affirmations, anyone?

i have an uneasy relationship with affirmations. on the one hand i know they can work, under certain circumstances, on the other, my logical mind mistrusts them and finds them plain silly. maybe one day i’ll be wanting to step in front of a mirror and say, “i love you” but that day hasn’t arrived yet. is that an inability to love myself or … who knows?

at any rate, there are some ways of using affirmations that make sense to me. one of the problems that i have with affirmations is that they often seem to contradict current reality. that offends my common sense. lynn grodzki has a remedy for that. she suggests to

1 design an affirmation of something you really want
2 make it something a bit “out there” – challenge yourself
3 write out the affirmation
4 write down your reaction to the affirmation (in the beginning, it might be quite negative)
5 repeat, repeat, repeat steps 3 and 4 (she talks of someone who, when the going gets tough, does this for one hour a day until she reaches the desired outcome)

you’ll find an example of this below, as well as some links to web sites that talk about affirmations.


beginning of this affirmation exercise …

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
what a stupid sentence!

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
well, i don’t.

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
if i can’t put together a nice-sounding sentence then how can i know anything?

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
i’ve never known the difference. why am i supposed to know that now?

notice the difference, some days after beginning this exercise?

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
i still don’t like this sentence but i guess it doesn’t matter. i know what i mean by it.

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
i wonder, if that was really true, how would i act?

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
would i be less confused if that was really true?

i know the difference between being overly demanding and gently challenging
i’d really like that if that was my reality

links:
http://www.naropa.edu/faculty/johndavis/tp/medit2.html
http://www.coping.org/growth/affirm.htm#self
http://www.health-science-spirit.com/cancer8-mind.html

and a funny/sarcastic one …
http://www.des.emory.edu/mfp/affirmations2.html


take care, everyone!

isabella
moritherapy
counselling in vancouver
www.moritherapy.com