Gratitude has been shown to promote the production of serotonin and dopamine, two of the neurotransmitters (brain chemicals) responsible for helping us feel happy. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to learn and make changes. As we form a new mental habit, such as practicing gratitude in recovery, we can create new thought patterns by repeating that habit regularly. With consistency and repetition, those thoughts continue to be reinforced, solidifying and becoming stronger the more we practice. We have the ability to transform our lives by creating shifts in our mindset. Eventually, we can begin to believe these new thoughts to be true, and they can become our new default thought patterns. 

Rewiring Our Brains With Gratitude in Recovery

This is especially true when thinking of gratitude in recovery. The more we think about what we’re grateful for, the more our minds seek out even more to be grateful for. Our new default thought patterns are gratitude, replacing fear, worry, self-doubt, frustration, and negativity. You might find yourself instinctively looking for and finding more and more things to be grateful for without even trying. Thanks to neuroplasticity, we can rewire our brains for more gratitude and, therefore, more happiness.

Self-Reflection With Gratitude in Recovery

The more grateful we are as a habit, the more grateful we become as people. Gratitude can become a personality trait, a characteristic of who we are, the more we practice gratitude. This “dispositional gratitude” can influence how we see ourselves, how we view our addictions, and how we approach life. 

Rather than being ashamed of ourselves for struggling with addiction, we can choose to be grateful for all the many priceless gifts we’ve received due to our recovery. Where we might be inclined to regret the years of our lives wasted on addiction, we can instead find gratitude for the path that ultimately brought us happiness. After years of condemning ourselves, we can choose to be grateful to ourselves for saving our own lives. 

Finding a supportive community like Athens Area Commencement Center, knowing people are cheering us on, is one of the many things we can be grateful for in recovery. 

Acceptance and Gratitude in Recovery

It might feel counterintuitive, but we can even learn to be grateful for our addictions, our struggles, and even our pain. Many of us come to feel that in the grand scheme of our lives, it was the pain of our addiction that led us to recovery and genuine happiness. Before recovery, we were living a lie. We weren’t truly happy. 

Hitting rock bottom was the catalyst for change that we needed. That lowest point in our lives became the jumping-off point for miracles. All the turmoil and confusion we felt living with addiction brought about clarity and light. Having gratitude for our addiction can help us find peace with who we are and come to terms with our addiction, bringing about much-needed acceptance and even happiness as we continue doing the work to recover.

Simple Ways to Include Gratitude in Recovery

Begin by noticing things you feel grateful for throughout the day. It can be as simple as being able to see the sun shining or having a meal you enjoy. Or it can be as profound as the loving relationships in your life. All of it is meaningful. When you’ve observed something you’re grateful for, or when something you appreciate comes to mind, notice it. Pause and feel gratitude. We can experience more satisfaction in our lives simply by choosing to be more grateful.

Feeling Into Gratitude in Recovery

How does being grateful make you feel? Openhearted, warm, blessed, at peace. Build upon the emotions by sitting in them for longer than you might otherwise. Very often, when we think of something we’re grateful for, we rush back to whatever it was we were doing. Our culture prioritizes being busy, and we feel a sense of urgency to rush and accomplish. We can allow ourselves to slow down, pause, and savor the many gifts and blessings in our lives. Let yourself really feel the contentment that gratitude can bring.

Affirming Resilience and Gratitude in Recovery

The more content we are with ourselves and our lives, the more resilient we can be in our recovery. We might be less tempted to use our drug of choice when we’re feeling at peace within ourselves. Chances are we won’t want to corrupt our newfound happiness and sense of calm. We don’t want to jeopardize the stability of our lives now that we’re sober. Things have gotten so much better; why ruin all our hard work for a quick high? Repeating affirmations like “I have so much to be grateful for” and “I find strength in my blessings” can allow our gratitude to empower our resilience to stay sober. “I am so grateful I have the strength and resilience to stay sober.”

Practicing Daily Gratitude in Recovery

Many cultures have a holiday of thanksgiving with gratitude as a central theme. How much more could we cultivate gratitude in recovery if we expressed gratitude on a daily basis? Try making a gratitude practice a part of your daily routine. You might include your family in your gratitude practice and encourage everyone to share what they’re grateful for when beginning a meal. Maybe you want to make a habit of writing out a list of things you’re grateful for every night before going to sleep. It can be helpful, especially when dealing with morning anxiety, to start the day with a gratitude practice right when waking up.

A treatment center like Athens Area Commencement Center can help you to develop useful tools in recovery, including learning to incorporate more gratitude into your life.

There are many tools we can use to support our sobriety, and gratitude is among the most useful. Gratitude helps us to be happier, and genuine happiness is one of the many gifts we receive in recovery. Practicing gratitude can help remind us why we want to get sober and why we’re doing the work to recover. Gratitude can also help keep us sober when we’re in danger of relapsing. Finding support in recovery is one of the many things we can be grateful for. Call Athens Area Commencement Center at (706) 546-7355 for more information on our treatment programs. You’ll look back at the future version of yourself and be so grateful that you got started today.

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