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With social media everywhere you turn today, it can be easy to fall into the trap of becoming depressed, or thinking that our selves and our lives aren’t good enough. Sometimes remembering that most people only post the good stuff, or their favourite adventures isn’t enough to lift us up and remember our own great and fun adventures. A gratefulness practice can help in a number of ways. By being purposefully thankful, we can focus our attention on what we really love giving us a stronger sense of fulfillment. It’s also important to reacquaint ourselves with things that we may take for granted. Clean water and sunshine are two of mine. If you are interested in using essential oils in your diffuser to enhance your gratefulness practice, download my free diffuser blend postcard here.
“Gratitude opens the door to… the power, the wisdom, the creativity of the universe.” Deepak Chopra
Practicing Gratitude in the Morning
Beginning a gratefulness practice is easy but it takes self discipline. As I incorporated it into my life it became a habit that now pops in periodically during my day and not just at my chosen time for giving thanks. Try focusing on being grateful early in the morning at the start of the day. You can begin as soon as you wake up or schedule it for shower time. The shower is a great place to get started. You can begin by being thankful for three things. Start small, it can balloon quickly. Every day at the same time, stop your thoughts from racing for a moment and begin your list of what you are grateful for in your life. I am grateful for my family, hot water, sunshine and books, to begin with. But it’s not just a list. Make it a mantra. Each point should have its own gratefulness statement including why you are grateful for it. The more descriptive you can be the more it will uplift you. I am thankful for my partner because they make me feel... I am thankful for hot water because…, and so on. Focus on how whatever you are grateful for makes you feel and step into that feeling while you are expressing gratitude.
Practice Gratitude Throughout the Day to Stay Mindful
Gratitude is especially helpful if you are actively thankful for something you are currently using. It helps you to step into the moment and be mindful of the here and now. After all, “There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called yesterday and the other is called tomorrow, so today is the right day to love, believe, do, and mostly, live.” (Dalai Lama)
Practice Gratitude at Night
I find it particularly inspiring to practice gratitude at night, especially if you are going through a hard time. This approach will help you to understand what you truly enjoy about your life. Grab a notebook and a pen. Writing out what is on our minds using pen and paper can be very helpful in clearing the mind, which can lead to better sleep. Better sleep can contribute to resiliency and a happier mood. Healthy habits are all connected. Within the last hour or two before bedtime, find a comfortable place to do some writing. You can set a timer for 15 minutes to start. It doesn’t need to be a long time. As you do this more frequently you can add time to this practice, do breathing exercises or add a meditation. Adjust the lighting to something that is soothing and makes you happy. Add candles. You can put on some soothing music if you wish. I love pairing this nighttime routine with music, because music helps us to elevate our emotions. Make this a time you look forward to. You are going to start out by writing about something that you enjoyed on that day. If you are having trouble finding something that you are grateful for from that day, look at your environment. Was it a sunny day? You can be grateful for that. You can be grateful for the birds singing or the trees being beautiful. If you weren’t feeling well, you can be grateful for a day off, a nap, or a good cup of soup. Make a commitment to write for a few minutes every night. Over time, you will begin to see things all around you that you appreciate, yet you might not be noticing right now due to a busy schedule, a stressful time, or something else.
Here are a few essential oils that can help you to slow down, focus, and internalize what you are grateful for. These essential oils are aligned with the chakras to help the movement of peace through your body. Let go of the stress, tension, and negative emotions that often block us from enjoying the gifts are around us.
Frankincense (Root chakra)
Frankincense opens up the breath, encouraging you to breath more deeply, which can help with stress management. Slow down. Anchor your root chakra to align with the strength of the earth. Enjoy the deep tone that Frankincense brings to an essential oil synergy.
Sandalwood (Sacral chakra)
Stop overanalyzing with Sandalwood. Let Sandalwood essential oil free your mind of worry and open it up to creation, one of the main functions of the Sacral chakra. This oil can help you to see the gifts that are truly in your world, allowing you to make a gratefulness space for it.
Roman Chamomile (Solar plexus)
Roman chamomile is beneficial for relieving stress, tension, and our tendency to be self critical. It can help us to manage our expectations, thereby reducing disappointment. This oil enhances our resiliency and our ability to react to a situation. It helps us with our sense of self worth and personal fulfillment. Roman Chamomile makes a great addition to a gratefulness blend.
Rose (Heart chakra)
Gratefulness encourages thinking with your heart, not with your head. Bring your thoughts on what you are thankful for into your heart and push the feeling of gratitude through your body from the heart. Open the heart chakra with beautiful Rose essential oil.
Sweet Marjoram (Throat chakra)
Stop the stress of overthinking. Many of us carry stress down the back of the neck and through the shoulders. I also carry mine through the throat chakra. Sweet Marjoram can be used for the upper chakras to calm the mind and help to relieve worry.
Clary Sage (Third eye chakra)
Gratefulness and an increasing feeling of being spiritually connected can go hand in hand. Open your spiritual connection by adding Clary Sage to your gratefulness blend.
Neroli (Crown chakra)
Neroli essential oil is known for helping depression and anxiety. Calm the heart and the mind, and experience an easier sense of spiritual connection. Neroli’s emotionally cooling effect can calm hot emotions and open you up to forgiveness.
Putting it all together
There are many essential oils that can enhance a gratefulness practice. Try these aromatherapy blends for your diffuser to start.
Download my Gratefulness Diffuser Blends postcard here. Essential oil blends will show once your postcard has been downloaded.
I hope you enjoy these very special blends.
Yours in wellness,
Sheri
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What is the best essential oil to use for relaxation?
