I am Enough

I AM ENOUGH: Affirmations Can Improve Your Mental Health and Boost Self-Esteem

"All we have to do is forgive ourselves wholly and completely for ever thinking that we are not good enough!" ~ Jodi Aman.

"I exist as I am, that is enough."~ Walt Whitman.

Affirmations…it can sound a little woo woo right? I get it. 

Positive affirmations often spark images of someone speaking to themselves in the mirror, in good spirit, while trying to believe the words that they say–even if those words seem UN-believable, improbable, or totally out of reach.  

But positive affirmations can be a powerful tool when practiced, and today, I’ll shed some light on what they are, how to use them, and how to create ones that *really* work.

Positive affirmations: what are they and how do they help?

Affirmations are:

• the act of affirming
• something declared to be true
• statements or phrases repeated over time consistently to build a positive belief

They are meant to guide you to evolve into a desired outcome or state of being and help you connect to the emotions and qualities you would have in that desired state. (In other words, you can look at affirmations as a scientifically proven version of “fake it until you make it.”) As the saying goes, "where your attention goes, energy flows."

When we are stuck in cycles of stress or self-doubt, change or the “life you wish for” seems impossible. Guiding your mind to believe that you can achieve the life you want can help, and this is where affirmations come in. 

Let’s walk through versions of affirmations to help you get a sense of what they are—so you can eventually create ones of your own that bring relief to your body and brain. 

If you want to build more positive self-confidence or slow down a habit of overachieving in your life, an affirmation that might help is: “I am worthy and enough.”

Maybe you’ve hit a period of new and challenging goals and often get bogged down by a lot of imposter syndrome and negativity. A useful affirmation might be: “I am worthy and confident in my ability to achieve my goals” to help flip the switch on your negative self-talk. 

When you encounter a lot of external turmoil around you, you might say to yourself, “I am calm and peaceful” to reprogram your mind and body to feel internal stability.

Ways to start and support an affirmation practice

Now that we know what affirmations can sound like, I want to share a few tips that I have learned and taught clients to build a strong and lasting affirmation practice (that actually changes your brain and gets you closer to the outcomes you seek.)

1. Say it out loud.  Though it can be challenging or awkward at first, this helps your brain take in the affirmations.
2. Present tense is best. For example: “I AM enough rather than I will be enough,” to allow your mind to see that there is truth in what you are saying. The mind doesn't recognize that what you are saying isn't actually true.
3. Emphasize the “dos”, not the “don’ts.” You can recognize what you don’t want, and that might be the place you need to start, but explore what you want instead to move towards where you want to be.  Remember, what you focus on, grows.
4. Get specific—really! “I am happy” is great, but it’s also pretty generic. Try something like, “I am content and at peace with myself, “ or “I look and feel strong and beautiful in my favorite clothes” to turn on your senses and heighten the experience in your body as you repeat your affirmations.
5. Fire up your passion! Attaching emotion to your affirmation and having that mind-body connection often helps you manifest something more quickly.
6. Get actionable. Affirmations help remind you of what you desire, but they need to be combined with baby steps towards achieving your goals—think of ONE small step you can take toward your desires this week.  Allow your affirmations to support you taking actions. 
7. Consistency and Frequency are your friends. Have the affirmations visibly and physically around—on post-it notes, your phone’s wallpaper, or in your journal—because what we see, we think about, and what we think about, we keep moving toward.

If you need help to start journaling your affirmations, I hope you’ll watch this video with tips here. 

Integrating affirmations into your day-to-day

Getting started and staying consistent can be hard. And on top of that, if we’re in survival mode or stuck in a stress cycle, we don’t have as much capacity to adopt new behaviors and beliefs.

If you find yourself meeting resistance when practicing your affirmations, you may be experiencing an inner conflict.  Your subconscious may hear the affirmations and feel they pose a threat to a coping strategy that is there to protect you in some way.  Check out this video for tips to help you have a deeper understanding and see more effective results from your affirmation practice.

 Additionally, it’s helpful to be relaxed and centered so that you are more likely to take in new things. When your mind senses you are safe, you can shift out of survival brain and into your learning brain.

Once you develop a few affirmations for yourself, state them in the morning or evening, and eventually do it both times to start your day right or wind down with more joy, calm, anticipation, and knowing. 

Let me know in the comments if you have specific affirmations that you have found to be useful. Plus, if you watch my whole video on affirmations, you’ll find a bonus step you must take between your affirmation and action to make your progress stick and stay.

If you need support on how to integrate affirmations as one way to promote your overall well-being or are curious about other modalities of mindful movement, check out the new video so we can help you go beyond troubleshooting your health and into whole-body, whole-life fulfillment. 

Much love and blessings,

Sara and Les Raymond