Thanksgiving offers something quietly powerful: an opportunity to reconnect with gratitude, a practice that has surprising effects on your mental health. Read below to learn how you can calm anxiety with gratitude this Thanksgiving.

Why Anxiety Increases Around the Holidays

Holidays can be hard and being honest about your emotional experience doesn’t make you ungrateful. It makes you human.

Common sources of holiday anxiety include:

• Family conflict or estranged relationships
• Financial strain
• Grief or missing loved ones
• Social anxiety around gatherings
• Overcommitment and expectations
• Comparison 

For people already managing anxiety or depression, these pressures can amplify symptoms. For others, the sudden intensification of social interactions and routines can create new stressors.

How Gratitude Can Help You Cope with Anxiety

Gratitude isn’t a magical switch that makes anxiety disappear. But it is a tool—simple, science-supported, and surprisingly effective.

• It shifts attention away from threat. Anxiety primes the brain to scan for danger; gratitude interrupts that loop by redirecting focus toward safety and support.
• It boosts mood-regulating chemicals like dopamine and serotonin.
• It strengthens relationships, which helps reduce loneliness and isolation—common holiday struggles.
• It promotes resilience, helping you cope with stress more effectively.

Gratitude is not about pretending everything is perfect. It's about noticing the things, big or small, that bring moments of steadiness.

How to Practice Gratitude this Thanksgiving

Keep a gratitude journal: Write down 3–5 things you’re grateful for each day. They can be big (a supportive friend) or small (a warm cup of tea). Over time, your mind becomes more attuned to noticing positives.

Practice gratitude pauses: A couple of times a day, stop for 10 seconds and mentally acknowledge something good happening in the moment—sunlight, a comfortable chair, a message from someone you care about.

Express appreciation to others: Send a short message, say thank you, or write a note appreciating someone’s actions or presence. Expressed gratitude strengthens relationships and boosts both people’s mood.

Reframe challenges: Thought reframing is a CBT tool that can help you change negative thoughts into something positive and useful. When something stressful happens, ask yourself: What’s one thing I can still be grateful for? or What did this teach me? This doesn’t dismiss difficulties—it helps balance them with perspective.

Getting Started with Therapy for Anxiety Management

I offer online therapy for individuals struggling with anxiety, panic attacks, or intrusive thoughts. Through therapy you can learn to practice gratitude to feel more present and secure. Contact me today to get started with therapy. Offered online in Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina.