Thanksgiving is just around the corner, making November the perfect time to celebrate National Gratitude Month. While holidays can be difficult for people who are struggling with mental health or substance use disorders, focusing on gratitude can often be quite beneficial for recovery. At Palms Behavioral Health in Harlingen, Texas, we offer inpatient and outpatient care for adolescents, adults, and seniors who are fighting mental illness and addiction.
What is Gratitude?
Gratitude means you are thankful for the good things in your life. It does not mean ignoring the struggles and pain you have experienced but choosing to focus on the joys as well. This might look like:
- Putting effort into relationships with people who support you and your recovery. Sharing with these people how much you value their involvement in your life. You can tell them what they mean to you or write it down in a letter or card. Researchers at Harvard recommend trying to send at least one thank-you letter per month.
- Saying thanks by allowing yourself to feel wonder and appreciation every day for even the little things that make your life better, whether that is a cup of coffee, your favorite blanket, or a beautiful sunset. Keeping a journal may help you to reflect more deeply on the things you are grateful for in your life, and you can review it on hard days when it might feel like you have nothing to be thankful for.
- Finding a sense of purpose by asking yourself what excites you, what makes you proud, and what you want others to remember about you. Once you have some idea of what brings you happiness and fulfillment, you can find ways to increase how much time and energy you are devoting to that thing.
- Building on your achievements to increase how happy you are with your life. You can record your accomplishments each day in a journal if you choose to keep one. Accomplishments don’t have to be huge. Some days, showering or preparing food for yourself might be an accomplishment.
- Focusing on today rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about the future.
- Mindfulness exercises like meditation and yoga to help you stay focused on the present.
- Spending time outdoors to remind yourself of the natural beauty that surrounds us all and inspire you to give thanks for things outside your own control.
- Prayer can also be a way to express gratitude if you are someone whose faith is an important part of who you are.
What Research Tells Us About Gratitude
Researchers have studied gratitude and discovered that it:
- Helps our brains move away from negative thinking patterns that are connected to anxiety and depression symptoms
- Improves progress toward goals
- Increases enthusiasm, determination, focus, and energy
- Causes people to be more helpful to those around them
- Allows people to feel more connected
- Is connected to better sleep duration and quality
All of these outcomes are linked to better results in recovery from mental illness and addiction.
Misapplying Gratitude
As stated above, gratitude does not mean that people aren’t allowed to be sad or angry about difficult things that have happened to them. Trying to suppress difficult emotions can lead to feelings of guilt when sadness and anger are equated to being ungrateful. A person can simultaneously feel gratitude for their blessings, while also feeling pain about things that have not gone their way. In dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), practitioners often discuss the fact that two things can be true at the same time, even if they might seem to be in conflict. For example, a person can be grateful for supportive friends and family, while also being upset by the behavior of someone they love.
At Palms Behavioral Health, we treat the whole person because we understand that the mind, body, and spirit must all be healthy for a person to thrive. Our programs are trauma-informed, evidence-based, and customized to meet the unique needs of each patient.
