My Clinical Psychology Home Page | Resources

adriel-kloppenburg-S1XAf3JxOLI-unsplash-3.jpg

Using a Gratitude List

Dr Paul Duignan


You can always find this page at Tinyurl.com/DrPaulGratitude.

When we are facing issues in our life, it is easy to lose sight of the things that are still going well. Our thoughts can then end up only focusing on the things that are not going OK for us. Because of this, we can develop an increasingly distorted, and negative, view of the world.

The simple technique of writing a Gratitude List each day can prevent us from falling into this trap. The process is simple, at the end of each day just write a list the things that you are grateful for. It only takes a couple of minutes. But what it does, is that it brings to your attention that, while there are some problem areas in your life, there are also a number of areas where things are going reasonably OK.

 

Please note when you are doing any type of psychological or self-development work, if you find yourself feeling overwhelming emotions, troubling thoughts or actions, you need to talk to a health professional.


Research and theory supporting this tool: Listing what you are grateful for can improve your wellbeing - Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2), 377–389. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2003-01140-012.

Copyright Dr Paul Duignan 2020.