Balance Baby

S1E6 Embracing Gratitude: Reshaping Reality Through Sincere Appreciation

• Harkaren • Season 1 • Episode 6

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As we celebrate the first transformative month of Balance Baby, I want to extend a heartfelt thank-you to you, the listeners, for embarking on this journey of self-improvement with me, Harkaren. Our voyage through the mental seas has taught us how to navigate the tumultuous waves of thoughts and emotions, steering us towards the tranquil waters of positivity. We've anchored ourselves in practices that question our beliefs, retrain our subconscious, and embrace the stillness of meditation. Now, we harness the transformative power of gratitude—a force that not only impacts our mental and physical health but also reshapes our very reality. Imagine a life where your deepest thanks elevates you to new heights, diminishing the shadows of doubt and aligning you with the abundance of the universe. 

In this heartfelt gathering of souls, we're not just forming a community; we are the architects of a sanctuary where love and acceptance are the pillars. Gratitude is our torch in the darkness, illuminating the path for ourselves and for others to discover their boundless potential. It's an act of courage to face life's challenges with a heart full of grace, to trust in the grand design the universe has penned for us. By embracing gratitude, we empower ourselves to live a life replete with fulfillment and divine synchronicity. So, follow along, subscribe, and let's continue to cultivate this spirit of grateful living that promises to transform our lives and the world around us—one thankful heartbeat at a time.

Join our community of radiant souls. Subscribe and tune in every Wednesday to hear the latest episode. Be a part of a vibrant tribe that supports, inspires, and grows together.

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Harkaren:

Hello everyone and welcome to Balance Baby, the podcast designed to help you consistently show up as the best version of yourself. My name is Harkaren and I'll be your host. I'll be here every week sharing stories and teaching you techniques to prioritize the only thing we have any control over in this world Ourselves. I can't believe that it's already been a month since I launched my podcast. I'm honestly so grateful to have this platform where I can share things that I'm passionate about, and we've already covered a lot, and we're going to continue building on this foundation of understanding as we continue on our journey to our best selves. I want to recap some of what we learned last month. So, if you've been implementing everything that you've learned, you'd be questioning your thoughts and behaviors and trying to better understand the root of your beliefs. You would be reprogramming your subconscious mind through steps like cognitive restructuring and reciting a mantra and positive self-talk. You would have incorporated meditation and mindfulness into your daily life. You would be consciously making kinder decisions, which would cause positive ripples to flow through your life. You would limit your exposure to negative people and you'd become aware that you have the ability to be an uplifter. Implementing all that you've learned in January alone and carrying those practices with you through the rest of 2024 would cause a noticeable positive change in your life. But I want to supercharge all of this for you by introducing the importance of gratitude.

Harkaren:

Psychologists have successfully proven that one of the key factors of how happy you are in life is directly related to how much gratitude you show. Gratitude is beneficial for our mental and emotional well-being. Numerous scientific studies have demonstrated the positive effects of gratitude on various aspects of psychological and physical health. Gratitude practices have been shown to enhance mental resilience, emotional regulation and overall life satisfaction. Gratitude has been linked to reducing symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress. Grateful individuals tend to be more empathetic, more compassionate and more supportive, which contributes to healthier and more fulfilling relationships. Gratitude cultivates a sense of optimism and resilience in the face of adversity. Grateful people are better able to find meaning and purpose in difficult circumstances, leading to greater psychological resilience and coping abilities. Gratitude practices have been associated with a range of physical health benefits, including improved immune function, better sleep quality and reduced inflammation. By focusing on the positive aspects of life and acknowledging blessings, you can experience greater happiness, fulfillment and overall life satisfaction. Just as regular exercise is essential for maintaining physical and mental health. Incorporating gratitude practices into daily life can contribute to a healthier, more balanced and fulfilling life.

