Caring for The Heart:
The holidays. A time of joy and celebration. The season of comfort and joy. But it can also be a time of stress and anxiety. It can be a season of fatigue and overwhelm. While I’m not here to tell you to slow down and be present in all the moments, let’s be real, there are a lot of moments, I do want to encourage you to navigate the holidays with a grateful heart. Here’s how…
Practice gratitude daily
Last year, I created a free printable download – a simple gratitude journal, if you will. It’s still available when you join our mailing list. I’ll link it somewhere here for you.
The act of practicing gratitude sets your heart on the right path for the day, or the day ahead. And it doesn’t need be challenging or another task on your to do list. If you are one who enjoys journaling, then please feel free to download the gratitude journal and start focusing your heart in that way.
Finding one good thing
One way I have recently started practicing a grateful heart is simply to use the monthly calendar in my planner. I found myself jotting in dates and reminders at the beginning of each month, never to review the monthly calendar again. All of those dates and reminders go on the weekly or daily calendar anyway.
So now, each day, I turn to that blank monthly calendar and jot down one thing I was thankful for that day. Yes, I do this at the end of the evening, or even the beginning of the next day. The point is, there is always something wonderful to be thankful for, and having a designated space in my planner is an amazing way I keep track without forgetting. You can read more about this approach below.
Suggestions to help you on your way
Finally, here are a few suggestions to help you along the gratitude journey.
- What made you smile today?
- List three people in your life you are grateful for today and why.
- Who made a positive impact on your day?
- What moment from today would you want to relive?
- What’s one aspect of your health you’re grateful for?
- What challenge are you grateful for because it made you stronger?
- What made you smile today?
- Has anyone gone out of their way recently to make your life easier or better?
- What’s something you’re looking forward to?
- What are you proud of yourself for?
- What’s something you see everyday that you take for granted?
- What’s one thing that made you smile recently?
- What’s the best advice you’ve received recently?
- What is one small victory you had today?
- What do you love about the community you live in?
- What did you learn today?
- What’s one thing you do really well?
- What’s a memory you are grateful for?
- What has brought you comfort recently?
Navigate the holidays with a grateful heart
I’m not saying this is a magic cure or a quick fix to the stressors and anxiety some feel throughout the holidays. However, practicing gratitude does have scientific research that suggests gratitude can alleviate these feelings.
Give it a try today, and I encourage you to continue every day throughout the holidays – and every day!
