The holiday season is officially here, and a new year is right around the corner! Take some time this month to reflect on all that you have and all that you have accomplished. While the holidays can be busy, don’t miss out on the opportunity to decompress. Showing yourself grace and practicing gratitude are both great ways to improve your mindset and prepare for the new year ahead.
Grace
First, let’s talk about grace. Maybe you’ve been trying to get your wellness routine on track, but for one reason or another, you are not as far along in your journey as you would like. Or perhaps you are feeling overwhelmed this time of year with everything going on around the holidays that you feel like you are slacking when it comes your self-care. Whatever it is that you are struggling with, it’s important to not be too hard on yourself. We often are our harshest critic which can be counterproductive when it comes to our physical and mental health. Change can be hard, and you are not always going to get it right the first time, therefore it's important to show yourself grace. Becoming a healthier version of yourself is a process and you won't get there overnight. Be patient with yourself.
Some ways you can show yourself grace include:
Positive self-talk
Refrain from comparing yourself to other people, especially on social media
Celebrate your wins and let go of your mistakes
Give yourself permission to breathe and rest
Practice gratitude
Gratitude
Next, let’s discuss gratitude. Gratitude is the quality of being thankful and showing appreciation. Gratitude helps you experience more positive emotions, enjoy good experiences, improve your physical and mental health, be more resilient against stress and adversity, and build stronger relationships.
There are two stages of gratitude. The first surrounds the acknowledgement of goodness in your life. Meaning that all in all, life is good. Is everything perfect? No, certainly not. But there is good, every day. You just need to pause and take time to recognize it. The second stage is identifying that some of the goodness in your life resides outside of yourself. That is, you are grateful to other people, pets, and the world for the goodness in your life. It’s important, especially during this time of year, to show appreciation and thank those around you who make your life better every day. This can be done with a small gift, a handwritten note, or another display of appreciation. Not only will this make the special people in your life feel good, but expressing thanks can also improve your overall sense of wellbeing.
To cultivate a bigger sense of gratitude during this time of year try practicing some of these common gratitude activities and exercises:
Writing in a gratitude journal (every day or week)
Keeping a gratitude jar where you write things you are grateful for on little pieces of paper and put in the jar
Practicing meditation and prayer
That’s all for now. Remember to give the gift of grace and gratitude this month. Not only will it help you, but it will boost the mood of those around you as well.
Until next time…Eat Well. Live Well. Be Well.
Dianna