Gratitude Meditation
Photography: Jillian Clark
Location: THE STORE
Words by:
Charman Driver
Cultivating deep gratitude is a practice and ought to be done daily. You’ve heard the old adage, “count your blessings”. Turns out, there’s real science behind it. Psychology Today reports in a 2015 article that Robert Emmons, a leading gratitude researcher at the Greater Good Science Center.
At UC, Berkley has conducted multiple studies on the link between gratitude and well-being. His research confirms that gratitude effectively increases happiness and reduces depression.
Being appreciative and thankful has many health-giving and healing benefits. Psychology Today defines gratitude as “an emotion expressing appreciation for what one has, as opposed to a consumer driven emphasis on what one wants or thinks they need.”
There are numerous ways to develop and grow your gratitude on a daily basis. Personally, practicing gratitude helps me focus on what I have instead of what I lack. I wake up every day feeling grateful for my health and I say it to myself out loud. It’s very motivating for me.
Here are a few other ideas that work for me and may work for you too:
1. Keep a gratitude journal. Simply write down what you’re grateful for every day.
2. Count your blessings. Pick a number and write down what made you grateful and how and why it did.
3. Write a letter to someone (or to yourself) expressing appreciation.
4. Meditate on what you’re grateful for.
Gratitude Meditation:
1. Find a quiet place to sit or wall.
2. Take deep breaths in your nose and let them out through your nose.
3. Now practice a Gratitude Mantra: I am grateful for (fill in the blank). (For example, my health, my family, the sunshine on my face, etc.)
4. Try to use something different each time you say it. If you get stuck, focus on the environment around you.
5. Repeat the mantra 10 times and feel your gratefulness grow.