A photo of a child's hand pointing at some writing on a mug that says "see the good" to represent the topic of the article - Will The Wellbeing Technique Of Affirmations Change Your Life?

Will The Wellbeing Technique Of Affirmations Change Your Life?

Many a mental health blogger writes about affirmations, which is why I hadn’t. At first, I was resistant to writing about them and adding to the substantial information about affirmations that already exist. However, I reconsidered when I came across the self-affirmation theory. The theory got me so intrigued that I want to write about the theory in the future. Thus, writing about positive affirmations seemed like a good introduction for this later content.

 

 

Rumination and Affirmations

 

A common complaint of people struggling with their mental health, especially depression, is the stream of negative intrusive thoughts. Getting stuck on these negative thoughts is better known as rumination in the therapy and psychological world. We can’t control the instigation of rumination, as it is uninternational (Koole, Smeets, van Knippenberg, and Dijksterhuis, 1999).

 

If it helps, think of rumination as negative affirmations. These negative thoughts that fill our heads are often harmful put-downs about ourselves, causing our mental wellbeing to decline further.

 

Unfortunately, people can often leave therapy where they’re not depressed, but still suffer a low sense of wellbeing. This is where positive psychology can shine. Positive psychology interventions can improve wellbeing and decrease depressive symptoms (Sin and Lyubomirsky, 2009). You guessed it, positive affirmations are a part of positive psychology. We can use positive affirmations, which are positive statements about ourselves, to replace the negative messages we’re dealing with (Rana, 2018).

 

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What Are Affirmations?

 

As I said in the last section, affirmations are complete positive sentences that work like a form of self-hypnosis (Rahayu and Rizki, 2020). They’re inherently positive statements, designed to encourage an optimistic mindset because positivity done right can be powerful (Rana, 2018). I mentioned doing positivity right because it is possible for positivity to become toxic. But that is a discussion for another article.

 

It might seem silly, but positive affirmations can change our perspective about life and the surrounding environment, making us more positive (Rahayu and Rizki, 2020). The benefits of this can cause our self-esteem to improve, improve our self-confidence, and make us feel better.

 

In one of my previous articles about how to handle toxic family members, I talk about using positive affirmations. I talked about it in that article because using the right positive statements can build you up when your family normally brings you down. In that context, using positive affirmations work like a wish, hope, or an ideal you want to reach (Rahayu and Rizki, 2020). So if you keep telling yourself you are strong, and use that as a strength word to live up to, you’ll start getting stronger.

 

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Examples Of Positive Affirmations

 

It’s easy to use positive affirmations. All you need to do is find the right phrase and repeat it to yourself to motivate yourself, to bring about positive changes, and to boost your self-esteem (Rana, 2018). However, you have to remember that just saying this once or twice to yourself won’t help. If you want positive affirmations to work, you have to keep saying it to yourself regularly. In short, make it a routine so it becomes a habit.

 

To start, look are the areas of your life that you want to change. You can also turn the negative thoughts into a positive. For example, if your negative intrusive thoughts are telling you you’re “fat and out of shape”, then you could replace this by saying “I’m taking action to become healthier every day”.

 

Although you might not be taking that action yet, positive affirmations power works in the present. If you put them in the future, you’ll relegate them to something you’ll get around to doing (Complete Developer Podcast). If you want to focus on doing stuff in the future, then that’s what goals and SMART goals are for.

 

When it comes to positive affirmations, we’re not saying them to get some sort of praise from others. Rather, we’re saying it because we want to become that or we want to deserve that praise by acting accordingly (Rana, 2018).

 

Examples

  • I am a good person.
  • I am a caring person.
  • I am grateful for the people I have in my life.
  • I am successful.
  • I am a unique and worthy person.
  • I deserve to be happy.
  • I can overcome any problem that comes my way.
  • I will not compare myself to others.
  • I am open to new opportunities.
  • I will stop judging myself.
  • My life is full of potential.
  • I will treat myself with kindness.
  • I am a good parent.
  • I have the ability to recover from difficulties.
  • I am getting healthier every day.
  • I can accept what I cannot change.
  • I will ignore the negatives and focus on the positives.
  • I have value.
  • I am capable of making decisions.
  • I am a strong person.