Harkaren:

If you remember from episode one, we discussed that the subconscious mind makes up approximately 95% of our brain activity. This includes the functions of the body. Our emotions are felt in our body, but our bodies don't know the difference between an emotion created from an experience or the emotions you're creating from thought alone. So this means you can stop waiting for external factors to make you feel grateful. When you consciously cultivate feelings of gratitude through your thoughts and intentions, your body responds as if those experiences were already happening. This is because the mind-body connection is so deeply intertwined that our thoughts and emotions have a direct impact on our physiological state. By consistently practicing gratitude, you're essentially programming your body to align with frequencies of abundance and positivity and, as a result, you become a magnet attracting elevated experiences into your life that resonate with the energy of gratitude you're emitting. It's a powerful principle grounded in the science of neuroplasticity and quantum physics. As you shift your internal state to one of gratitude and abundance, you transform your external reality, drawing in more blessings, opportunities and synchronicities that reflect your elevated vibration. So, instead of waiting for external circumstances to dictate your level of gratitude, take charge of your emotional state and become the architect of your own reality, manifesting a life filled with abundance, joy and fulfillment. Something amazing that I've learned is that you cannot feel gratitude and lack at the same time, so the more you get yourself into a state of gratitude, the less effective your limiting beliefs become.

Harkaren:

Gratitude acts as a powerful cure for feelings of scarcity or lack, by shifting our focus from what we don't have to what we do have. When we cultivate gratitude, we train our minds to recognize and appreciate the abundance that surrounds us, whether it's the love of family and friends, the beauty of nature or the simple joys of everyday life. In order to do so, we create a positive feedback loop that reinforces feelings of abundance and diminishes the grip of limiting beliefs rooted in scarcity. By consistently practicing gratitude, we rewire our brains to perceive opportunities rather than obstacles, abundance rather than scarcity, and possibilities rather than limitations. As a result, we become more resilient, more resourceful and open to the infinite possibilities that life has to offer.

Harkaren:

In episode 4, we talked about the vibrational scale of alignment. You'll hear me talk about this quite a bit, because it's one of my favorite things to talk about and it's an essential tool to understand where we are on our path of alignment. I let you know that our goal is not to jump from the bottom to the top of the scale, but instead to gradually and sustainably increase our vibrations through inspired action. We use the vibrational scale as a guide, reminding us where we started and where we are now. Joy, appreciation and gratitude are at the top end of the scale, the absolute best feelings you can feel as a human being. Expressing gratitude is one of the only ways you can boost yourself up the scale of alignment, bypassing the need to gradually increase your vibration and increments. It's like a secret shortcut to the top. When you're in a state of gratitude, you are directly connected to the highest version of yourself.

Harkaren:

Unfortunately, gratitude has become somewhat of a buzzword. It's a little disappointing because it's lost a lot of its meaning in all of the buzzing. In our fast-paced, consumer-driven society, gratitude has been reduced to a superficial gesture or a social media trend, rather than being deeply rooted in genuine appreciation and mindfulness. It's become all too common to see hashtag greatfall posts accompanied by curated images of material possessions or fleeting moments of success, rather than heartfelt expressions of thanks for the simple joys and blessings of everyday life. This not only dilutes the true essence of gratitude, but also perpetuates a culture of comparison and entitlement, where the focus is more on what we lack rather than what we have. As a result, the transformative power of gratitude to cultivate inner peace, resilience and connection is often overlooked or overshadowed by empty gestures and superficial displays. But it's time to reclaim the true meaning of gratitude, to cultivate a deeper sense of appreciation for the richness and beauty of life, and to express thanks not just in words, but in actions that reflect our genuine appreciation and mindfulness of the present moment.

Harkaren:

Gratitude is not about forcing appreciation for unpleasant things in your life. It's choosing to instead bring your focus to all of the positive aspects of your life. When we are truly grateful for something or someone, our body rewards us by flooding our brain with dopamine, creating a natural high. And because it feels so good, we're motivated to feel it again and again and again. The more gratitude you express, the more you have to be grateful for.

Harkaren:

So what are some ways you can implement gratitude into your daily life? The most common method that you might already be familiar with is by writing a gratitude journal. These days, you can't go to a bookstore without walking past a whole section of gratitude journals. But this is actually my least favorite way to practice gratitude. Don't get me wrong. It's a great way to get started. It's definitely better than doing nothing. By writing down what you're grateful for, you bring conscious awareness to the positive aspects of your life, which can have a profound impact on your mood and mindset. However, I find that gratitude journals can sometimes feel repetitive or forced, especially if you're simply listing the same things each day without truly feeling the gratitude behind them. They can feel superficial if we simply list generic blessings without truly connecting with their significance.

