I think I have said this before, but a really great way to fight issues with anxiety and depression is with gratitude. Being grateful for what you have is a huge tool to gain and practice. In our world today it's so easy to not put this into practice. Sure, we hear all the time people saying this like, "I'm so grateful for my family" and "I'm lucky I have my health" or "I'm thankful to have a job." These things are all great to say and feel, but these are all things we can't physically hold in our hands. Often people don't feel like they have a lot if they don't have a lot of things. So, a lot of times we buy things in order to fill the worries and sadness.
In an effort to truly feel satisfied we tend to turn to materialistic things. We think "I need that new outfit for this weekend " and "I won't survive much longer if I don't get a new car" or "If I ever am going to manage I have to get a new phone." The truth is, you have a ton of clothes you can wear this weekend, a car does not determine if you will literally survive, and your current phone works just fine. Instead of of filling those holes in us with feelings of gratefulness, joy, and satisfaction we buy things in an effort to patch up the holes.
Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with buying new things and enjoying things, but doing so when not grateful with the things we already have can actually leave us more empty than when we started. So, I challenge you to truly look around and see what you're grateful for. Now I don't want you to name off things like family and friends. I want you to look at the material things around you because if you are grateful for the things you already have, there won't be a need to fill up on unnecessary stuff in an effort to feel better.
Right now I'm sitting in my room and I'm looking around and there are a ton of things I'm grateful for. On my bookshelf there are 3 books that I'm so glad I have. I'm happy I acquired The Twilight Series because it was the thing that started my sister-in-law's and my relationship. I'm happy to have The Harry Potter Series because it is the one book series my entire family has read and without it we wouldn't have the family goal of one day going to the Harry Potter World at Universal Studios. I'm happy I have The Bible because by owning it I completed a bucket list item. I'm grateful for my bed I'm currently sitting on because it reminds me how lucky I am to actually sleep in one each night when many don't have one. I'm grateful for my bulletin board I have on my wall directly across from my bed because every morning I wake up I see all the photos of my loved ones it houses. I'm grateful for a closet full of clothes because putting outfits together gives me a lot of joy. And finally, I'm grateful for the laptop I'm currently typing on. Not only does it give me a sense of pride knowing that I bought it all on my own, it also has given me the ability to realize that a major coping tool for me is writing. Finally, my laptop connects me to all of you.
So the next time you think about going out and buying something to just fill up your issues and holes take a look around and see all the amazing things you already have.
Day 94- Words of Wisdom...."Think big, but let the little things make you happy."
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