Gratitude and Chronic Illness
Living with a chronic illness can offer a special set of skills, emotional awareness, and shift in the ways in which we associate with gratitude. When we think about gratitude, what comes to mind is often our external world, rather than what is experienced inward. With the grief that ensues in living with a chronic condition, our mind, body and soul begin to reconnect itself differently; what might have been no longer serves us now; we begin to adopt new practices of love, appreciation, and care. When it comes to treatment, chronic illness patients often experience a disconnect in what these mean versus what it may have meant prior to their diagnosis. Unfortunately, mainstream medicine offers only a narrow lens in healing, while most of us suffering with anything chronic (mental and physical) require an adaption of treatment and lifestyle embedded in our daily living....
Gratitude is often looked at as a personality trait, yet it can also be cultivated into a practice. Research shows us that those who practice in gratitude writing (identifying what they are grateful for daily) showed better moods, coping styles, and physical health than those who did not. Those with a higher level of gratitude also report more optimism, higher self-esteem, and more satisfaction with life.
It’s important to shed light on the importance of validation of those living with chronic illness. That meaning the ebbs and flows, the ups and downs, and the overall processing of grief in loosing what once was or what could have been in our bodies and futures. We also can look at the importance of what chronic illness can open us up to: gratitude turned inward- an appreciation of our bodies not just in optimal wellness and functioning, but in functioning overall. Gratitude in the breaths we take in on a crisp fall day, appreciation for our bodies having the strength to lift itself up so that the beauty of the world can be absorbed, are examples.
It’s important to have and talk about days when our gratitude can wave thin, but in those difficult days, looking inward into what it is our bodies are telling us, we then start to adapt a new set of skills and mindset into a deeper relationship with ourselves. Gratitude can help us do this. We learn to slow down and reframe these thoughts we may have of betrayal and negativity towards ourselves to appreciation, kindness, and acceptance. Grief often disconnects us with the world and ourselves, as we feel isolated in our experience, and for some, even in our own bodies. With adapting a practice of gratitude, we learn to appreciate and work with what we currently have and can offer to ourselves and those around us. We can then also learn to not just endure a chronic illness, but to also flourish.
See here for some ideas in how to cultivate a daily practice of gratitude.
https://www.mindful.org/an-introduction-to-mindful-gratitude/
Resources:
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/bca9/6652caccfe446e809ac8c6fc20d36eef8c30.pdf
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