How We Use Sounds For Daily Affirmations

In our normal every day lives we often use sounds for daily affirmations without even realizing that this is what we're doing! In the car you may have your favourite track playing on the stereo. Even though it's music, it's still sound even though it's been formed into a structure that we identify as music.

The essential thing is that we are using the sounds to help us feel good. It's a trigger to give us that boost of euphoria we need in order to face the day. It can lift us from the lowest mood to the highest peak of exhilaration, depending on exactly what fires our own emotions. Hence some people get a great thrill jumping about and listening to heavy metal - while the neighbour next door could be burying into the pillow at the constant thump, thump, thump of the drums. My father used to cry tears of joy listening to Messiaen's organ music while I used to cry tears of pain.

Some people use daily affirmations to help them find the confidence to face the day. These are, after all, sounds in another format. Everything we hear is sound. It's the meaning we attach to it that causes our emotions to run high or to flatten out to a tranquil state. So to find those sounds that have the best effect is essential to finding affirmations that work.

Have you ever heard how it doesn't matter what you say to a baby because it's the tone in which you say it? This has the same effect on us if we can't understand what the meaning behind the words is. I remember hearing a beautifully intoned phrase in German and thinking it must be something beautiful. It turned out to mean "we're having some really shocking weather".

To reinforce positive words, we use as affirmations we can use them against a backdrop of music or sounds that have a positive effect on us. For some it will be Beethoven's powerful music. Others will prefer the dulcet tones of Enya. Still more will want to relax to the sound of waves lapping on the shore.

One of the most powerful experiences in my life has been to work with Tibetan singing bowls. I have seen these in action in Nepal and been deeply moved by the response to them and the experience of coming into contact with their deep vibrations and tones. For me, this is one of the most magical sounds there can be, reaching out from across the millennia with healing energy - essentially because of their beautiful sounds.

Thanks to the work of early pioneers, such as Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins in the 40s and 50s, the world of science is only just beginning to recognize the significance of music as a psychological tool. As a result, music therapy and various forms of sound therapy are developing as disciplines in their own right.

So if there is only one thing you do to make yourself feel better, make time to listen to music. Personally I have recorded the sounds of the sea lapping the beach at Rocky Bay in Co. Cork, Ireland and this gives me great comfort when I am holed up in my city address and in need of the freedom of the countryside. If you can organize yourself enough then repeat some positive statements aloud or silently as you listen to the music or sounds. Most of all, find the opportunity to surround yourself with sounds as daily affirmations.

I have worked with sounds all my life. If this article has fired your interest in some of the ways that I look at sound then take a look at http://www.squidoo.com/sounds-for-daily-affirmations. There are some fascinating advancements in this area which are well worth checking out. I also use Tibetan singing bowls to work with adults and children with autism. To see more of what I do then please visit http://www.feelingsounds.com/ and if there is anything you can add I would love to hear from you on either site. Thank you for reading.

Original article

How Daily Affirmations Work

Did you ever wonder why being loved, successful, or admired is something for other people, but not for you? The answer to that question is very simple: other people have heard, and accepted, positive quotes about themselves from people they believe. Think for a moment about the simplicity of that: Positive affirmations feed your belief in yourself. They are like high octane gas in your tank.

Now say this: "I can fuel myself by accepting positive affirmations every day." Say that three times.

How does this work? Just what does that word, "work," mean?

We begin with the word "work." This will mean something a bit different for each of you reading this, but in essence, we are speaking of tools that assist us in changing how we face the world and how we perceive our own value. If you are reading this, I can assume you have doubts about your right to declare what you expect to get in life and then going for it whole hog. Is it OK for you to be the center of attention? Is it alright for you to make mistakes? Is it alright for you to be publicly acknowledged for good work done? Is it alright for you to tell others what you need to be happy, or to feel loved? (Or are they supposed to "know" already?)

Affirmations will "work" for you as you begin to believe in them and find yourself acting on their truth.

