Re-Framing Exercise
Building Gratitude for People in Your Life
Use gratitude writing to strengthen a more balanced and optimistic outlook.
BookmarkAbout This Practice
Gratitude does not require ignoring difficulty or pretending everything is positive. It restores balance by helping you also notice people, experiences, and conditions that support your well-being. Writing these details down gives them enough attention to become easier to remember.
Journaling makes automatic stories easier to examine. In this practice, the audio guides the timing and prompts. The Exercise Process below first helps you uncover the current story, then supports you in developing a more reasonable and balanced perspective or applying a helpful insight in a new area. Write honestly rather than trying to produce a perfect answer.
Building Gratitude for People in Your Life
Guided Practice
Exercise Process
Set Up: 3 Minutes
- Bring to mind the people in your life.
Journal Part A: 3 Minutes
- Write down what you are grateful for about the people in your life that you love.
- Keep your pencil moving. If you run out of things to write, then write down, “I have nothing to write…”
Journal Part B: 3 Minutes
- Write down what you are grateful for with people in your life that are challenging.
- Keep your pencil moving. If you run out of things to write, then write down, “I have nothing to write…”
Reflection Exercise: 2 Minutes
- Read what you wrote.
- Reflect on the positive aspects of what you wrote.
- Notice how you feel.
Compassionate Breathing Exercise: 2 Minutes
- Breathe and bring some kindness and support into yourself.
- You are not alone in this.
- You are learning to get better.
- You will be able to move forward.
- Remind yourself to be kind if you stumble along the way.
Practice Methods
Micro Practice: Just Three Breaths…
- Breathe and become present.
- Breathe and notice who is around.
- Breathe and recall something you are grateful for about this person.