Gratitude Is the Best Attitude
When times are tough, remember to count your many blessings.
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The month of November has me thinking a lot about being grateful and giving thanks for what I have. Especially this year.
We may not believe it at times, but we’re more blessed than we realize, and not many people can say that.
Showing daily gratitude for the things we have and our fantastic life experiences will help us remember that we are, in fact, truly hashtag blessed.
I wanted to express what I’m grateful for, so I decided to write out a few things that need recognition.
Writing out what I’m thankful for in a Medium story isn’t a way for me to brag or stroke my ego.
Studies suggest that expressing gratitude has many benefits, and it doesn’t specify a certain way to say that you’re grateful.
According to Harvard Health, “Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.”
Psychology Today even suggests expressing gratitude helps improve physical health, improves psychological health, increases your mental strength, improves your self-esteem, and enables you to sleep better.
Count Your Many Blessings.
In the church I attended growing up, there is a song that we would sing in Primary called, Count Your Blessings.
The song was written by Edwin Othello Excell / Johnson Jr Oatman and sung by Guy Penrod.
When times are tough, and you feel overwhelmed with all the chaos and madness, remember to count your many blessings.
The song helps us recognize all the blessings we have in our lives and not focus on the bad parts.
“Are you ever burdened with a load of care? Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear? Count your blessings name them one by one count your many blessings see what God has done.”
Take the religious aspect out of this, and everyone can apply it to their lives.
When life’s burdens become too much for you to handle and you feel like everything bad happens to you, remember to count your many blessings.
I try to remind myself that every day.
2020 Has Showed Me What to Be Grateful For.
I’m grateful for my loving family.
I’m remarkably close to my parents and siblings and their kids, and I’m thankful to have them in my life.
They have been there for me throughout my history of health problems to my lowest point in life, going through septic shock in 2016.
I’m grateful that I have a close family because that has made it so I can develop an incredible bond with my nieces and nephews, and they know that Aunt Jenny loves them dearly.
I’m grateful for my amazing friends, both online and off.
I have met some of the most amazing people that I’m lucky enough to call my friends.
Many of the friends in my life I have met at my day job, which is one of the few things that make me grateful for that place.
I have also made some sweet friends online through my horror blogging days to my current writing days on Medium.
Many writer friends have been kind enough to offer support and advice on improving my writing, which has been a blessing.
I’m grateful for my job.
I may complain a lot about how much I hate my day job, but that doesn’t cover up why I am grateful for having that job.
I have been working at my current job for twelve years and have met most of my friends, including my two best friends in the world.
I’m grateful that I have been able to keep my job and continue to work this year throughout the pandemic when many people have lost their jobs due to the virus.
I’m grateful for my healthcare team.
While being chronically ill and living with chronic pain, I have seen my share of doctors.
I can’t tell you how much it means to a chronic pain sufferer who is chronically ill to have the support of some of the most incredible doctors.
I’m grateful for their continued care and support and their willingness to not give up on trying to help me.
I’m also grateful for being accepted into my pain clinic, where I receive my monthly lidocaine infusions to help with my neuropathic pain.
I’m grateful for being alive.
Back in May of 2016, I developed septic shock, which almost cost me my life.
I was in a noninduced coma for five days, had several blood transfusions, and put on dialysis.
Going through that experience has been very traumatic and has made my chronic pain worse.
I’m happy that my family stood by my side and never stopped being there for me.
I’m thankful for the doctors who did everything they knew to help me survive without any extreme complications, like having my hands or feet amputated, even though they talked about the possibility of that happening.
Of course, I have many more reasons to be grateful. To write everything down would be more like a novel than a Medium story.
For some people, Thanksgiving is usually the only time they express their gratitude, silently or publicly. I have always been that person.
Even though I was grateful for many things, I usually only acknowledge it during November or on Thanksgiving.
These past five years have taught me to spend more time reflecting on the blessings I have received in life and never to stop being grateful.
