Mindfulness-Affirmations
Affirmations are essentially thoughts you think or say out loud. Negative thoughts create poor experiences for us; for instance, if you get angry, you affirm that you want more anger in your life. To create more positive thought patterns, we can use affirmations to change how we think. By consciously deciding on what words we say or think, we can begin to erase the negative impacts of habitual thinking that we learned as children.
This all goes back to the wisdom of speaker, author, teacher, artist, and healer Louise Hay, who has inspired and taught many to value their wellness (body, mind, and spirit). As Louise says in her book You Can Heal Your Life, “Our beliefs and ideas about ourselves are often the cause of our emotional problems and physical maladies and how, by using certain tools, we can change our thinking and our lives for the better.”
Inspired by Louise Hay’s teachings, 2 Claps 1 Snap’s founder Miss Victoria has facilitated an annual 8 Day Positive Pledge for the past decade to help put these ideas into practice. What sparked this endeavor? Victoria noticed in herself that she would use the art of self-deprecation to get a laugh out of people, and she noticed that students would arrive to class with negative energy and deflect compliments—it was time to put in the work to change the mindset. Like any skillset, it does take practice.
May we suggest during this upcoming holiday season, let’s all practice being conscious of and intentional with our thoughts. Let’s practice affirming what we want to achieve to bring more positivity into our lives. Here are some of Hay’s affirmations you can try to incorporate into your life:
“I let go of all expectations. I flow freely and lovingly with life. I love myself. I know that only good awaits me at every turn.”
“I love my body. I create peacefulness in my mind, and my body reflects this peacefulness as perfect health.”
“There is no blame. I release the need to blame anyone, including myself. We are all doing the best we can with the understanding, knowledge, and awareness we have.”
“It is safe to look within. As I move through the layers of other people’s opinions and beliefs, I see within myself a magnificent being, wise and beautiful. I love what I see in me.”
“I am flexible and flowing. I am open to the new and changing. Every moment presents a wonderful new opportunity to become more of who I am. I flow with life easily and effortlessly.”
For further study, 2 Claps 1 Snap will continue to uplift mindfulness practice during its Wednesday Wellness Series on Instagram throughout the rest of the year. Let us know what works for you; we all learn from each other.
REFERENCES
“The Power of Affirmations.” Louise Hay, August 23, 2017. https://www.louisehay.com/the-power-of-affirmations/.