How can Gratitude Journaling Support Mental Health? Tips and Benefits!

Is jotting down your blessings in life just a trend? Or is it a positive approach towards better mental well-being? There are many proven facts supporting the method of journaling gratitude to devoid anxiety and emptiness in life.

Amidst the chaos and troubles of fast-paced life where people are left alone with no one to have heartfelt conversations with, seeking gratitude journaling can be a great habit. It is a simple yet immensely effective way to appreciate the small good things around you and show thankfulness towards them.

Your psychology takes a positive path as soon as you write down and emphasize what a wonderful sunrise you’ve seen today or how beautiful your home is. Boosting your mental health with gratitude journaling is much more impactful than one can imagine. However, it should be your genuine emotions and not just a passing trend to fleet around.

What Does Gratitude Journaling Mean?

Have you ever seen our grandparents writing the name of the deity they worship or holy chants in an empty diary?

They had this habit of filling a page of writing the same ‘Shloka’ 108 times every day to stay positive and mentally healthy. It is also a way to show thankfulness towards everything you’re blessed with in life.

• A modern form of filling diaries with chants is ‘Gratitude Journaling.’
• It can be a daily or weekly practice to note down everything that you are thankful for.
• This could be anything: meeting your old school friends randomly or embracing meaningful relationships.
• Gratitude is thankfulness, and journaling is to mention the enriching part of your life in words. It works like a superpower to conquer negative things in your life by reframing a fresh perspective.
• The concept basically works on the ‘Law of Attraction’ where you attract positive when you speak or write positive.
• Many research journals and studies indicate and highlight the health benefits of practicing gratitude and journaling it.
• Increased happiness levels, lesser depression, and improved overall well-being are a few benefits to name a few.

People who maintain such journals can definitely do better with their everyday schedules.

Top Benefits of Gratitude Journaling for Mental Wellness

1. Activate the Reward System of the Brain

Experts suggest that journaling thankfulness attracts happiness and even activates the reward system of your brain. It boosts the medial prefrontal cortex, which is related to pleasure and feeling connected. Reducing levels of ‘Cortisol,’ the stress hormone in the body, develops a calming effect on the mind as well.

2. Controls Anxiety and Stress Levels

When you are constantly counting your blessings in life, it does counteract the negative thought spirals and releases the stressors. The human brain can get cut off from any anxious situation when it adheres to gratitude journaling.

3. Improves Emotional Resilience

Practicing gratitude journaling also promotes a sense of optimism, which grants the power to combat negative things in life. It proves helpful in coping with various challenges in life. Emotional resilience refers to mental strengthening and how better you are able to tackle difficult times in life. This can definitely bring more positivity to your life.

4. Better Sleep Quality

Writing down the things you are thankful for before bedtime can help you avail better sleeping patterns. It works like a therapy to generate positive thoughts and deal with pre-sleep anxiety. Sound sleep is proportionate to fresh mornings and mindset.

5. Improves Relationships

Appreciating your close relationships and people with whom you have strong ties is also a wonderful way to boost mental health. Journaling this part of your life also helps improve relationships on both personal and professional fronts.

6. Helps in Overcoming Depression

People who are unable to share emotions or have a lack of close bonds to speak with are a major concern, resulting in depression. The mindful habit of gratitude journaling has been proven effective in dealing with several chronic mental health concerns, such as anxiety or depression.

Tips to Start with Habit of Gratitude Journaling

Follow the below tips for embarking on the journey of gratitude journaling:

• Select the Journal: Choose any notebook or a journal that you cherish reading or are comfortable mentioning your emotions in. This should be your positive memory lane where you’re recording and noting down thoughts on a daily basis.
• Set a Routine: Jotting down things in your gratitude journal must be a part of your daily routine. It could either be during morning times or before going to bed. Try to maintain the consistency for the best results. It should be your daily habit.
• Begin Simple: You don’t need any creativity or extra stretch of thoughts to write in the gratitude journal. Start by mentioning a few things for which you feel grateful. It can be your beloved puppy at home, a lovely spouse, your favorite Chamomile tea, or the wonderful sunset.
• Avoid Generic Statements: The Journal can’t be general as you need to dive into the specifics for which you have gratitude. It can be spending a lovely time on Sunday brunch with your siblings.
• Pour in Every Little Thought: The journal must be a replica of your mind for better mental health. Apart from writing about relationships, show thankfulness towards nature, experiences, small milestones, and lessons you’ve learned in life.
• Use Prompts: If you are unable to frame questions in mind for a gratitude journal, try to include prompts like ‘What was the best part of today?’ to make your entries in the diary.

Practice gratitude journaling is a boon for mental health and has a great impact on people facing stress, depression, or anxiety. Working professionals juggling between tasks can also use this habit to calm down their minds. It can also be an inspirational factor for students as well as teenagers.

In a Nutshell

Hopefully, you’re well aware that gratitude journaling is a lot more than just the trend of maintaining a diary with positive quotes. Such habits can work wonders to boost your mental health, and integrating these into your routine is imperative. They are no less than a mental exercise or therapy that reminds us of what blessings we have in life.

Expressing gratitude by jotting it down is a profound practice that can contribute to mental well-being and happiness. It emphasizes exaggerating the positive parts of life and negating the challenges coming your way. Begin with this regime today, and you’ll be surprised to identify its positive impact on your mental well-being.

If you have any further questions or need support, get in touch with us today. We are more than happy to help you walk on the path of enlightenment and mental wellness. It’s as simple as taking a pen and listing down the smallest joys you see around.

Embrace Gratitude Journaling as a Habit for an Enriching, Peaceful, and Balanced Life!