Make Your Thanksgiving As Chronic As Your Need

By Donna Gibbs

Let’s play an old word-association game. What words come to your mind when you hear “Thanksgiving”?

Many of you just thought of words like turkey … pilgrims… family… football… shopping. You experience warm, pleasant memories and emotions when you think of the word. Some of you, on the other hand, associate much darker words with Thanksgiving: words like conflict… loneliness… sadness. Frankly, some of you reading this text dread Thanksgiving. If you struggle with an eating disorder, you dread this day over most others – it has traditionally been a very bad day, and you associate this word with previous memories of struggle with food and body image. If you have a challenging family situation, you are nervous that something might blow up, and you don’t want to be caught in the crossfire. If you have lost a loved one, or experienced some traumatic event, you may wonder how you will cope, and how you will ever experience joy again during a previously joyous holiday. You might wonder how you will survive the emotional strain of the holidays ahead.

If you have hurtful associations with the word “Thanksgiving”, then let’s look back to the word itself for some guidance in coping. Thanksgiving simply means giving thanks. Did you know that research confirms that gratitude is a powerful resource in treating depression? No, this doesn’t mean that if you suddenly become a thankful person, that all of your grief and sadness will be gone. But, you may notice a slight shift in perspective that is refreshing and lifts your spirit. Being thankful doesn’t mean thinking through a superficial list of obvious things to be grateful for. It means really pondering and treasuring the less obvious things. Even in the darkest hours, we must meditate on the goodness of God and what He is doing in our lives (even when we don’t fully understand what appear to be bad things that are also interrupting our lives).

**The key to thankfulness is that it must be chronic. We have chronic stressors. Chronic conditions. Chronic losses. Chronic depression. Our degree of thankfulness must be as chronic as our need. So, this Thanksgiving, I want to challenge you to outweigh your challenges with your gratitude. Ponder your thankfulness. Literally, write out a list and reflect on it often. Write letters to others to express your gratitude. Just an experiment …I think you’ll be thankful you did!

Donna Gibbs, co-owner of Summit Wellness Centers, PLLC, is author of the recent releases, Silencing Insecurity and Becoming Resilient. Donna has authored numerous other books, and is commonly featured on radio broadcasts across America, and occasionally internationally as well. Donna has been providing individuals and families the hope and help they need for twenty years as a national certified counselor, board-certified professional Christian counselor, and licensed professional counselor supervisor. A member of the American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC), she is a leading professional provider for Focus on the Family, Christian Care Network, r3Continuum, FINDINGbalance, and Samaritan’s Purse.

Follow Donna’s author page at https://www.facebook.com/DonnaGibbsResilience/ for daily encouragement, the weekly blog, and updates regarding events and speaking engagements.

Categories

Recent Posts