If you would like to begin practicing this in your own life, you are warmly invited to my Free 2-Hour Inner Gratitude Webinar. It offers a glimpse into the full 5-Day Inner Gratitude Program,  a life-changing journey towards healing.

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Breaking Free from Negative Thoughts with Gratitude

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Trauma has a way of trapping survivors in fear-based cycles. Gratitude interrupts that loop. By choosing to notice blessings, however small, survivors may notice a shift in how they feel and the way they think.

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This connects with the reflections I share in Does Your Story Empower You?. Our personal stories can either keep us stuck in negativity or help us step into resilience and hope. Gratitude is one of the tools that allows us to rewrite those stories.

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Here’s a truth worth holding onto:

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"Gratitude turns what we have into enough." — Melody Beattie

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How Gratitude Supports Mind, Body and Spirit

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Gratitude is more than a positive outlook, it’s a practice that shifts the mind, steadies the body, and restores the heart. Research shows that gratitude can ease symptoms of depression and anxiety, improve sleep, and reduce stress hormones in the body.

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For survivors, this matters deeply. Trauma often leaves emotions heavy, thoughts tangled, and the body carrying exhaustion from years of stress. Gratitude creates an entry point into relief. By noticing even the smallest blessings, we can begin to feel calmer inside, sleep more peacefully, and find new energy to face each day.

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And it doesn’t stop with the mind or body. Gratitude also strengthens the spirit, opening the way to hope, connection, and a sense of inner peace that abuse once tried to steal. ​As I share in Loneliness During the Holidays: Finding Strength in Solitude, caring for our emotional wellbeing creates a steadiness that no one can take away. Gratitude works in much the same way, anchoring us when life feels overwhelming.

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Robert Emmons, one of the world’s leading gratitude researchers, explains it this way:

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“Gratitude blocks toxic emotions like envy, resentment, and regret, which can destroy our happiness.”

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This is why I believe gratitude is not “just a nice idea,” but the foundation of recovery. It’s both practical and proven and most importantly, it’s something survivors can begin in small, doable steps.

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Rebuilding Life After Trauma: The Power of Gratitude

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One of the most profound shifts survivors experience through gratitude is moving from scarcity to possibility. Instead of focusing on what has been lost, they begin to see what remains and what can grow.

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Gratitude in My Own Healing

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When I was raising my four boys alone, money was incredibly tight. Some months it felt impossible to cover rent, utilities, clothing, just day to day living. On top of that, I watched their father step in with “big” gestures, like special trips and holidays, while I carried the daily weight of holding everything together.

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At first, it would have been easy to live in anger and resentment. But I made a choice: I decided to be grateful for every single cent that came in, no matter the amount. Instead of seeing those trips and holidays as a reminder of what I could not give, I felt thankful that my children got to experience joy.

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That shift changed everything. Gratitude didn’t erase the struggle, but it gave me a new lens. Over time, my life began to respond differently, opportunities opened, unexpected support came, and I felt my own inner strength return.

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This is why I believe so deeply in the practice of gratitude. It isn’t about ignoring hardship, it’s about finding light even in the hardest places.

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“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” — William Arthur Ward