Moving from a Life Full of Stress to a Heart Overflowing with Gratitude

Fifteen years ago, I was diagnosed with a thyroid autoimmune disease called Hashimoto’s. At the time I had no symptoms, and a simple, routine blood test led to my diagnosis. Doctors put me on traditional medication, and I went on with my life virtually symptom free for ten years.

Then COVID hit. The uncertainty of the world around me, decisions about my kids’ schooling options, isolation and loneliness, and all the stresses of life at the time crushed me. Suddenly, my body started to turn against me. All my lab work indicated my thyroid was normal, but my body was screaming for help. I was losing large amounts of hair; I had gained weight despite routine exercise; and no matter how much I slept, I was always tired.

I ended up doing an elimination diet, among other things, and was able to resolve many of my chronic symptoms, but a few remained. After yet another visit with my doctor, it became clear that the main area of my life I had yet to address was my struggle with anxiety. So, I began seeing a therapist.

She helped me identify when I was beginning to feel anxious and how to better navigate stressful situations. Here are some things I learned that stress me out and give me anxiety:

• Change
• Uncertainty or the unknown
• Failure
• Disappointing others
• Not being in control

So, basically life stresses me out. All these things are certainties in life, and I needed to quickly learn how to navigate them before my physical body completely shut down.

Thankfully I learned, and I’m still learning, how to better manage my stress. One of the best ways to combat stress and anxiety is with gratitude.

Did you know that you cannot be anxious and thankful at the same time?

According to the International Journal of Health and Science, “our brains cannot hold anxiety and gratitude at the same time. This is because gratitude affects the same area of the brain, the limbic system, that regulates our emotions, so instead of being overwhelmed by anxiety your limbic system becomes flooded with thankfulness.”

Retraining my brain to focus on all the blessings in my life and away from my current circumstances immediately reduces my anxious thoughts.

This does not mean we disregard the pain, hurt, and trials of our life. However, we don’t let them dominate our narrative – our thoughts, attitudes, and decisions.

But how do I practice gratitude? How do I move from anxiety to thankfulness?

Philippians 4:6 says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he had done.”

Don’t worry about anything! Philippians tells us to take that worry and lay it at Jesus’ feet. Pray about it. He already knows your worries but wants us to surrender them to Him.

It then says to tell God what you need. He wants to hear from you! He wants you to talk to Him about your worries, fears, and challenges.

After that it says to “thank Him for all He has done.” Thanking Him for all he has done requires you to look for Him. Examine your life, teach your heart and mind to see God moving all around you. The Scriptures says He speaks in a still, small voice so seeing him move in your life and hearing Him speak to you will require you to slow down, look, and listen. He’s always with you, working everything for your good, but you will miss seeing His hand at work in your life if you’re always focused on your circumstances.

Finally, Philippians 4:7 gives us a promise. If we take these steps, surrender, pray, and give thanks we are promised “God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard our hearts and minds.”

The opposite of an anxious heart is one full of peace, and the road that leads to peace requires redirecting our hearts towards gratitude.

Have you ever noticed while driving that if you get distracted by something on the side of the road, your car starts drifting towards where you are looking? The same is true in life. Your life will start drifting in the direction you’re looking. If I want my life to be free from anxiety and full of peace, I must be pointed towards Jesus.

God knows your name. He knows everything about you. Nothing happening in your life right now, or in your future, is a surprise to Him. Let’s start refocusing our attention to Jesus and direct our lives towards Him.

This blog post is a transcript of a talk I gave at my local MomCo group in January 2025. Come back in two weeks to find out how just three days after this speaking engagement life threw me a curve ball that tested my ability to exchange anxiety for gratitude.