How Gratitude Can Help You Reduce Mum Anxiety.
If thinking about your kids future and the state of world keeps you up at night or has you in a state of constant anxiety. First know that you are not alone. The fear I now feel in my life on an ongoing basis is something I was not at all prepared for or expecting when I gave birth to my daughter.
It is this invisible emotion that now lives with me often and I’m sure it affects many other Mums too. Bringing a child into the world is not joke!!
Here's what most people don't realise: when you're in a state of anxiety, you are not in your fullest state, your ability to make smart decisions goes down. You carry tension in your body and you cause yourself unnecessary suffering and stress. None of the things that are going to be make us joyful and more effective mums right!
There's a simple practice that can interrupt that pattern of worry and give you the mental space to move from fear to faith. It’s something I adore, the very simple yet profound practice of Gratitude.
How Gratitude Helps Break the Anxiety Cycle
Here's the powerful truth about gratitude: gratitude and fear cannot exist in your mind at the same time.
When you actively focus on what you're grateful for, your brain physically shifts out of fear mode and into a calmer, more positive state. This shift does several things:
1. It reduces anxiety and stress hormones
Studies show that practicing gratitude lowers cortisol (your stress hormone) and increases serotonin and dopamine (your feel-good hormones). This means you're physically calmer and better able to think clearly.
2. It helps you think more rationally
When you're not in panic mode, you can actually look at your life objectively, make a plan, and take action without spiraling.
3. It shifts you from scarcity to abundance mindset
Gratitude helps you focus on what you do have rather than only seeing what you lack. This doesn't mean ignoring your problems. It means approaching them from a place of "I have resources and I can handle this" rather than "everything is terrible and hopeless."
4. It improves decision-making
When you're calm and thinking clearly, you make better choices. You're less likely to react and more likely to anticipate.
I'm not saying gratitude is magic (even though it can feel like that). But it gives you the mental and emotional foundation to actually do the work to show up as a more calm and grounded person in your life and for your kids.
See American Brain Foundation.
The 7-Day Gratitude Challenge for Wellbeing
If you're feeling scared, worried or anxious right now, try this simple practice for one week and see what shifts.
Every day for 7 days, write down 5 things you're grateful for.
They can be big or small. Your health. Your home. Your children. Running water. A warm bed. A kind word from a friend. The fact that you woke up today. Anything.
But here's the important part: don't just list them quickly and move on. Really feel them. Think of specific moments you're grateful for and let yourself experience them again as if you're living them right now. Notice how your body feels when you do this. Notice that while you're thinking about gratitude, you're not stressing about anything.
That shift is everything.
What Happens After 7 Days
After your first week, check in with yourself. How do you feel? Do you notice any difference in your anxiety levels? Are you able to look at your your life and your kids future with a bit more calm and more importantly hope?
If it's working, keep going. The more you practice gratitude, the more natural it becomes. And the more you focus on what you can be grateful for, the more you'll find to be grateful for.
“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”
This practice compounds just like savings do. Small daily actions that seem insignificant at first add up to real change over time.
Start This Week
Give yourself this gift. No matter what's happening in your life right now, no matter how bad it looks, if you're reading this you have things you can be grateful for. It's your job to find them.
Try the 7-day challenge this week. Write down 5 things each day. Really feel them. Notice what shifts.
Then next week, see how you feel. Notice what has shifted. If you have enjoyed the practice, keep going, make it a habit.
Want to deepen the connection?
Building a healthy mindset is just one piece of becoming more fully yourself and stepping into who you were born to be.
If you want to get even deeper, I write a free bi-weekly newsletter. It’s like a letter to my best friend called Back in the Game. A space where I share more personal stories, get really honest and offer practical tools and tips that I am using in my life to help me navigate life shifts of motherhood and career.
I’d love to connect with you there.