Just from the title, you may think to yourself “What do I have to be grateful for?” I don’t even know you or your situation but I can think of 10 things you can be grateful for right this moment and I bet you can too. Today we are going to talk about starting a gratitude journal. What is it? Why keep it? Where to get them? And how to do it?.

So what is a gratitude journal? It is exactly what it sounds like. It is a journal that you write in on a regular basis where you jot down the things you are grateful for each day. It is that simple. Keeping a gratitude journal can increase your overall feeling of happiness, reduce symptoms of depression, and increase a more euphoric overall well-being. Hey that is pretty cool for just a sentence or two a day, don’t you think?

As far as what journal to get? Well, that is not as important as doing it. There are some specific gratitude journals that give you a prompt. There are those that are just lined pages, some are dated, but overall it is more important to just start! You can go just about anywhere to get a lined journal these days, but  I’ll link some in the description if you just have no idea where to start. Some of these were ones I liked over the years! 

So this brings us to the how and the meat of this video. How, is pretty easy. Just write down something that day for which you are thankful. Oh, but I know that is easier said than done. So I have a few ideas for you to follow.

1. Don’t write the same thing every day. “I am thankful for our home”! That is a great one to write especially if you were not sure if you could pay the mortgage that month, but every day? No! Which leads me to
2. Be creative. What about the nice meal you had with your family that day. How about having a fun holiday? You could even add ticket stubs, receipts, and pics to your journal if you want. I don’t because I write in my bed before turning the lights out and I am too lazy to get the glue and tape…LOL
3. This leads us to the time of day. I have always thought bedtime was a great time because the last thing I think of before I go to bed is something positive.
4. Be clear about what you are writing. Let’s use the house example again. If I say I am happy with my house. That’s not really clear. Write down you didn’t know how you were going to pay the mortgage and all of a sudden you got a huge refund in the mail. That is truly clear!
5. However, we also want to focus on the people around us, not just the things we have in our lives. Make sure you are adding in the really nice cashier that made your day and why, your husband’s back rub he gave you unexpectedly, etc.
6. Keep all negativity out of this book. This is a gratitude journal. Not a gratitude journal, But…. Get the picture?
7. We all have terrible days when we can’t think of something fun to write. That’s ok. This is where you can be thankful for your mom, child, or spouse just because.
8. Get personal. Be grateful for the negative outcomes that never happened because you were able to escape them. An example could be “I am so grateful I was able to swerve away from the car and no accident happened today!
9. Be Consistent. It does not have to be daily, It can be weekly, daily or just the weekends, but whenever you decide on it, be consistent with it so it becomes a habit.
10. Give it time to become a habit. A new habit can take as little as 30 days and as much as 100 days to form. So don’t give up!

Just a few prompt ideas would be:

What is one thing I am thankful for about myself

What is something I am doing well in

Did I do something nice for someone today 

Did someone do something nice for me?

Write 1 thing that is positive about a stressor today

Think about a person you admire and write about it

Name something that always puts a smile on your face

Name a way you can be kinder tomorrow

Name off an accomplishment

‘ Write about a place you visited

Write about something physically beautiful like your rose bushes, the 50ft tree in your backyard etc.

.Write about what made you laugh

Even write about a meal

Write a thankful thing from your childhood

Each day take 1 family member and write what you’re grateful for about them

Who are the top 3 people you are thankful or today

For the end of the month, quarter, &/?or year write your top highlights for the month

Write 3 things you love about your body, home, your job, your family

I think you are getting the picture. I hope those prompts help you. I will write them out in the description as well so you can print them.

You can see there are a lot of things you can write about in your journal. It can be short and sweet or big long paragraphs. It is up to you. Just give it a try for a month and see if you don’t start feeling a bit more thankful and grateful and having a bit happier sleep and dreams.

I’m Kristin Nitz with Big Boned and Broken. To get you started this journal is a nice one Here is a journal with prompts: https://amzn.to/3nGxyVA

Until next time Stay healthy, Stay Happy and Stay Wise.