Harkaren:

To truly harness the power of gratitude, specificity is key. Consider the difference between saying I'm grateful for my dog versus I'm grateful for my dog because he adds happiness to my life every day, encourages me to get out for walks and provides companionship when I need it the most. By being specific, there's a notable shift in energy and it creates a deeper sense of gratitude, going beyond superficial gratitude. This specificity not only enhances our emotional connection to the blessings in our lives, but also amplifies their impact on our overall well-being. By acknowledging the details of what we're grateful for, we cultivate a heightened awareness of the abundance and richness that surrounds us.

Harkaren:

But talking about or writing about gratitude is not the same as actively feeling it. For me, gratitude feels like shimmery gold energy radiating from the center of my body. It's as if every cell is infused with warmth and light, like the feeling of the sun touching every part of my skin. It fills me up with a sense of peace. That's what gratitude feels like to me an inner radiance that illuminates my being from the inside out. I want you to learn to connect with where you feel gratitude in your body and what it feels like. Be specific.

Harkaren:

Next time you feel gratitude, try to fully immerse yourself in that moment by practicing mindfulness. I often do this when I'm at the beach, which is my happy place. I tune into the sounds of the seagulls and the waves crashing, the sensation of the sun on my face and the sand under my feet. I visualize capturing this moment and all of the associated sensations in a jar to open and relive whenever I may want to. This helps me practice the good feelings that I want to feel. I try to connect as many of my senses as possible with the memories that spark the most gratitude within me, when you can get your thoughts and intentions to align with the feelings of joy and gratitude. You attract the absolute best experiences into your life. You begin to actively create your life experiences. We'll talk more about this in future episodes. For now, I want to leave you with another technique to help you deepen your gratitude practice. To do this, you want to combine mindfulness and gratitude.

Harkaren:

Combining mindfulness and gratitude can be a transformative practice, allowing us to deepen our appreciation for life's moments by engaging in all five senses, such like the example of being at the beach, where we tune into sights, sounds and sensations around us. We can extend this practice by intentionally recalling and reliving memories of gratitude associated with each of our senses. Starting with the sense of sight, we can express our gratitude for the breathtaking sights that have touched our hearts. It could be the memory of witnessing a radiant sunset painting the sky in hues of pink and yellow. Moving on to our sense of hearing, we can recall moments where music or sounds have uplifted our spirits and filled us with joy, like your favorite band playing in concert live or the simple pleasures of listening to the laughter of someone you love.

Harkaren:

Next, we can focus on the sense of touch and express gratitude for the comforting sensations that have brought us peace and comfort. This might include the memory of hugging your favorite person, feeling their warmth and presence surrounding us and cocooning us in love and security. Or it could be the sensation of sinking into a cozy blanket on a cold winter's night, wrapping ourselves in the softness and feeling the sense of comfort and belonging. Moving on to the sense of smell, it could be the aroma of freshly brewed coffee in the morning, signalling the start of a new day filled with possibilities and opportunities. Lastly, we can explore the sense of taste and express gratitude for the flavors that have delighted our pellets and nourished our bodies. This might include the memory of savoring a delicious meal prepared with love, or it could be the simple pleasure of indulging in our favorite treat, allowing ourselves to fully enjoy the moment. By intentionally recalling and reliving memories of gratitude associated with our senses, we expand our awareness and deepen our appreciation for the richness and abundance of life. This practice invites us to savor the present moment, celebrating the beauty and wonder that surrounds us in all its sensory dimensions and cultivating a profound sense of gratitude for the gift of being alive.

Harkaren:

Remember to be specific with your gratitude. Close your eyes and embody each of those memories as if you were reliving it. Don't just write it and speak it. Time to feel it. Thank you so much for tuning in to my sixth episode.

Harkaren:

When you cultivate gratitude as a way of life, you embody the highest version of yourself, a radiant and empowered being who is aligned with the divine flow of life. You become a channel for love and light, inspiring others to awaken to their own greatness and to live with open hearts and minds. In this state of alignment, you realize that gratitude is not just an emotion but a state of being, an expression of your true nature as a divine being having a human experience. It empowers you to transcend fear and negativity, enabling you to rise above challenges with grace and resilience. It fosters a deep sense of trust and surrender, cultivating a deep knowing that everything is always working out for you. Be sure to hit follow or subscribe so you can continue with us on this journey of becoming the best version of ourselves. Together, here we're creating a community of beautiful souls, ready to uplift each other, ready to experience all the joy that this life has to offer us. And don't forget life is all about balance, baby.