Finding Gratitude This Thanksgiving: Why It Matters and How to Practice It

As we move into Thanksgiving week, I encourage you to take a moment and connect with what gratitude really means.

Grata comes from the Italian word for gratitude, and it's at the heart of Grata Wellness. Gratitude is the lens I return to again and again, both with clients and in my own life, for the way it expands perspective, calms the nervous system, and helps us feel grounded and resilient.

Gratitude brings us back to the truth that life itself is a gift. We don’t have to earn the sunrise, the breath in our lungs, the people who care for us, or the opportunities to begin again. When we meet life with open hands, we become more aware, and maybe even humbled, in a way that helps us feel more grounded, more at peace, and more connected to what really matters.

This season, I'm filled with gratitude for my loved ones, for long phone calls and belly laughs, for the sunshine and beauty we see around us, for this work and the transformations I witness in each of you, for my new crystal sound bowls, and for the chance to share this message with you.

Why Gratitude Matters

Gratitude is a powerful practice that helps us notice and appreciate what we often overlook. It's amazing how it's often the small, ordinary moments that shape how we feel each day.

It also shifts how we move through challenges. Gratitude helps us recognize the strength, resilience, and wisdom we gain from difficult seasons. It's not about bypassing hard emotions, but rather about understanding that meaning, clarity, and growth often live inside them.

The Science

A consistent gratitude practice is more than a nice idea. Research shows real physiological benefits. For example, gratitude is linked to lower stress and stronger well-being, and some controlled studies suggest gratitude journaling may improve cardiovascular biomarkers like inflammation and heart rate variability.

The Huberman Lab recently highlighted an interesting finding: gratitude deepens when we reflect on a story of someone else receiving kindness. Spending just 1–3 minutes recalling their struggle, the support they received, and how it impacted them activates the brain circuits most closely linked to deep gratitude. (Thank you Griffin for sharing this podcast episode with me!)

Life as a Gift

Something I’ve been reflecting on recently is the idea that life is a gift. It's not a reward, not something we earn by doing enough or being enough, but something freely given. When we practice gratitude, we’re really remembering that we are receivers.

This mindset softens us, invites humility, and a deeper sense of belonging. It helps us loosen the grip of perfectionism, comparison, or judgment. And it reminds us that our role isn’t to control everything. It shifts us from “Why is this happening?” to “What is this offering me?” and from “I have to” to “I get to.”

How to Practice Gratitude Today

• Write 3 things you are grateful for each morning or evening

• Look for glimmers (the small sparks of joy, warmth, or calm) in your days

• Say your gratitude out loud on a walk

• Keep a running Note in your phone or use a cherished journal

• Try the gratitude narrative method: reflect on a moment when someone received help, and let yourself feel what that meant

This time of year naturally invites reflection on where you have been, who supported you, what you have learned, and what you want to carry into the new year. Gratitude can help you hold all of that with more compassion and clarity.

Journal Prompts

• Who am I grateful for, and why?

• What glimmers showed up for me this week?

• What deserves appreciation from this season of my life?

• What challenge taught me something meaningful this year?

• How can a perspective of gratitude guide me forward?

Pass it On

Take a moment this week to tell someone you are grateful for them. Not in a generic way, but specifically. Send a text or write a note to someone you appreciate:

“I'm grateful to you for ___ because it made me feel ___.”

It is simple, genuine, and deeply meaningful.

Whatever this season looks like for you, I hope you find small moments that remind you of what is good, what is growing, and what is already here. May

gratitude help you enter the holiday season a little more joyful and a little more grounded.

If you want to deepen your mindfulness or gratitude practice, I am here and always happy to support you. Reach out to me at marianna@gratawellness.com.