Practice Self Care through Gratitude

Posted on January 6, 2022 by Julie Apold

Have you ever noticed how it warmed your heart when someone appreciates you? Research shows that expressing gratitude to someone who has done something to enrich your life (no matter how big or small) significantly impacts both the giver and the receiver.

We often haven't had the chance to truly express our gratitude to those who have impacted our lives. A simple but powerful activity to show your appreciation is to write a gratitude letter. Close your eyes and picture someone who has said or done something that has changed your life for the better. Write a short letter or note expressing what that meant to you. Tell them how you feel.

To assist you and those in your community with getting started on writing a gratitude letter, you can pair a gratitude letter poster and template. A positive psychology study found that sharing a gratitude letter caused happiness scores to rise and depression scores to fall.

Watch this brief video to learn more about the benefits of gratitude.

Happiness is contagious; pass it on!

Visit the Self Care for Safe Care site to find all the resources and tools for bringing gratitude to your community in January and February. This is the third of six Self Care for Safe Care activities designed to build our resilience and increase our sense of happiness and well-being. 

For more information on Self Care for Safe Care or our other resiliency and mental health support resources, reach out to Julie Apold or Terri Foley.