Photo: StockSnap.io; "Every Day is a Gift"

“If you concentrate on finding whatever is good in every situation, you will discover that your life will suddenly be filled with gratitude, a feeling that nurtures the soul.” ~ Harold Kushner

We know that living with sickle cell and/or caring for someone who does can really test your limits, especially when in the throws of a crisis. This week, though, in honor of Thanksgiving, try to celebrate more of the good things in your life by finding at least one thing each day to be grateful for, despite the pain. Giving yourself the chance to redirect your thoughts to the positive aspects of your life can help restore feelings of hope and remind you that you are so much more than your illness. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

1) Be thankful that you were blessed with another day of life.
So many people were not. You still have the opportunity to find and fulfill your purpose, spend time with your family and friends, and simply enjoy your favorite things.

2) Be thankful for your family and friends, who are always there to whelp when you need it.
They're the people who will not only drive you to your appointments or watch your kids when you have to take another child to the doctor, but they will also simply lounge around the house with you binge-watching Netflix when you're not feeling up to leaving the house.

3) Be thankful that you have a safe place to live, food to eat, and water to drink.
It's easy to take our modern conveniences for granted, but think about it, all we have to do is turn on a faucet to get water and go a grocery store, restaurant, or order in to get food. These may seem like simple things, but to many people in the world, these are things that are not easy to come by.

For a list of more things to be grateful for -- that you probably never even thought of -- check out "48 Unconventional Things I'm Grateful For ... That I Bet are Not on Your List."

What things -- small or large -- are you thankful for? Share your thoughts in the comments below!