During recovery, when temptation and self-doubt threaten to pull you back into old patterns, cultivating gratitude serves as a grounding force, shifting focus from what’s missing to what’s meaningful. Most importantly, finding reasons to be thankful has proven benefits for your life overall—which makes sobriety even easier.
What Science Says About Gratitude
The site Grateful Living defines gratitude as “a feeling we experience in response to something good happening, most typically toward someone for giving us something we wanted. This is the basic definition we are taught and come to understand as we grow up. We learn about gratitude as an emotion (or sometimes a social convention).”
Robert A. Emmons, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, refines the concept a bit more in this article for Psi Chi. “Gratitude is an affirmation of the goodness in one’s life and the recognition that the sources of this goodness lie at least partially outside the self. It emerges from two stages of information processing: affirming and recognizing. It’s a response to all that has been given. So it is foundationally and fundamentally a way of looking at life.”
An extensive article about gratitude in the The New York Times indicates that:
- According to Philip Watkins, a professor of psychology at Eastern Washington University and the author of Gratitude and the Good Life, you might feel gratitude when someone is kind to you, but “feeling it is only half the equation,” he says. Regularly expressing gratitude is how you really gain benefits from it.
- Multiple studies state that doing so to your acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family members “boosts” the relationship and “helps bind us more closely,” notes Sara Algoe, a psychologist and researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- The article also points to various studies about gratitude and how the practice provides mental health benefits, such as “reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety, increasing self-esteem and improving satisfaction with daily life.”
- Joel Wong, a professor of counseling psychology at Indiana University’s School of Education, states that practicing thankfulness doesn’t have to be a major part of your day, but consistency matters.“I think the benefits of gratitude activities truly unfold through long-term habits,” he says.
The Greater Good Science Center (GGSC) at the University of California, Berkeley, highlights numerous studies regarding some of the emotional, mental, and physical merits of gratitude:
- It can be a resourceful coping mechanism for stress, triggers, and cravings.
- It often helps quiet the mind and enable better sleep.
- It might be a tool to reduce chronic pain symptoms and intense fatigue.
- It makes it easier to cope with symptoms of anxiety and depression, and may even reduce suicidal thoughts.
- It may enhance support tools such as faith or spirituality.
- It improves connections with others.
- It helps make people happier.
All these aspects of life greatly support your sobriety, build resilience, and help you avoid relapse.
How to Start a Gratitude Practice
By fostering a sense of appreciation for your progress, the people in your support network, and the small moments found in each day, gratitude interrupts negative thought cycles and makes it easier to cancel out the compulsory nature of addiction. This emotional shift can be critical, offering a sustaining sense of hope and contentment that reinforces your commitment to a sober and fulfilling life.
Most experts agree that writing down what you’re thankful for—and maybe even why—is effective for most people. “The act of writing slows down our thinking process and allows us to ponder more deliberately,” he says in the Times article, adding “By writing, we retain a permanent record of our blessings; we can return to our gratitude journaling months or years later to recall what we were grateful for.”
He provides this list of 100 questions you can use as prompts to help you think more specifically about gratitude.
Cedars-Sinai also provides some additional ways to show appreciation, from leaving a note for a loved one to simply saying good morning with a smile to people you live with or encounter.
The GGSC also offers these suggestions to make the most of your gratitude practice.
Willingway Thanks You for Your Trust
At Willingway’s Georgia and Florida addiction rehabilitation locations, our board-certified professionals provide grounded support to help you move forward in life. Members of both our residential and outpatient programs, as well as clients of extended treatment services, receive continuous guidance on the best practices for well-being. We’re grateful for your trust in us as we strive to provide you with coping methods that help you truly feel grateful for your sobriety and health every day. Learn more about our potential partnership by talking with a member of our admissions team.