You've probably heard people say it before. But can being grateful help you be happier?
What is happiness? Ultimately happiness is a state of mind. A point of view. We can sometimes associate situations or events as the reason why we are happy or not happy.
However if you consider running a marathon. For some people this is something that fills them with joy and excitement. Not for me though. So it's not the marathon it's self that is good or bad. It is the difference in the feelings that I have given it.
So if we are now aware that our mind can change how we view a situation, is it too much of a leap to then believe that our mind can make us happy or not?
Just for the record I would like to let you know that I have sufferred from depression in the past. The reason why I mention this is because I have felt at times that nothing would have made me happy. In fact I may have gone as far to feel insulted if anyone told me that I could change the way I feel about something.
Depression is a different beast and dealing with that involves a lot more than just thinking positivly. But if you are sufferring from depression, just know that while this post might not help you directly now, happiness is possible just keep going.
Anyway back to being grateful.
Right now I live in a single room. Most of my friends own their own houses. Sometimes I do feel a little down about this situation but does feeling down about the situation change it at all?
No
It is a tricky task but this is how I deal with it
- Breathe deeply and slowly - As within meditation, breathing is important and can help relax.
- Think about the current moment - What can I see, what can I hear, what does my body feel. This grounds me in the reality of now. Which then helps me realise it doesn't matter if I owned a house, room or lived in a tent. Because in this split second moment I am alive and just being.
- Feel grateful that some people might look at my situation and feel that I am lucky compared to them.
It's not a magic bullet but like anything, the more you practice, the more benefit you feel.
Thanks for reading
Generally if we live in the exact moment we are in there is nothing to fear or feel bad about, it is only when we live outside of this do we feel bad....
Cool post man, followed :-)
Exactly. It takes practise to live in the exact moment. One way I try and do it sometimes is to think "What is the next thought coming into my head" It is then I realise that loads of thoughts have been coming in but I've been too busy living that they come in unchecked.
Thanks for the follow!
Thats an interesting concept actually, do you find if you do this that you can alter new thoughts as they come in or are you able to let them go to keep your head clear? Often our minds are zooming around like crazy and we aren't even aware of that.
Unfortunately I am not at the level of altering the new thoughts. I wish I could. At the moment, if I do take a moment to observe one come in, it feels more like a mental deep breath. A break from the fairly constant noise.
I understand what you mean, it makes me wonder sometimes what humanity could be if all of that head noise was let go of.....
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Great advice, with a roof over our heads and access to the basics of human needs, we have already won life's lotto. True peace and happiness comes from within.
I too have suffered from various forms of mental health due to circumstances growing up, meditation is a great tool that has helped me to make peace with this. I am now very grateful for the life i have, and hope everyone can also find their happy place.
I'm glad to hear that you made peace with your mental health. Our minds can be the prison and the prisoner and I understand how difficult that can be. Have a great day.
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I completely agree with you. We all leave our lives in different ways and being grateful helps us to appreciate the way we are living ours. Also comparing myself to other people only ever makes me feel dissatisfied and it never stops. Even when you achieve more, you just compare yourself to even MORE successful people. The best way is just ti be grateful for what you have and not compare, with of which require practice. Thank you for posting this today!
Thats it. Comparing oneself to others is a never ending circle of dissatisfaction.