Thousands of thoughts run through our minds every day. Chances are, some of them are negative.
Thoughts are more powerful than you think. We can’t get our brains to turn off or stop producing negative thoughts, but we can make an active effort to start putting more positive thoughts into our brains. These are known as positive affirmations.
As we think about the many contributions of women and those who identify as women this Women’s History Month, particularly the obstacles women have overcome to achieve their goals, it’s important to recognize that sometimes the most significant obstacle to success is our own negative self-talk. Affirmations can be a tool to minimize negative self-talk, promote well-being in women and can forge a path toward achieving our dreams.
Understanding the Power of Positive Affirmations for Women
Affirmations are positive, empowering statements you repeat to yourself, reflecting your goals and desires. These invaluable tools can help change your mindset. When you regularly repeat your affirmations, over time your subconscious will begin to believe what you’re saying. This process can help replace deep-rooted negative thoughts with positive ones. When you use these positive affirmations, you’re on track to making your dreams a reality.
These positive statements can be especially helpful if you feel like your brain’s been stuck in a negative place, you engage in negative self-talk, or you aren’t living the life you want to live. Affirmations can contribute to neuroplasticity, which is huge for mental well-being.
“Neuroplasticity refers to the brain’s ability to adapt and change in response to new information or stimuli,” says Stephanie Willoughby, a licensed clinical social worker with Grow Therapy. “Affirmations affect our wiring by creating new neural pathways that are reinforced and strengthened every time you repeat the affirmation to yourself.”
The thoughts get stronger as you repeat your affirmations and these neural pathways become more well-traveled. You might notice that your mind is more likely to think positively than negatively.
Although nobody’s immune to negative self-talk or cognitive biases, research has shown that women tend to experience more negative thinking, rumination, and lower self-esteem than men.
“Meeting the unrealistic standards set by parents, the education system, media, social media, and society can be impossible. With stereotypes and biases thrown into the equation, it’s no wonder women feel overwhelmed and turn on themselves,” says Leslie E. Wilborne, a licensed professional counselor with Grow Therapy. “That’s why it’s crucial and advantageous for women to embrace self-compassion through positive affirmations.”
All of the unrealistic standards we’ve been exposed to and negative messages we’ve received shape the way we think about ourselves, and frequently, this results in many women developing a very harsh inner critic and self-doubt.
“The inner critic is not the voice of your unconscious trying to send you a message. It is all of the negativity we have internalized over our lifetime: the bully from 3rd grade, the parent who always commented on your weight, or society’s unrealistic and unattainable beauty standards, to name a few,” says Willoughby. “Stepping back from these thoughts and meeting them with specific, personal, and meaningful affirmations can help women to gain a sense of their own power and control over their own lives.”
Crafting Effective Affirmations for Women
Crafting your affirmations intentionally is the best way to achieve results. “For affirmations to be effective, it’s important that they be tailored to each individual. They should be personal and specific, as well as realistic and attainable,” Willoughby says. It’s also important for your affirmations to be present tense, meaning they sound like they’re happening now. “Having them worded in the present tense is crucial. Using the future tense leaves room to put off any actionable steps until later and neglects to capitalize on the affirming quality of statements made in the present tense,” says Willoughby.
On the note of specifics, you might want to make certain affirmations that fall into buckets. Some examples of themes you can create affirmations around are:
- Self-love/self-esteem
- Confidence
- Romance
- Sexuality
- Career success
- Finance
- Health and wellness
- Mental health
- Overcoming challenges
- Womanhood and femininity
- Motherhood
Affirmations can be about anything and everything. It’s up to you what you want to attract into your life and what areas you want to improve. You can choose to focus on one specific area of your life or a few. Just don’t overwhelm yourself!
Examples of Positive Affirmations for Women
As we mentioned, affirmations should be unique to you. But if you’ve never come up with your own before, we have some ideas to get you started. If any of these resonate with you, feel free to use them exactly as-is, but we recommend tweaking them to make them even more specific and more like you.
Here are 55 examples of powerful affirmations you can use to create positive change in your life.
Self-Love Affirmations
- I am beautiful inside and out.
- I accept all parts of myself.
- I embrace everything that makes me unique.
- I am worthy of my own love.
- I love myself unconditionally.
Confidence Affirmations
- I radiate confidence.
- I exude self-assuredness.
- I am unstoppable.
- I achieve everything I put my mind to.
- I trust in my abilities and talents.
Romance Affirmations
- I am worthy of love.
- I am deeply deserving of love.
- I radiate love and passion.
- I am open to giving and receiving love.
- I am grateful for the love all around me.
Sexuality Affirmations
- I deserve pleasure in all forms.
- I am free to express my sexuality.
- I exude sensuality.
- I embrace intimacy and sexuality without shame.
- I celebrate my body and the pleasure it brings me.
Career/Success Affirmations
- I am a magnet for new opportunities and success.
- I am driven, dedicated, and focused.
- I am unstoppable in my career path.
- I am aligned with my purpose.
- I am living my best life.
Finance Affirmations
- I am worthy of abundance.
- I attract abundance.
- It’s OK for me to have enough (or more than enough).
- I can have money and still be loved.
- In this moment, I am (financially) safe and secure.
Health and Wellness Affirmations
- I trust the powers of my body.
- I am healthier than ever.
- I heal my body every day.
- I am vibrant and strong.
- I am full of positive energy.
Mental Health Affirmations
- I uplift myself every day.
- I am capable of anything I set my mind to.
- I overcome every obstacle.
- I am deserving of mental peace and clarity.
- I honor all my emotions.
