The power of gratitude

 Enough good things cannot be said about practicing gratitude.

I put gratitude in the same bucket as sleep, water and exercise; we all know that it’s good for us but yet it is so easy to not prioritize.

What I like to emphasize about gratitude is that you do not need to be particularly creative in your acknowledgements. Start with the basics, sight, the ability to walk, bills being paid etc.

Ultimately the goal here is to look at  life through a more positive lens and there are few more powerful ways to do that than to be intentional about all of the good that you have going on in your life.

There is no particular way to do this and certainly do not overthink it. Some people like to start off their day with writing down a few things they are grateful for while others like to wind down their day doing so. What is most important is doing so consistently and with intention.

Just be wary of “toxic gratitude” - the idea that because you have what to be grateful for, you do not have the right to experience your frustrations and sad feelings. Find the balance! You can both experience distressing thoughts and be grateful at the same time.

If practicing gratitude is something that you struggle with, seeing a therapist can help as a trained professional can help walk you through practical ways to be more intentional about this practice.

Philadelphia therapist Noam Dinovitz can be reached at 484 424 7722 or Noam@Dinovitzcounseling.com