Adrienne Enns of May You Know Joy: How Each Of Us Can Leverage The Power Of Gratitude To Improve Our Overall Mental Wellness

What we do every day matters so, when we practice gratitude on a daily basis, it will become organic to how we see the world. Simple acts of gratitude done consistently will have a profound, positive and sustainable effect on our mental health.

As we all know, times are tough right now. In addition to the acute medical crisis caused by the Pandemic, in our post COVID world, we are also experiencing what some have called a “mental health pandemic”.

What can each of us do to get out of this “Pandemic Induced Mental and Emotional Funk”?

One tool that each of us has access to is the simple power of daily gratitude. As a part of our series about the “How Each Of Us Can Leverage The Power Of Gratitude To Improve Our Overall Mental Wellness” I had the pleasure of interviewing Adrienne Enns.

Adrienne Enns is the Founder and CEO of May You Know Joy Inc. Adrienne’s mission is to inspire our most intentional and joyful living through products conversations and experiences. May You Know Joy is well-known for its popular line of intention card decks that inspire joy, intention and gratitude. Adrienne is the author of Intentional Days and host of The Intention Sessions podcast. Adrienne found joy, intention and deep gratitude as she navigated her recovery from addiction (now 9+ years sober) and this inspires her daily practices and her work in the world.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive into our discussion, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us the backstory about you and about what brought you to your specific career path?

My recovery from alcoholism ultimately led me to create my own company, May You Know Joy Inc. We create intention card decks to inspire people’s daily, mindful living. I got sober 9+ years ago now and launched my company 6 years ago.

The backstory is that I enjoyed a 15+ year career at some of Canada’s major media companies. Over time, my complete inability to cope with life’s stresses and my love of alcohol collided and took me on a serious downward spiral. I could not manage my life or this problem and sought help at a treatment center. I knew I couldn’t change things on my own and had to seek out help. Getting sober is the best thing I’ve ever done. It taught me how to love myself, to be present in life and to take each moment as it comes. So many people helped me and for that, I am very grateful. As I recovered, I realized how much energy I’d put into my own self-destruction and wondered what I could do if I used that energy for good? I also decided that if I was going to change my entire life then, I wanted to find joy in it. I learned that life is moment to moment choices and those choices matter. To me, it’s the simple things we do consistently that make a profound and transformative difference over time.

That’s why I created my own company. I wanted to create a purposeful business that inspired others and also gave me the space to take care of myself and create a life that brought me deep meaning.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Why do you think that resonates with you? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life?

My favorite quote is the Mary Oliver quote that asks “what are you going to do with this one wild and precious life?” I love this quote because it reminds me that life is a gift and that time is precious. If we’re really mindful, how do we want to spend our time? This is a lesson I learned in my recovery. I learned to value my time here. I want my life direction to come from me — not from what other’s want or expect from me. And, I want to use my time to create joy in my own life and in the lives of the people around me. This quote is so full of hope and possibility and reminds us to question our intentions.

Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story about why that resonated with you?

A book that has had a significant impact on me is Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch. It was recommended to me by a friend when I was going through a really tough time and she suggested I read Chapter 8. This chapter is all about relationships and how every relationship is an opportunity for us to return to ourselves and know ourselves more deeply. I loved this reminder because so often we are seeking to please other people or find joy outside of ourselves and this is a powerful reminder to really love ourselves, understand ourselves and move in the world from that place. I’ve probably read it hundreds of times. I always get something out of it.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

This year, we just launched a new May You Know Gratitude intention deck. It is designed to inspire our daily gratitude practices. It’s been a great hit and I think we all need to tap a little deeper into gratitude right now. We also launched a May You Know Joy in Recovery intention card deck to inspire people on this journey. Sometimes we just need little reminders to help us take the next step forward and that’s what I hope these cards do. They’ve also been incredibly well-received which is so amazing. A portion of the proceeds of those cards will go into recovery initiatives which also brings me a lot of joy.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I am very grateful for my sister. We are really close and she has seen me through many ups and downs. I have done the same for her. There’s something very cool when someone knows you so deeply and loves you no matter what. While we’ve navigated many things together, what I really love is that we share silly, sarcastic GIFs back and forth. She really makes me laugh and for that, I am very grateful.

Ok, thank you for all that. Now that we are on the topic of gratitude, let’s move to the main focus of our interview. As you know, the collective mental health of our country is facing extreme pressure. We would like to explore together how every one of us can use gratitude to improve our mental wellness. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms. How do you define the concept of Gratitude? Can you explain what you mean?

I believe that gratitude is when we recognize the abundance and good in our lives. It’s having reverence and a deep appreciation for people, places, things or whatever it is that fills us up. I believe that real gratitude needs to be felt in our bodies. I also believe that gratitude can be for super simple things. It’s seeing everything and also choosing to see the beauty.

Why do you think so many people do not feel gratitude? How would you articulate why a simple emotion can be so elusive?

I believe that there’s a lot in our world to distract us from being grateful. There is a lot of pain and suffering at large and also in our personal lives. It’s easy to see the bad and let it pull us down. We need to make an effort to see everything in any given moment. We need to see the tough stuff — the pain, fear, anger and sadness. But, in every moment everything exists so, we also need to look for the beauty, love, kindness and joy. We need to be willing and open to see the good. We also need to be willing to feel gratitude in our hearts. I think we gloss over it or forget to see the simple beautiful moments that are in everyday life.

