Gratitude
Two and a half years ago, I was in the darkest place of my life. I felt hopeless, alone, and had tens of thousands of dollars of debt weighing me down. Several weeks went by before I realized that taking on the victim role was not going to help me in any shape or form. In fact, it brought me down a dark rabbit hole that made me feel isolated, paranoid and deeply depressed.
In an effort of avoiding prescription pills to ease the pain, I immersed myself in self-help books. The first one I stumbled across recommended that I make a gratitude list each day. Gratitude is the art of expressing things you are thankful for, that are already in your possession. Rather than getting upset at something disappointing or stressful that had happened, I’d look for something positive learned from each negative experience.
Every time I felt myself getting into a funk or toxic thought pattern, I’d immediately write down a list of things I had an immense appreciation for in my life.
Within a few weeks, my nervous stomach calmed down, and I went back to my pre-divorce weight. After a few months, I began to feel inspired and motivated in ways I’d never felt. I started writing and releasing all the trauma I’d repressed, and finally found peace with a lot of it. Fourteen months into practicing gratitude daily, I paid off all of my debt and simultaneously established a healthy savings account.
The most prominent shift I noticed came when I received several large bills – particularly a medical bill for thousands of dollars AFTER I’d finally paid off everything. Initially, I avoided it for a few weeks. Every time I’d look at it, I’d roll my eyes in frustration. As I continued to work on my mindset and think of money as an ebb and flow, I started paying off all the smaller invoices with gratitude that I had money in my account to afford the things I truly needed in life. A few days into this practice, I received a letter from my insurance company that they’d made a mistake on their end and that I’d only owed $144.17 on the medical bill! I could not believe my eyes. Never in my life have I ever run to my checkbook to pay a bill that quickly. This experience reinforced the effectiveness of gratitude.
There are always things we can focus on in life that didn’t go as planned. We can choose to spend all of our time focusing on disappointments, failures, and upsets, but that’ll never change their outcome or improve our state of mind. On the contrary, we can find gratitude for them and the lessons they’ve taught us. The more we train our minds to see the good in any and all situations, the more abundance and happiness we attract into our lives.
The more I give thanks, the more abundance and happiness I attract into my life. In the past few years, I have strengthened relationships with family, friends and various tribes of women who have supported, inspired, and uplifted me more than they’ll ever know. I am in a loving relationship with someone who is my biggest cheerleader in life, and as a bonus he has the two cutest, most loving children that motivate me on a daily basis to be the best version of myself. I am happily self-employed, building a company that is going to do big things in its lifetime. Life is incredible, and there’s no doubt that practicing gratitude has led me to this place in my life.
I hope that you make gratitude part of your daily routine. I promise it will enhance your life tenfold. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you for taking time from your day to partake in my journey.
Sending you love and positive vibes, always!
xo
Katie
P.S – Sending endless love and thanks to the gifted Emily Burke and brilliant Kate George for taking the time to understand the vision I had for my website and helping me bring it to life!
Photos for this blogpost were shot by the talented Angelica Glass