 

The picture is split in two with the top image being of a White woman looking at herself in a small mirror. The bottom image being of a sign stuck on a grass verge that says "you are worthy of love". The two images are separated by the article title - Will The Wellbeing Technique Of Affirmations Change Your Life?

 

Different Ways To Use Affirmations

 

Positive affirmations can challenge negative thoughts that are often subconscious patterns, replacing them with more adaptive narratives (Rana, 2018). However, you don’t have to be confined to just repeating a phrase to yourself. There are other ways to do this.

 

Rahayu and Rizki (2020) conducted a study into the effects of positive affirmations on the anxiety of giving birth during the second stage of labour. Using 30 pregnant women, they allocated 15 of them to the group receiving positive affirmations on flashcards. The other 15 pregnant women didn’t have any positive affirmations. The study found that there was a significant positive effect of the flashcards on the participants’ anxiety about giving birth. This study brings us to our first alternative method of using positive affirmations.

 

Flashcards

As with Rahayu and Rizki’s (2020) study, you just need to write positive statements, phrases, and words on flashcards. Then you can look at them daily to help give yourself a positive mindset. Therefore, it could be best to do this at the start of your day.

 

Journal

There’s almost nothing journalling can’t fix, at least that’s the way it feels. Take time each day to write your positive affirmations. Doing this can help cement the positive affirmations in your mind, as you’ll be using multiple areas of the brain to do this task.

 

Sticky notes

Get a pad of sticky notes and write the positive affirmations you want to make real. Then take these sticky notes and stick them in places you’ll see them. That way, you’ll get constant reminders of your positive affirmations.

 

A photo of positive affirmations written on sticky notes which have been stuck on a mirror

 

Lists

Creating lists can be really helpful, like making a to-do list. Accept this time you’ll be making a list of positive affirmations. In much the same way as journalling, this will also help to cement the positive affirmations into your mind. Just remember to repeat making these lists, otherwise they won’t be effective.

 

Looking in a mirror

This is the classic one you often see in films, whereby a character will look at themselves in the mirror and then repeat their positive affirmation. This is a movie trope for a reason, because it works. So stand in front of a mirror and repeat your positive affirmations, either in your head or aloud.

 

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Summary

 

Positive affirmations are a favourite of positive psychology and there are plenty of studies that show they work, like Rahayu and Rizki’s (2020) study. There are many ways you can use positive affirmations, with journalling often being one of the best, as it makes for a great journal prompt. It’s a simple life hack that can help reframe your mind to be more positive.

 

As much as I’d love to tell you that positive affirmations are guaranteed to change your life, I can’t. Everyone’s different. For some people, affirmations will work really well and will change their life. However, for others, it might not do that much. But that’s the same with pretty much everything in mental health. That’s why there are so many methods, styles, and techniques out there. However, it is a really simple technique, so what’s the harm in trying it?

 

As always, leave your feedback in the comments section below. Also, please share your experiences with affirmations in the comments section below as well. Don’t forget, if you want to stay up-to-date with my blog, then sign up for my newsletter below. Alternatively, get push notifications for new articles by clicking the red bell icon in the bottom right corner.

 

Lastly, if you’d like to support my blog, you can make a donation of any size below. Until next time, Unwanted Life readers.

 

 

References

 

Koole, S.L., Smeets, K., van Knippenberg, A., & Dijksterhuis, A. (1999). The cessation of rumination through self-affirmation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77(1), 111–125. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/1999-05981-008.

Rahayu, E. P., & Rizki, L. K. (2020). The Effect of Positive Affirmations to Anxiety level and 2nd stage of labor length. STRADA Jurnal Ilmiah Kesehatan9(2), 900-905. Retrieved from https://repository.unusa.ac.id/6441 and https://repository.unusa.ac.id/6441/1/The%20Effect%20of%20Positive%20Affirmations%20to%20Anxiety%20level%20and%202nd%20stage%20of%20labor%20length.pdf.

Rana, M. (2018). Positive Affirmations and its Benefits on Psychological Well-Being. EDU WORLD(9), 2, 5-11. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ashok-Acharya-2/publication/348805443_EDU_WORLD_VOL_IXNO2/links/60111b89299bf1b33e2904f8/EDU-WORLD-VOL-IX-NO2.pdf#page=20.

Sin, N. L., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2009). Enhancing well-being and alleviating depressive symptoms with positive psychology interventions: A practice-friendly meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology65(5), 467-487. Retrieved from https://sonjalyubomirsky.com/wp-content/themes/sonjalyubomirsky/papers/SL2009.pdf.