This might be intuitive to you but I think it will be constructive to help spell it out. Can you share with us a few ways that increased gratitude can benefit and enhance our life?

When we have a daily gratitude practice, we begin to re-wire our brains to see the good in our lives. Just noticing 3 things we’re grateful for every single day is a very powerful practice.

I also believe this opens us up to seeing the beauty in our lives, our world and other people.

Science also shows us that a daily gratitude practice not only re-wires the brain but, it stimulates the neurochemicals that make us feel good. This improves our mood, our overall well-being and reduces stress. That’s powerful.

Gratitude is also contagious. When we are grateful, that can have a very transformative ripple effect. I think we can all agree that if we all showed up in this world with a little more love, kindness and gratitude the world would be a much different place.

Let’s talk about mental wellness in particular. Can you share with us a few examples of how gratitude can help improve mental wellness?

1. What we do every day matters so, when we practice gratitude on a daily basis, it will become organic to how we see the world. Simple acts of gratitude done consistently will have a profound, positive and sustainable effect on our mental health.
2. We also have to be very mindful about what we focus on. If we focus on the bad, we will most definitely find more of that in the world. So, we need to look for the things that we are grateful for and really celebrate those. This can be super tough for people right at the start. We need to really look for things to be grateful for and they can be small. I might be grateful that the sun is shining, that my friend texted me or that my meeting started on time. There is good in each moment and we need to be willing to see it. This shift in perspective is critical to mental health.
3. Gratitude also eases the mind which is great for our mental health. When we see the world as it is and choose to be grateful, we’re not dwelling or ruminating on the negative. This is a more healthy and balanced way of living and will serve us well as we navigate life.

Ok wonderful. Now here is the main question of our discussion. From your experience or research, what are “Five Ways That Each Of Us Can Leverage The Power Of Gratitude To Improve Our Overall Mental Wellness”. Can you please share a story or example for each?

1. In the morning when you wake up, pause before you grab your phone (I know it’s tough but, try!) and notice what you feel grateful for? Maybe you’re grateful for your bed or today or the sun coming through your window. Notice what you feel grateful for before anything has even happened. This is a powerful way to set your grateful mindset for the day.
2. Write down what you’re grateful for. You might keep a journal or a gratitude jar or keep a list on your phone. Keep a simple running list of the many things (big and small) that you are grateful for. Not only does this train your attitude of gratitude but, you can refer to this list when times are tougher.
3. Feel your gratitude. The mind body connection is incredibly powerful and I want to encourage you to notice what gratitude really feels like in your body. This will help ensure that this is not just a checklist practice for you. When our bodies are grateful and feeling good, this is calming for the mind.
4. Share your gratitude. When you feel grateful for something or someone, let them know! We are social creatures and now more than ever we need to cultivate positive social interaction. You never know what effect your gratitude might have on someone else. Let’s let the positive effects of gratitude grow exponentially.
5. At night, create time to relax and unwind. When you reflect on your day, what are you really grateful for? There might be things you’re not grateful for and that’s good information too. Let those things go. Then, come back to the gratitude and let it be the way you close out your day. This self-reflection is a powerful practice of collecting evidence for your brain of all the good in your life.

Is there a particular practice that can be used during a time when one is feeling really down, really vulnerable, or really sensitive?

When you’re in this situation, pause. If you’re able to, get somewhere where you feel safe and protected. Take a deep breath and really look around you. Notice what is actually going on in this moment. Check that you’re not bringing in stories from the past or creating worries about the future. What is happening right now? As you look around your surroundings, what are you grateful for? Say the things you’re grateful for aloud or write them down. Words are really powerful and can ground this practice.

I also encourage people to reach out to people they’re close to. Maybe it’s an opportunity to reach out to someone you’re grateful for. Social connection is particularly important right now so, find joy in the company of others. (And — be grateful for all of those moments!)

Do you have any favorite books, podcasts, or resources that you would recommend to our readers to help them to live with gratitude?

I enjoy listening to the Rich Roll podcast. He is also in recovery and has this incredible aptitude for very raw, vulnerable and inspiring interviews. Gratitude is a common thread and he demonstrates that it’s a powerful practice although, not always easy.

Guru Singh is a powerful spiritual teacher and his podcasts also cover topics that will help you come closer to yourself and find gratitude in your life.

The 5-Minute Journal (or any journal) is a great way to practice and record gratitude.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention our May You Know Gratitude card deck. It’s really great and simple way to inspire your daily gratitude practice. (I’m biased of course but, they’re pretty awesome!)

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I believe that our simple daily intention practices have a profound and transformative effect over time. They don’t need to take long or be elaborate to be meaningful. Start your morning by noticing what you feel grateful for and then, create an intention for the day (how do you want to show up today?). End your day with gratitude. This mindful entrance and exit to our days is powerful for our mindset, our well-being, our joy and a life well-lived.

What is the best way our readers can further follow your work online?

www.mayyouknowjoy.com

Instagram: @mayyouknowjoy

Facebook: @mayyouknowjoy

Pinterest: @mayyouknowjoy

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this. We wish you continued success and good health!