This past week I decided to reach into my ‘technique tool belt’ and try something that I actually abandoned a while back…the idea of focusing on being grateful to raise my vibrations, shift my focus and redirect my energy. I’m not sure what possessed me to go there, but the idea popped into my head on a Sunday night and I decided to focus on gratitude for the next 7 days and see what happens.
The idea behind gratitude, or at least my perception of it, is that the Law of Attraction gives you back what you send out. Most people find understanding and working with the Law of Attraction difficult (and frustrating) because we often experience things that we do not think we want. But the foundation behind focusing on what you are grateful for is rooted in the idea that the more you focus on something, the more of you get! And making a conscious effort to focus on all that you have that you love and appreciate is “supposed” to help you get more of what you love and appreciate.
Well, I am 6 days into my Gratitude Experiment, and I have to say that I have had a fantastic week! The first two days were a breeze…every time I caught myself thinking a negative thought (noticing things about my life that I want to change, things frustrating me, etc.) I stopped myself and said, OUT LOUD 2-3 things that I was grateful for in my life. I noticed that I felt happy and had an unusual amount of energy that lasted all day long and into the night, which was obviously strange to me.
On the third day I was challenged a little bit by deciding to say things that I was grateful for that were someone related to the negative thought(s) I was having. For example, if I caught myself complaining (even if only in my head) about the mess in the house, I would say, “I am so glad that I have a stable place to sleep. I am very grateful that I can afford to live in the home I am in.”
Later that day, while I was caring for my 6 year old stepson, I realized that we both were struggling with a feeling of sadness. His sadness was due to the switch between his mother’s home and his father’s home (which can be a challenge). My sad feelings were due to cleaning out things that we no longer needed, and some of that stuff included something I was holding on to in hopes that I would someday have a child of my own…giving away that little piece of furniture was like giving up my dream of having a baby.
I sat down with my stepson and helped him understand how to look at his feelings, express the feelings, then decide what he could change about the circumstance that caused him to feel that way and what he couldn’t. Next, he learned how to redirect his thoughts to the things in his life that he likes. I used my sadness as an example and he watched my tears surface as I talked about my fear of not being able to have a baby and then he saw them disappear when I talked to him about how happy I was to have him in my life, to have his daddy in my life, etc. I walked him through the same thing and in two minutes we were both smiling, laughing and hugging. He then said to me, “Wow! I feel better!” I thought to myself, “Wow, I really feel better, too!”
Stay tuned for more on my Gratitude Experiment…
Jennifer
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Wow. That was inspiring, I can see the power of gratefulness and how you can build it up. Well written! I’ve been having difficulty being grateful lately but I made a break through today. I’ve been feeling like I don’t get rewarded for my work so I finally gave myself a reward I’ve been wanting for a while. It helped me kick start my ability to feel that life is rewarding and it helps a lot to focus on that. I’m going to try your technique of saying 2-3 things I am grateful for this week so when I find myself worrying I can refocus on better thinking.