43 thoughts on “Will The Wellbeing Technique Of Affirmations Change Your Life?

  1. Great literature review. Affirmations seem not to work the same way for everybody and that just shows us how each one of us needs to find what works best for us individually. It’s always good to learn and explore new techniques. Only then we will know what benefits they can bring us.

  2. Such a great post! I am currently trying to replace negative chatter with positive self-talk. Mirror work is hard for me. It’s one thing to say it in my head or out loud, but looking myself in the eyes… can be tough. Love the list you shared and added to my list. Thanks for sharing! ✌️

  3. I love that you walk us through the process. When my head is spinning with negative emotions sometimes I don’t even know how to get started with positive affirmations. This is a very helpful post. Thank you for sharing!

  4. Motivation can be very elusive these days, so affirmations can be a really useful tool to help bring you back up from a slump. Once accepted, you can do anything! Really good article!

  5. This was a great post to read. So I have written about positive affirmations and would use them in my journal, whether that be everyday or weekly. I have found I am noticing more when I am talking negatively usually about myself and I am working to swap it for a more healthier outlook or a more positive affirmation about how I could improve rather than just highlighting all my so-called flaws. I have only ever used positive affirmations in my journal or out loud. But I love the idea of making flash cards or writing them on sticky notes and placing them on regular places in the home like mirrors or the fridge etc. I have a white board, so maybe I could write some on there.

    Thank you for sharing this post. I love the examples that you used.

    Lauren – bournemouthgirl x

  6. Good article. Affirmations useful for those who have the patience to focus on them. Personally it didn’t work for me

  7. Your post resonates with me so well. I actually created an app based upon the premise that positive affirmations based off of positive statements received over time from friends/family can lead to greater well-being for kids. So many kids are subjected to toxicity from their family that they start to believe that narrative.
    I’m hoping to change that.
    Crystal | http://www.amazingbaby.app

    • That sounds like an extremely useful app, because it’s easy for a label imposed by a teacher or another adult to become a self-fulling prophecy. I know it did with me

  8. I’ve always thought affirmations sounded silly as well, especially writing them down. Now that I’m home on summer break with both kids I find myself repeating several on a daily basis! I’m a good mom. I love my kids. My kids are a blessing. I am not a pushover. Turns out I’ve been using affirmations for years!

  9. We agree that affirmations are really helpful. They’re good for helping us to stop comparing ourselves to others. Just because someone else is successful/happy/thriving, doesn’t mean we can’t be too.

  10. I enjoyed reading this interesting post that highlights some of the supporting evidence that positive affirmations can, in fact, change lives! I think the most important aspect of affirmations is not giving up on them after a short time; it takes patience and consistency to see results. Thanks for sharing!!

  11. I love positive affirmations. I have a tendency to think negatively, and it can really dampen my mood. Positive affirmations helps rewire my brain and stop the process of self-sabotage This is a very informative and well-written post. I really love the affirmation examples. Thanks!

  12. I’m already looking forward to the follow up articles on this one. Positive affirmations are important and can help, as I have noticed myself. People would see me as a positive person, but I would have a lot of self-doubt and negatives thoughts about myself. My lifestyle didn’t help me neither, as I used to drink a lot. But by giving yourself these positive thoughts, as I like your list of examples, we can change our mindset. Too much isn’t good either, that’s why I can’t wait for your next one to see your views.
    Wonderful as always. Thank you

    • It might be a while until I can fit in the time to thoroughly research this follow up article, but it will get done.

      Thanks for sharing your experience

  13. Great article on positive affirmations. I use them myself as well and sometimes it’s a struggle against the negative ones, but as you said; they work if you make them a habit. Making lists helps me feel better about myself knowing I can do the things on them and break them down

  14. I love calling them negative affirmations (never heard this before, but beautiful!) Me +my 11 year old daughter often go over affirmations. They’re something that isn’t taught to use early, but would be super helpful growing up. If I would have known as a child I could paint my life with my words, I would have spoken very differently. Great post. I’m glad you took the chance + wrote YOUR piece on affirmations. Never read one like this before.

    • I know you’re a religious person, so if saying them to yourself feels fake, how about reworking them so you’re saying them to yourself and god?

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