A Journal Entry a Day Keeps Stress Away: How Gratitude Journaling Supports Mental Well-Being
Amid the constant rush of daily life, when was the last time you gave yourself a few mindful minutes?
As more people look for ways to boost their mental well-being, many reach for the screens, whether to wake up in the morning or unwind at the end of the day. With countless studies documenting higher screen use, especially by young adults and seniors, Canada’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health reports that adult mental and physical health worsened by roughly 12 percent between 2020 and 2025. Too often, we pay attention to our mental health when it slips into crisis, but well-being is a daily practice! Gratitude journaling is a simple, accessible, and powerful way to start. Our brains are naturally wired to notice the negatives; with practice, we can retrain it to focus on the positives.
Gratitude is about noticing, appreciating, and savouring the good in daily life, and a gratitude journal becomes a collection of those moments: meaningful, personal, and grounded in science. Just five minutes a day of gratitude journaling has been linked to greater mindfulness, self-compassion, social connection, resilience, happiness, and a stronger sense of satisfaction and meaning in life. Journaling gives you a chance to reconnect, reflect, reset, and grow, one mindful moment at a time.
The Benefits of Gratitude Journaling
1. Mindfulness
Research suggests that gratitude supports mindfulness by creating space to process emotions and gain clarity (Madeson, 2025). Through self-reflection, individuals strengthen coping skills, improve problem-solving abilities, and develop greater awareness of the present moment (Kumar et al., 2022). Journaling increases feelings of calm and emotional balance, while deepening our connection with ourselves and others (Ko et al., 2021).
2. Self-Compassion
By regularly reflecting on what we are grateful for, gratitude journaling encourages a more compassionate view of ourselves and the world (Madeson, 2025). This helps us build self-acceptance and confidence in our own worth (Kumar et al., 2022; Tolcher et al., 2024). According to Yu et al. (2025), focusing on gratitude can reinforce a positive memory bias, helping counter negative thinking and shifting attention away from stress, anxiety, or depression. Ko et al. (2021) also found that nursing students who kept a gratitude journal were more likely to maintain a positive view of themselves, even in stressful situations. When we notice the positives, we become more motivated to care for ourselves and keep our lives in balance.
3. Social Connection
Gratitude not only benefits us individually, but also strengthens our ability to connect with others. According to Madeson (2025), practicing gratitude activates areas of the brain associated with social bonding and positive interaction. Other studies suggest it encourages prosocial behaviours, such as kindness, trust, and empathy (Bono & Sender, 2018; O’Dea et al., 2024). When we reflect on positive experiences with others, we are more likely to give back and respond with care, strengthening relationships and building more supportive social networks around us over time (Kumar et al., 2022).
4. Resilience
Feeling stressed is often a normal part of life, so how can we strengthen our ability to bounce back? Our brain is like a muscle that can be trained. Practicing gratitude rewires it to focus on positives and filter out negatives, boosting resilience. As Alex Ikonn, co-founder of The Five Minute Journal, explains, “You don’t get healthy and fit by reading about going to the gym. You get fit by being in the gym and doing the reps” (The Turning Pro Podcast, 2025). Those short daily journal reflections promote positive emotional patterns, helping us respond to challenges with greater resilience (Madeson, 2025). Over time, this has been shown to reduce the effects of trauma-related distress and support personal growth (Kumar et al., 2022; Tolcher et al., 2024).
5. Happiness, Satisfaction, and Meaning in Life
In 1892, Irish playwright Oscar Wilde famously wrote, “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” He was on to something. While our brains naturally focus on negative experiences, daily positive reflections can shape how we feel and see the world, making it easier to find meaning, satisfaction, and purpose (Yu et al., 2025). Research consistently shows that individuals who regularly practice gratitude, report lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, along with higher levels of happiness and overall well-being (Bono & Sender, 2018; Ko et al., 2021; Madeson, 2025; O’Dea et al., 2024; Tolcher et al., 2024). According to Kumar et al. (2022), participants found that gratitude journaling helped them develop a deeper appreciation for everyday life. As one participant shared: “I now have a deeper appreciation for life. I realized I took a lot of small things for granted, and now I strive to always be grateful and appreciative of everything I have” (p. 3477). Over time, this mindful habit can spark a chain reaction, where consistent gratitude journaling helps transform even small, everyday moments into brighter, better days.
Begin Your Journaling Journey Today
Curious about journaling? Looking to improve your self-care? Hoping to feel more present and at peace in your daily life?
The science behind gratitude is simple: focusing on the positives is tea-rrific for your well-being! Positive psychology explores how people can cultivate thoughts and behaviours that support well-being, happiness, and meaning in life. This does not mean life must be perfect. We all face challenges. Rather, simple daily practices like gratitude journaling can help cultivate a healthier mindset, shaping our responses to life’s ups and downs and improving overall well-being.
With a warm cup of coffee or tea in hand, a pen, and an open page, gift yourself five mindful minutes each day. Change does not require a leap into greatness. It starts with one small, steady step. One day, you will turn back through those pages and realize the distance you have traveled.
If you are looking for support along the way, contact us today.
— Blog post written by Annika Whitford, Creative Marketing Specialist at Cup of Tea Psychotherapy
References
Bono, G., & Sender, J. T. (2018). How gratitude connects humans to the best in themselves and in others. Research in Human Development, 15(3–4), 224–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427609.2018.1499350
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. (2026, January 12). Five Years After The Pandemic Poor Mental Health and Harmful Alcohol Use Persist in Ontario. https://www.camh.ca/en/camh-news-and-stories/rsch-five-years-after-the-pandemic-poor-mental-health-and-harmful-alcohol-use-persist-in-ontario
Ko, H., Kim, S., & Kim, E. (2021). Nursing students’ experiences of gratitude journaling during the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare (Basel), 9(11), 1473. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9111473
Kumar, S. A., Edwards, M. E., Grandgenett, H. M., Scherer, L. L., DiLillo, D., & Jaffe, A. E. (2022). Does gratitude promote resilience during a pandemic? An examination of mental health and positivity at the onset of COVID-19. Journal of Happiness Studies, 23(7), 3463–3483. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-022-00554-x
Madeson, M. (2025, September 15). The neuroscience of gratitude & its effects on the brain. Positive Psychology. https://www.positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude/
O’Dea, M. K., Igou, E. R., & van Tilburg, W. A. P. (2024). Preventing boredom with gratitude: The role of meaning in life. Motivation and Emotion, 48(1), 111–125. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-023-10048-9
Ould-Hammou, H. (2026, January 20). Montreal Adults Spending More of Their Free Time on Screens, Public Health Finds. CBC News Montreal. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/public-health-screen-time-montreal-study-9.7051643
Psychology Today. (n.d.). Positive Psychology. Sussex Publishers. https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/positive-psychology
The Turning Pro Podcast. (2025, February 6). The science behind the five minute journal [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CNRhW3s013g
Tolcher, K., Cauble, M., & Downs, A. (2024). Evaluating the effects of gratitude interventions on college student well-being. Journal of American College Health, 72(5), 1321–1325. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2022.2076096
Yu, T., Mao, Y., Qiu, J., Zhang, Y., & Liu, J. (2025). Positive memory bias among grateful people: Examining gratitude as emotion, mood, and affective trait. Personality and Individual Differences, 18(1), 113403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2025.113403