Affirmations: What They Are, Health Benefits, and Getting Started

Whether you’re feeling proud of yourself after a major accomplishment or feeling down on yourself after a day when you can’t seem to get it right, the way you talk to yourself matters.

That’s the idea behind affirmations — short phrases you can repeat to change the way you think and feel about yourself. If you meditate or practice yoga, you may already be familiar with affirmations — they’re often integrated with these practices

Affirmations are free and easy to practice anywhere, anytime, so they’re a really accessible tool for coping with stressful current events, says Corey Yeager, PhD, a Minneapolis-based licensed marriage and family therapist and the author of How Am I Doing?: 40 Conversations to Have With Yourself.

“People are latching onto simple ways to help themselves,” he says.

What Are Affirmations?

They can be said aloud or to yourself. These statements are usually intended to help shift thinking from negative to positive, motivate an action, reduce stress, persevere through difficult times, and increase self-confidence and well-being.

“Affirmations help build and improve your self-esteem. They can also act as a way of challenging and replacing your negative and anxious thinking when it comes to stress, depression, physical pain, and anxiety,” says Lee Phillips, LCSW, EdD, a psychotherapist and sex and couples therapist certified by the Integrative Sex Therapy Institute, who is based in New York City.

They work by replacing negative self-talk, explains Dr. Yeager. For example, if you made a mistake and then think, “I’m so stupid,” Yeager says, you’re unintentionally using a negative affirmation.

But if you can spot the negative affirmation, there’s an opportunity to change it to a positive one. In this case, you might tell yourself: “I can learn from my mistakes.”

Dr. Steele suggested that people generally want to have a positive image of themselves, so when they experience a threat to that image (such as somebody telling them they’re not good at something), they tend to affirm their sense of self, which, in turn, allows them to handle these threats in a more secure, balanced way. The affirmation is a way to help navigate that stressful situation.

How Can Affirmations Boost Your Health?

If we practice affirmations every single day, we may be able to create new pathways in the brain, explains Dr. Zand. It is similar to muscle memory: Instead of flexing our very negative thought processes, we instead create a habit of flexing a more balanced and positive self-view. “I would call affirmations a neuroplastic habit,” he says.

Here are some other potential benefits.

Affirmations Can Boost Your Sense of Self

Affirmations Can Help With Behavior Change

Affirmations Can Help You Perform Under Stress

In Yeager’s real-world experience as a psychotherapist for the Detroit Pistons, he uses affirmations with NBA players to help them remove the opportunity for negativity to set in during a game. For example, an affirmation may help an athlete improve their game or rebound from a play that didn’t go so well.

“I talk to players a lot about how, when you’re in the game and something negative happens, you turn the ball over,” he says. He’s not talking about the basketball itself; you reframe the way you see the situation, he explains. The athlete might have their own personal affirmation, or Yeager might suggest using this one: “I was built for this. I’m not worried.”

Finally, while affirmations can help in all these ways, they are not a substitute for professional treatment if you need it. If you’re experiencing persistent feelings of anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, self-doubt, or stress talking to a mental health professional can help.

How to Start an Affirmation Practice

Starting an affirmation practice can be quick and painless. It requires no equipment or setup. Here’s how to get started.

Pick Your Affirmation

The first step in starting an affirmation practice is to pick an affirmation. You can use a phrase you’ve heard that really resonates with you, or, Yeager advises, you can also come up with your own affirmation that will serve your purpose. Some steps:

• Decide on a purpose. Think about what you’d like to get from the affirmation, says Yeager. Do you want it to reassure you of something? Motivate you to accomplish a goal? Or boost your confidence?
• Keep it short. Yeager suggests using a phrase that’s about three to seven words. “[You] want it to be quick, easy, and short enough that it can be repeated over and over,” he says.
• Keep it authentic. An affirmation needs a level of authenticity in order to be used effectively, says Zand. It should be something you believe is true, even if you may not feel that truth all the time, he says.

Decide How and When to Use It

Affirmations can be said in your head or out loud. Sometimes it depends on when you want to use them. If you’re at home in your bathroom, you can stand in front of the mirror and say an affirmation out loud. If you’re in a public setting, say on a bus, you’ll probably want to say it in your head.

When you choose to practice really depends on why you’re using the affirmation. If you want to get your day off to a positive start, Dr. Phillips recommends practicing them in the morning. To help you relax and regulate your nervous system after a long day, he suggests saying them in the evening.

Keep Using It

Once you’ve decided on your affirmation(s) and a time that suits your schedule, try to make a regular habit of it. For example, if you decide it’s going to be for the morning, make it part of your morning routine. Repeat it as many times as you need. Practicing affirmations regularly is key to their effectiveness, especially if you’re trying to change thinking patterns or behaviors.

To help you stick with the practice, Cleveland Clinic notes you can write your affirmation(s) on notecards and place them around your home; keep them in your phone's Notes app so they’re accessible; and set a reminder to repeat or reread your affirmations at the same time each day.

21 Sample Affirmations Anyone Can Use

Need some affirmation inspiration? Here are some recommendations from Phillips, Yeager, and Zand.

Affirmations for Confidence

• I can make a difference in the world.
• It’s okay that the struggle happened.
• I was built to endure any chaos.

Affirmations for Self-Care

• I’m going to be all right.
• My body is beautiful.
• I deserve the best.

Affirmations for Healthy Relationships

• I am worthy of love.
• I’m thankful for my partner.
• I’m ready to receive love in abundance.

Affirmations for the Morning

• I am grateful to have woken up today.
• I am going to see the world in a loving way.
• Today I’m going to be my best self.

Affirmations for Sleep

• I’m grateful for the repair my body is going to go through.
• I am at peace with everything I cannot control.
• Tomorrow is going to be a great day.

Affirmations for Work or Productivity

• All I can do is my best.
• Failure is part of success.
• If I keep trying, my successes will increase.

Affirmations for Sex and Healthy Sexuality

• My sexual experience can include all kinds of activities.
• I can have an orgasm, but it is not required.
• I can have arousal before desire.

The Takeaway

• Affirmations are phrases that can help move your thoughts and actions in a positive direction.
• Research has found that they can potentially improve your sense of self and help you problem-solve better under stress.
• To start, pick a purpose, choose a short phrase as your affirmation, and remain authentic in your daily practice.