When you’ve undergone a challenging experience or dealt with a traumatic event, gratitude may be one of the last things you want to consider or think about. Even if you’ve been told about the importance of gratitude, the impact of trauma might make you feel like being grateful for things in your life is impossible. However, gratitude is known to produce an array of benefits and plays a vital element in creating proactive strategies for healing. Practicing gratitude, even when it’s hard, can positively impact your healing journey from trauma.
Appreciation and How It Adds Value
Gratitude is a beautiful thing. Many people look at gratitude not as a means to find happiness but as a way to derive satisfaction. The great thing about a grateful attitude is that it can do both. There are many ways to live a life full of joy and satisfaction, and gratitude is a key element in doing so. Gratitude brings value and thankfulness for what you already have, which can give you a greater sense of contentment.
Moving Past Trauma
Going through trauma treatment helps you recognize how to add value to your life. For many people, the impact of trauma can make that difficult at first. Through practicing gratitude both in and after treatment, you learn how your perceived value of people, events, and belongings builds on itself when you consciously recognize and appreciate the importance of these things.
By practicing gratitude, you build on your ability to externally express the good elements of life, which works to promote an internal change. After healing from trauma, you want to leave negative experiences behind in favor of focusing on the little things that bring you joy and contentment. The best way to do this is by growing your appreciation for the positives in your life.
The more you consciously choose to be grateful, the more it becomes an unconscious part of you. You may soon discover that gratitude is second nature to you, and you feel a greater sense of contentment in every area of your life, despite past trauma.
Practicing Gratitude After Treatment
When you learn to practice gratitude after treatment, you reinforce your commitment to changing your perspectives and motivating yourself to live a healthier, happier life. Both of these are integral to healing. After completing treatment, you’ll be going back to old environments and routines; practicing healthy habits learned through treatment, like gratitude, can ensure your recovery stays on track. Once you put gratitude practices in place and let negativity go, you can find healing, be uplifted, and find satisfaction in life.
How Gratitude Can Help You
Gratitude improves your well-being in many ways. When you’re grateful for things in your life, you feel a greater sense of contentment with what you have and what situations come your way. You might also find that you can focus more on positive aspects of life than negative.
Experiencing trauma can put you on high alert for potential negative situations. However, once you’ve worked through and healed from trauma, the best thing to do is consciously focus on positives with gratitude until it becomes automatic.
How to Practice Gratitude
Treatment helps you learn to let go of things that were negatively influencing your life, and even though the traumatic event is still part of your story, you can make lifestyle changes to help benefit you positively. Things you can do to practice gratitude include gratitude journaling, writing intentional thank you letters, recognizing positive elements of all situations, and positive affirmations that remind you to be content.
These are only some of the ways you can practically express gratitude. If it feels hard at first, don’t worry. It can be challenging to break out of negative mindsets. However, the more you push yourself to be grateful, the more it becomes a natural part of your thought process. You spread positivity when you throw gratitude around, which can come back to you tenfold.
Who Can Help When You Struggle With Gratitude
There are times in life after treatment when it is tricky to move past previous situations. If you struggle at this stage and still have difficulty moving forward or learning how to implement gratitude after trauma treatment, you don’t have to handle those feelings alone. Trauma causes lasting impacts, and symptoms can pop up unexpectedly, even after treatment.
There’s never any shame in seeking further help. Whether you’re a few weeks or many years past trauma and treatment, you can reach out to your loved ones, support group members, therapist, or former treatment center for assistance when gratitude is hard to come by. No matter where you are in your journey, there’s always someone ready and willing to help you cope and turn back toward positivity and contentment.
Adding gratitude to your daily routine can help you fully experience the best parts of your life. Especially after completing treatment for a mental health disorder, gratitude can help you get through the negative emotions and situations you may experience. You have survived a lot already in life, and you can continue moving forward when you stay committed to making healthier lifestyle choices. If you struggle with the elements of gratitude or need help recovering from a traumatic event or history of trauma, the caring staff at The Guest House is here to help you. We can assist you in redefining how you look at life and give you an outlet to learn about the power of gratitude after trauma treatment. For more information on how The Guest House can support you in your recovery journey from trauma, addiction, or mental health disorders, call us at (855) 483-7800.