This article is in our series about increasing happiness and life satisfaction. Many people with chronic pain can’t decrease their pain. So another way to live a more enjoyable and fulfilling life – perhaps even more important – is to increase the positive. That’s what we’ll be looking at in this series.
The first way we’ll look at to increase positive emotions is gratitude.
Gratitude is noticing what you are grateful for and saying thanks. It can be for something small:
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- a warm, rich cup of coffee
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- your friend forwarding you a funny joke
- the perfect afternoon temperature for your walk
And it can be for something big:
- your 20th wedding anniversary, married to your best friend
- your kids turning out to be wonderful people
- a 2 week vacation in Hawaii
As we said previously, our brains are wired to notice the negative, so we need to make an effort to notice good things. And I’ve found that when I make an effort to notice positive things, I find more and more things to be positive about! A good cycle! Research confirms that practicing gratitude makes you happier.
Your assignment: Notice 3 things each day that you’re grateful for.
Keep a running list all day or spend a few minutes every evening remembering 3 good things from your day.
More info about gratitude: