Does lack of gratitude make you spoilt ? via /r/gratitude

I don’t think I’m an ungrateful person, however I struggle being grateful when life doesn’t go my way. I’ve recently been trying to make more of an effort to practice mindfulness and gratitude and this has led me to question some things.

Does lack of gratitude indicate I am or was in some way spoilt as a child? This is a complex question for me because being M22 now I don’t really think I was spoilt as a child atleast not in the materialistic sense. I don’t come from a rich upbringing and my parents taught me the value of money. I did not really get expensive gifts or toys as a kid and yet I still feel like I tend to take things for granted like I for some reason deserve them or am meant to have them when obviously that just isn’t true.

I struggle especially with gratitude when things in life don’t go my way. The past 2 years I’ve been living on my own away from family and this has taught me mainly that a lot of the times life really just doesn’t go your way. Shit happens that is beyond your control and you have to just learn to move forward with it.

How do I learn to be grateful for things ESPECIALLY when they don’t go my way. When a situation develops into the most unfavourable outcome for me how do I overcome the feelings of distress and sadness and instead just try be grateful for the lessons or opportunities the situation provided me with.

This is where my original question comes from it’s like why do i feel entitled to my desired outcome? When the universe doesn’t give me what I want I feel hurt but that’s so stupid because it’s the universe doesn’t owe me anything. This is why I think it’s moments like these when it’s most important to feel gratitude. Opinions or tips on becoming better at practicing and expressing gratitude are welcome. Thanks for reading.