Overcoming Challenge Affirmations
- I am strong, resilient, and capable.
- I trust my ability to overcome challenges.
- I am confident I can get through anything.
- I overcome hardships with ease and grace.
- I embrace challenges as an opportunity to grow.
Womanhood and Femininity Affirmations
- I am empowered by my femininity.
- I embrace the divine feminine energy within me.
- I radiate beautiful feminine energy.
- I am a strong, independent woman.
- I embody feminine strength.
Motherhood Affirmations
- I learn more about being a mother every day.
- I am a good enough mother.
- I am filled with love for myself and others.
- I am doing my best every day.
- I radiate kind, caring energy.
Incorporating Affirmations into Your Daily Life
This isn’t a fast or easy process. Affirmations aren’t intended to change your life overnight. As with anything, the more you use affirmations, the more impactful the outcome will be. Reciting affirmations at set times of the day, such as morning, noon and before going to bed, for an identified number of times, can help with consistency and provide a positive effect.
When it comes to changing your thought patterns and switching negative thoughts to positive thoughts, the more you practice your affirmations, the stronger those patterns will become. To make affirmations work, they need regular attention and repetition.
With more and more repetitions, daily affirmations will gradually solidify, and those positive neural pathways in your brain will become stronger and stronger.
Here are six ways to weave affirmations into your daily life:
1. Habit Stacking
“Habit stacking is a very helpful way to add a new habit to your existing routine,” says Willoughby. “You attach the new activity to a well-established habit. For example, affirmations can be incorporated into your exercise routine, such as mentally repeating them while taking a walk, or into your self-care routine, repeating them while looking in the bathroom mirror after brushing your teeth.”
The idea is to add the new habit to something you’re already going to be doing anyway, regardless of affirmations. This makes it much easier for you to incorporate the new habit.
2. Using Technology
The use of technology can help us meet our wellness goals. If you’re constantly glued to your phone, use it as a tool. Here are some ideas:
- Change your phone background to include affirmations. You can search online for affirmation phone wallpaper, or you can create custom phone backgrounds that have your favorite affirmations on them if you want them to be more specific. (You can easily create pretty ones using a website like Canva).
- Set reminders for your affirmations. You can set reminders to go off everyday at predetermined times with your affirmations.
- Download affirmation apps. These apps have tons of affirmations to inspire you. You can view them on the app, create push notifications, or add widgets to your home screen. Two of the highest-rated apps on the Apple App Store are Mantra and I Am.
3. Meditating
A mindfulness meditation practice is extremely beneficial for mental health to begin with, and adding affirmations into the mix can take your meditations to the next level. “Incorporating affirmations into a daily meditation practice can enhance the experience and provide greater clarity and focus,” says Willoughby.
Once you’re settled into your meditation, you’ll want to repeat an affirmation to yourself either out loud or silently in your mind. Notice how it feels to be still in this moment and hear these words. Let the empowerment and positive vibes of every repetition sink in. If you get distracted, simply bring your attention back to your breath and the affirmation you’re working with. Continue this for at least a few minutes so the powerful affirmations can deepen your state of relaxation and empowerment. After the meditation, carry the energy of the affirmations with you.
4. Visualization
Visualization is a powerful tool that can be coupled with affirmations. Close your eyes and create a mental picture of yourself achieving your dreams in vivid detail. Where do you see yourself? What do you look like? Who are you with? How do you feel? “Visualize yourself embodying the affirmations and believe in their transformative power as you repeat them,” Wilborne says.
Using visualization and affirmations together can create a powerful amplifying effect for your subconscious mind, sending clear messages to your brain and the universe exactly what you want to attract as you move forward.
5. Trying Out Different Methods
There’s no one right way to practice affirmations. Decide what is the best way for YOU to use affirmations. The most ideal techniques are the ones that you’ll actually use and incorporate into your daily routine. “Explore various techniques like journaling, vision boards, recordings, or apps to strengthen your affirmations,” says Wilborne.
6. Lean on Community
Social support is valuable to anyone struggling with well-being. Use the benefits of community to your advantage to take your affirmation practice to the next level.
“Our community has a significant impact on shaping our mindset and influencing our thoughts and actions,” says Wilborne. “Being part of a supportive and encouraging community can greatly enhance our capacity to maintain a positive perspective on life. When we connect with people who align with our values and beliefs, we feel a sense of belonging and acceptance, fostering positivity and resilience.”
One way to do this is to create affirmation groups or circles with friends or within your community. “Creating and utilizing affirmations as a friend group can be very powerful and add an element of accountability,” says Willoughby. “The deliberateness of projecting your intention through time while also making others aware of it can be very powerful and validating.”
The Role of Affirmations in Therapy
Some therapists might incorporate affirmations into their practice to holistically support clients’ mental health. A therapist can assess what areas of your life could benefit from affirmations, assist you in crafting the most effective ones, and help you engage in healthy, helpful behaviors and habits that can help you reach your mental health goals.
“Affirmations have to be based on attainable goals, or they lose their power. Many of my clients utilize affirmations as a way to combat inner criticism or negative self-talk-type of thoughts, and I am often asked about ways to improve self-esteem, which I firmly believe begins with self-awareness,” Willoughby says. “The same reflection necessary to develop self-awareness is important for creating the most appropriate and effective affirmations that are truly tailored to your specific wants and needs.”
It’s key to remember that things won’t always be easy or perfect, and this is natural. “Expect resistance and negative thoughts initially, but acknowledge them and shift your focus to positive statements,” says Wilborne. While this experience is common, if you are experiencing a strong negative response to positive affirmations, it’s important to seek a therapist’s support.
