-By Lucy
WHAT ARE AFFIRMATIONS AND WHY ARE THEY BENEFICIAL?
Affirmations are statements that are repeated by a person to come to believe and essentially become what they are saying. By repeating certain phrases that are designed to encourage us to believe certain things, we are reprogramming the subconscious mind that helps to create a desired reality – most commonly in terms of making/attracting wealth, love, beauty, and attractiveness.
Simply speaking, affirmations can be used to improve our mental wellbeing. Such an important part of our mental health comes down to positivity and how we not only view ourselves, but the world around us. How you view yourself through your thoughts and your self-image shapes you, evidently seen through your well-being – negative thoughts typically result in negative behaviours and actions that have negative consequences on self-esteem and overall wellbeing.
Some of the benefits of affirmations include: (according to www.happierhuman.com/benefits-affirmations/)
- Decreasing health-deteriorating stress
- Control self-sabotaging thoughts and speech
- Improving mood
- Promoting positive coping
- Enhancing self-esteem
- Improving problem-solving under stress
- Can help you find love
- May change outcomes (Attracting love into your life, the philosophical Law of Attraction)
Affirmations have the ability to help us “reach our goals in life and achieve greatness”
– Richard J. Desouza (Hypnotherapist, Cardiff).
WHAT AFFIRMATIONS WILL WORK FOR ME?
Affirmations that benefit you might not benefit someone else, and that is because we all have different lives and want to move in different directions. Understanding what affirmations will work for you is important.
Think about what you struggle with – maybe it’s positivity, maybe it’s being confident or feeling loved. This helps you begin a base for coming up with affirmations that work for you. Laurelle suggests that the strongest affirmations begin with ‘I am’- an example would be ‘I am loved’ or ‘I am strong’.
It’s important that these affirmations resonate with you- you have to believe them and put energy behind the words. Repeating these affirmations is also important – making a routine such as saying them first thing in the morning, or before you get into the car can help make repeating them a habit. Writing them down and keeping them in place where you look often is also a good idea, as is hanging them on the wall or even putting them as your phone’s wallpaper to help you make the most of your affirmations.
Here are the above suggestions in a list:
- Choose affirmations that are relevant to you
- Make sure they are positive, and help you grow (I am strong, instead of I need to be stronger)
- When you say them, make sure the affirmations are said with intention, and are not just words you are repeating.
- Regularly repeating and affirming the affirmations is important. It’s a good idea to create reminders or a routine to repeat them. Having regular times throughout the day, or even putting them as your phone’s wallpaper/home screen can help.
