How gratitude exercises can deepen your relationships and promote harmony in everyday life

It’s true that not every day is a success. Sometimes one goes to bed sad or tired, sometimes unpleasant things happen. But we should always find something to be grateful for. Practicing gratitude is a psychological technique that can cheer a person up even in the worst situations in life. But above all, it is an excellent prevention against psychological problems. Personally, I have always believed in positive psychology. And I know that if one is aware of the good, it makes it easier to deal with the bad things in life.

Whenever something bad happened to me in the past, I tried to see the good in it. Some of my friends get on my nerves about my optimism. It’s true that I lost my parents when I was seven, but I’m grateful that my grandparents took care of me. It’s true that I failed to finish one school, but I’m grateful that I was given the opportunity to get into another.All events in a person’s life have consequences. And they don’t always lead only to the bad.

Consciously remind yourself of what you’re grateful for

Practicing gratitude is not difficult. It is simply a matter of remembering every day at least a few things that have made us happy and for which we are grateful in life. These can be big events, but they can also be little things. It’s not just about being grateful for a great partner or work accomplishments. We can also feel gratitude for someone giving us a flower, making us a coffee or saying a nice compliment.

“Our groundbreaking research has shown that grateful people experience higher levels of positive emotions such as joy, enthusiasm, love, happiness, and optimism, and that practicing gratitude as a discipline protects people from the destructive impulses of envy, resentment, greed, and bitterness,” says American psychologist Robert A. Emmons.

He explains that a person who practices gratitude can cope more effectively with daily stress, may show increased resilience to trauma-induced stress, and may recover more quickly from illness and benefit from better physical health. When people practice the practice of gratitude, they are more likely to be able to forgive and love others around them.

There’s nothing difficult about it

I personally try to go to sleep every night with positive thoughts. Even if the day hasn’t been ideal, before going to sleep I think about what I have achieved, who has made a difference in my life. And even though sometimes I’m grateful just to have my dog at my feet and to be warm, it trumps thinking about all the negatives I might otherwise think about.

But if a person can’t handle going to sleep with a similar frame of mind, the practice of gratitude needs to be practiced a little differently. Every day before you go to bed, reflect on at least three things in your life that make you happy or that put a smile on your face that day. To reinforce your beliefs, write them down on paper.

The brain has a natural tendency to focus on threats and mistakes, it’s simply its protective mechanism. But practicing gratitude gently balances this filter. Research shows that regular practice can improve mood, reduce anxiety, strengthen resilience, improve sleep, as well as increase satisfaction in relationships. If you have a partner, you can practice this positive psychology together and tell each other before bed what made you happy that day.