Community Shares: What Are Your Sources of Gratitude?

When faced with a chronic health diagnosis like heart failure, many different emotions come to the surface. It can become easy to focus on the negative and fear what life with heart failure might mean. Choosing to focus on gratitude can help improve how you feel and even turn around those negative feelings.¹

To discover more about how our community members embrace gratitude, we asked the followers of our Facebook page to tell us, “What is something we’re grateful for today?”

The gift of life

Many in the community express gratitude for the ability to greet each new day. A heart failure diagnosis makes each day precious.

“Grateful I’m still alive and well enough to keep working and taking care of my family.”

“That I woke up today!”

“I’m grateful for each and every day.”

“I lived to see 84 yesterday!”

Confronting COVID-19

This year has been largely defined by living in quarantine and managing life through a pandemic. Many expressed gratitude for staying well, recovering after a COVID-19 diagnosis, and the arrival of the vaccine.

“Not getting COVID.”

“I’m grateful for my first COVID vaccine.”

“That my husband and I are in good health – no COVID.”

“We lived through COVID.”

Staying healthy

With the ever-present reality of a heart failure diagnosis, there is much gratitude for medicines and treatments that help maintain your health.

“Made it through another year.”

“Heart-smart health.”

“I’m grateful for my CRT pacemaker/defibrillator.”

“Finding out my ablation was a success so getting off my Tikosyn for the first time in 13 years.”

“Grateful for the mental acuity to keep up with my meds!”

“Thankful my heart is beating."

Family and friends

The presence of family and friends in your lives is an important source of gratitude and joy. You are thankful that your heart continues to allow you to enjoy moments with loved ones.

“Thankful for my kind-hearted neighbor hauling tree limbs out of the yard that AT&T cut and would not haul to curb. I cannot, since I just had a pacemaker inserted.”

“My life, children, and my heart’s still ticking!”

“I am grateful I have lived to see my daughter turn 38 today, and I have 2 grandchildren. My son just celebrated his 1st wedding anniversary.”

“I’m grateful I woke up today and get to see my great-granddaughter smile at me.”

Faith as a foundation

For many, belief in a higher power and the strength that faith provides is a profound source from which gratitude flows.

“The Lord waking me up!!”

“Grateful to God that I wake up every morning and I am in a lot better shape than I was this time last year.”

“I’m grateful for God.”

“God still allows my heart to beat.”

Thank you to everyone who shared. Your expressions of gratitude help others to also find and acknowledge gratitude in their lives.