Why Being Thankful Can Improve Your Mental Health!

Learn why being thankful for what you have can increase the quality of your mental health!

By: Anagha Sreenivasan

Hey there, and welcome to Ana Health Avenue! If you’re new here, hiii! My name is Anagha, and I’m the creator of Ana Health Avenue, your one stop destination for all things health and beauty!

First of all, a belated Happy Thanksgiving! Even though Thanksgiving is over now doesn’t mean we couldn’t all use some gratitude in our lives(especially with the year we’ve all had). That’s why today, I’m telling you why being thankful can improve your mental health!

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Table of Contents

• Why is taking care of your mental health important?
• How does being thankful affect your mental health?
• How to be more thankful?
• The End!

Why is taking care of your mental health important?

Mental health is SO important.

Like, really really really important.

Just how like we take care of our physical well being, we also need to take care of our mental well being. The state of our mental health affects many aspects of our lives, from our physical health to our overall happiness. I have many posts here on anahealthavenue.com that are all about maintaining your mental health during the coronavirus pandemic.

I’ll link them below for you to check out(if you want)!

READ: Top Tips for Maintaining Self-Care during the Coronavirus Pandemic

READ: 5 Reasons Why Socializing Again is Harder than You Think

How does being thankful affect your mental health?

Now, on to the post.

This year has been tough. We’ve all lost something in this pandemic, no matter who we are or where we come from.

But, things might not be as bad as you think.

I remember sitting down by a window on a particularly cloudy and stormy day. And I just relflected on all of the bad things that have happened this year. But, also all of the good(like starting this blog)!

Oftentimes, our mental health is not in the best state because we’re so caught up in what we DON’T have. But when we focus on what we DO have, suddenly, the bad things don’t seem that bad anymore. When we focus on the good, we become happier for obvious reasons.

This type of thinking is more optimistic, more grateful, which can lead to happier and lighter thougts and feelings. While I’m not saying to completely ignore the less than great things in your life, a little bit of gratitude for the good things that are there can really make a difference.

How to be more thankful?

This is the hard part. I’ve told you why being thankful can improve the quality of your mental health. Now, I’m going to tell you actually HOW to be more thankful, so you can improve your mental health!

Write down a list of what you’re thankful for

Don’t leave anything out. Even the little things that might not seem really big but are still important; make sure to write those down.

After that, look at your list and think deeply.

This is the time to really sit down and analyze all the good things in your life. Examples of things you could be grateful for are continued good health, shelter, food on the table, your friends and family, getting to do what you love everyday, etc.

Find a way to give back

This is an amazing way to truly put in perspective all the good things in your life. Oftentimes, when we give back to our community, we encounter people from all walks of life.

This can truly open our eyes to how blessed we are, and therefore make us happier and content. Ways you can give back to your community include donating money or volunteering.

The End!

And, that’s a wrap!

Thank you so much for reading this blog post, and I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know what you think in the comments below! Just remember, being thankful for the good things in your life could help you to become happier!

Byeeee!-Anagha

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