HOW TO PRACTICE GRATITUDE THROUGH THE HOLIDAY SEASON

There’s a lot of giving and receiving that happens during the holiday season. Workplaces do Secret Santa and gift exchanges, you have an ever-growing list of parties to attend and potluck dinners to contribute to – even just showing up and beingpresent at all these events can be exhausting. It’s easy to lose sight of the important things and get wrapped up (get it?) in the holiday hub-bub. The holidays are supposed to be a time that we spend with those nearest and dearest to our hearts (are you imagining yourself sitting on your grandfather’s knee in front of the fireplace, rocking in his rocking rocking chair right now?). But we spend a lot of time rushing around making sure we hit every party and get the best gift, and we forget to pay attention to ourselves, the fact that we’re burning out. We also forget to stay grateful –trulygrateful, not ‘Thanks so much for the candelabra, it’s soooo lovely!’ kind of grateful. So let’s bring it back to basics. Here are some simple ways to practice gratitude throughout the holiday season.

Daily Check Ins

Self-care practices can fall to the wayside when we get super busy, especially during the holidays. We attend parties, fill up on rich foods and wine and find it harder to fit in those loving rituals we would practice to show our gratitude for ourselves.

Your challenge this holiday season is to make sure you’re getting some self-care in everyday, whether it’s cooking yourself a healthy dinner, taking a long bath at the end of the day, or declining a party invitation to sit at home and binge watch action movies on your couch.

Give Loving Gifts

It’s undeniable that the holiday season revolves around giving; giving thanks, gifts, presence – you name it. It’s not always easy to think up a thoughtful gift, so instead you resort to a nice-looking sweater or a book recommended by the sales person. There’s nothing wrong with these gifts, but just think how special it could be if we took some time to find a meaningful gift that reflected the love and gratitude we have for the person we’re shopping for. Sometimes a hand-made craft or coupon book full of “unlimited hugs” is worth more than an expensive cashmere scarf.

Stop, Breathe, Reflect

The holidays are a faced-paced time and we can lose sight of what’s important to us because we’re flooded with feelings of overwhelming decision making, stress, and commitments. Rather than let the negative chaos take over you, remind yourself of all the beautiful and positive things in your life.

When you find yourself feeling overwhelmed (or, better yet, evenbefore you start to feel anxious), stop, take 10 deep breaths and think of something or someone you are grateful for. Did your mom send you a cute text? Maybe your love left a special note in your lunchbag, or you made some time to fit in a yoga practice before work. Whatever it is, big or small, acknowledge all the wonderful things in your life. When you focus on them, you’ll notice you’re never short of things to be grateful for.

What are you grateful for this holiday season? Let us know @myinnerfire #myinnerfire. We always love hearing from this beautiful community.