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6 Ways How to Practice Gratitude When You’re Depressed
One of the issues with depression is how you focus on the feeling, and how to practice gratitude when depressed is far from your thoughts. When you are happy, you probably do not consciously think about being happy. You just do the things that bring you joy, like going to the beach.
When you are depressed, the idea of sitting on the beach or playing volleyball feels like it would just be annoying and you would rather stay in bed.
Gratitude can assist you in coping with your feelings of depression, and eventually, going into a depressive mode will happen less often.
Here are 6 ways to practice gratitude when you are depressed.
Play “I Spy” Gratitude
When you feel depressed, you may want to just lay on the couch all day in a state of semi-sleep. Depression happens to many people, and when you practice gratitude while depressed, you will be able to accomplish something worthwhile in the day. There is external and internal gratitude. Since depression has reared its ugly head, you may find it difficult to sit and think about what you should be grateful for.
Try using the “I spy” method. If you never tried it as a child, here is how it works. One person locates an item in the room and gives the other a brief description. For example, “I spy something purple” would have the other person looking around and calling out items until they got the right one. You would look around in different rooms until you spy on one thing that fills you with gratitude.
Perhaps you collect old books and have a copy of Grimm’s Fairy tales that are illustrated with color plates that grab your eye. Every time you look at it, you feel grateful that you were able to purchase it. Now pick it up, spend time focusing on the old book, and feel gratitude for every page.
Silly Pattern Interrupt
When you are depressed, you need to break your focus. Once you break your focus, that gives your brain time to search for a memory of someone you should be grateful for. How do you break your focus?
The best way is to use what is called a pattern interrupt. When you are in a pattern of a depressing thought, interrupt it by doing something ridiculous. For example, jump off the couch and pretend you are a cat with a bad case of the zoomies. Run around helter-skelter and then pause to lick your hand. Sounds pretty silly, right? It works! Now think of who you are grateful for and give them a quick call telling them how much you appreciate them.
Get Out of the House
This next idea will take some willpower. Instead of laying on the couch all day feeling depressed, you need to get out of the house. Fresh air and sunshine, combined with a walk or talk with a friend, will build your gratitude and ease your depression. Use another pattern interrupt if you need some laughter to get your fingers dialing the phone.
Walk to a coffee group. If you don’t have one, phone a friend to make a coffee date. Make the coffee dates regular. And if you don’t have a coffee friend, drop in at a MacDonald’s ; you’ll be certain to see a pile of folks coffeeing and maybe you can sit by them and eventually get into the group.
Be Grateful for That One Special Person
When you are depressed, it can be tough to think of anything positive. Perhaps you are telling yourself that everything is doom and gloom. You know it isn’t true, but your mind dwells on those thoughts. It is time to take your mind and shift it to gratitude for one special person. Sit up straight and take ten deep breaths. Now think of someone who has been kind to you recently. See them in your mind and hear their voice. Focus on what they did and what it meant to you. Now say out loud how grateful you are for that person.
Visualize Colorful Emotions
Think of your emotions as a colorful bowl of fruit. You have room for apples, oranges, and bananas. Gratitude is just like that. While your bowl currently has “depression, sadness, and a feeling of hopelessness, there is room for gratitude. As you continue to work daily on gratitude, it will grow larger and larger, making those other emotions less powerful.
Use a Gratitude Journal
On those days when leaving the house seems like a major chore due to depression, go to your journal. You can sit straight up on the couch and doodle for a bit in a gratitude journal. When your mind starts to clear enough because you are smiling at your doodles, start jotting down gratitude ideas.
Make notes of what you are grateful for. Instead of thinking how hard it will be, start simple. Are you depressed, but are you grateful for that comfortable couch you have been lying on? What about those pajamas you never took off this morning? Grab a nice cup of hot tea and write down why you are grateful for it. Start small and work up to bigger ideas of gratitude.
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