Approaching your day by being thankful is something we always hear about but rarely apply. It’s such an easy tweak to your mindset but gets lost in your daily stressors and struggles. Sometimes you don’t have a friend to share you feelings with. Sometimes telling yourself, “thank you for being a friend” is the best thing you can do for yourself. By being thankful more often, you will notice your mental health improve. But you may ask, why be thankful when I have so many bad things happening to me? And I’ll reply, maybe these “bad things” are happening so you can be more thankful for what you have. Life is not always smooth-sailing. The downs that follow the ups are necessary to build up your character and increase your wisdom. However, the process does become smoother when you are consistently thankful for what you have.
Thank You for Being a Friend: Being Nice to Yourself
It’s very easy to become bitter, self-critical and put yourself down when things aren’t going your way. This is especially true if you lack a social life and close friends. Sometimes the only friend you have is yourself and you need to remind yourself of that every day. If you’re currently in a position of not having any close friends, the last person you want to put down is yourself. In all cases, you need yourself the most! Think about it; how can you be thankful for what you have if you’re not even thankful for your own presence?
Be nice to yourself and work with your mind on developing a plan for improvement. If there are traits you don’t like about yourself, identify and change them. If there are habits you despise, identify and change them. The first step in being thankful for what you have is treating yourself with love and respect; the same way a good friend would do. After you become comfortable with yourself, you can start being appreciative of everything you have. Be thankful for the roof above your head, clothes, food, family and relationship with God. Don’t lose yourself in the struggles of life. What happens out there does not need to be brought back into your personal space at home. Have courage.
Are you Ready? (This is Defeating Stigma Mindfully)
DSM (Defeating Stigma Mindfully) 
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