How a Gratitude Journal Can Help Limit Stress as a Parent

By Anna Gilliam, Extension Assistant Professor

Becoming a parent can be a very rewarding experience but also a very challenging one. As parents take on the responsibility of raising their children it is easy to feel bogged down with parental stress. Parental stress is an all encompassing term to describe the challenges parents face as they adapt to the responsibilities of parenthood. (Toprak, 2023)

Some of the tasks that may be adding to your stress as a parent are the lack of sleep you are experiencing, the constant messes you are cleaning, the busy schedules you are balancing, and the self care you may be needing. Did you know on average parents are changing 5-12 diapers a day? (Knisely, 2020) It’s no wonder you feel stressed!

It is important to recognize that these feelings of stress are completely normal and you are doing your best, but as these stressors start to pile up they can have a negative effect on your well-being. Research shows that the overall well-being of parents has a direct impact on the well-being and development of their child. Keeping a gratitude journal is one of those small things that can help you feel less stressed! Gratitude is acknowledging the good things in life and expressing them (Toprak, 2023).  

In a study, parents experiencing stress were asked to keep a gratitude journal for 6 weeks, and in just 14 days positive effects began to take place. By the end of the study, it was significant the effects of expressing gratitude had on the stress levels of these parents! It was determined by the researchers that the act of expressing gratitude not only acted as a stress-reduction measure but it can also be used as a preventative strategy. Overall, as a result of this study there was a decrease in stress, anxiety, and despair with an increase in gratitude (Toprak, 2023). It is hard to believe that just a little bit of gratitude each day can have such an impact on your life as a parent!

Now it’s your turn! What are you grateful for?

In the beginning, it can be hard to express gratitude when feeling overwhelmed with negative emotions but over time it will become easier. Try finding something to be grateful for with each of these three prompts:

I am grateful for my child today because_____________________________________.

I am grateful for myself today because______________________________________.

I am grateful for my life in general because _____________________________________.

To help you get started on your gratitude journal, click here to access our free gratitude journal template! 

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