiness and joy.

 

This is just a brief list of suggestions for cultivating a grateful life. I invite you to come up with your own practice - do your own research and find the habits that work for you.

 

If you need any help creating a consistent practice that helps you feel grateful, happy and joyful, hypnotherapy may be able to help you. Developing new healthy habits is just as important as stopping unwanted ones.


"… it is not happiness that makes us grateful. It’s gratefulness that makes us happy."

~ Brother David Steindl-Rast (said in a TEDx talk)

 

Mel Sharpe

Hypnotherapist & Coach

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