How does this happen? Think back in your life to your young years and re-hear the angry or disheartening words you grew up with. We all got these words; some of us got much more than others. They came from the very people we loved and who we believed had a true insight into our inner selves. As a counselor, I have heard many of these words, and I grew up with many myself: "Don't be so stupid. Are you EVER going to get it right? You're an idiot. You're too fat (short, inept, dumb, tall, awkward, weird, etc.) to ever do that. You're just an egghead. What did you expect? You're just too sensitive (shy, silly...)"

The list goes on and on. All these statements are nullifications of the true wonder of your being. They went in when your defenses were down, and they seemed to be sort of right, because you loved or feared the one saying them, and you were generally feeling pretty crummy at the time anyway.

Positive affirmations are the medicine-these are statements that counteract all the negative ones from the past. You may find yourself saying, "They sound great, but they aren't true!"----You are right, and the others weren't true, either. Think about it: this beautiful, incredible child who is trying to learn how to do all things adults seem to expect is also trying to find out about life on his own. Sometimes it gets complicated. Errors get made. Is that so bad? Those nullifications weren't true at the time. They became true, however, through repetition which became expectation. In the same way that past nullifications created your sense of being outside the good life, so, too, can positive affirmations bring you into that good life now. They build your belief in your own right and capability to create your own happiness, love, and success.

This building begins with saturating your subconscious mind with this new information. As we surround ourselves with the affirmations that build us up, our subconscious mind will begin to lay them over the old outdated statements. Positive affirmations are more fun, and are more NOW than the old ones from the past, which is why the subconscious wants them. With repeated reading, reciting, writing, and singing of your affirmations, your mind will begin to allow your actions to direct your life towards making them true for you. You will find yourself turning towards happiness, love, and success---a cosmic YES waiting just for you.

http://www.katebowditch.com/
I write about hypnosis practice itself and about those experiences that are felt and interpreted by the deepest aspects of ourselves. As a hypnotherapist and author for 15+ years, I explore how we incorporate information from our subconscious mind into our daily lives.

Please visit my website/blog to order my book, "20-20 Insight, Advanced Theory and Practice of Hypnosis:"
http://www.katebowditch.com/ (click on "hypnosis")

Original article

Using Daily Affirmations

What do you think of when I start to talk about how to use daily affirmations? Perhaps you immediately reject the idea as something that someone weak needs. Or perhaps you've met people who have yellow post-it notes dotted around their homes to remind them of the state of mind they are striving to achieve.

Norman Vincent Peale's famous book "The Power Of Positive Thinking" uses some of the most famous affirmations that people know. But one of his most famous affirmations is "I can do all things through Jesus Christ our savior who strengthens me...". The fact that it's quoted from Philippians 4:13 gives away more about what the essence of an affirmation is and where they come from. It shows that some of the most fundamental positive statements we use are derived from ancient texts and thoughts.

But, surely, the point is that someone who uses this affirmation on a daily basis will find some relevance in it? They are likely to be someone who follows a western religious doctrine and takes comfort from the Bible. You would be unlikely to find someone of an eastern faith using this particular form of words as a source of strength.

I recently visited Nepal and had the privilege of seeing many Buddhist followers repeatedly chanting the mantra "Om Ma Ni Pad Me Hum" as they walked trance-like around the Boudhanath in Kathmandu.

What about the real estate salesman who wakes in the morning, stares himself in the mirror and affirms "I have the inner strength to make this sale today"? He affirms it again and again until it is ingrained in his subconscious and his lips murmur it while he brushes his teeth... While he drives to work... He's like an automaton, trance like as he operates the car.

Two things are noteworthy. Firstly, these phrases are short and have a context of relevance to the participant. Secondly, they are repeated in such a way and with such regularity that their incantation becomes an almost mindless (and I mean that in the most positive way!) act. It's not so much the content of the words that matters so much as their emotional relevance and their sound.

Find some time to repeat some positive statements that have meaning to you each day and see how your mood changes.

- Make it relevant
- Make it short
- Repeat it regularly for a set amount of time each day
- Make it automatic

Namaste.

I have been on a spiritual journey for the last 30 odd years of my short 45 years on this earth so far. The idea of spirituality has appealed to me from my early school days when I found solace in the fortress of my own thoughts. If this article has interested you and you'd like to read more then you can see related articles at http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-use-affirmations.

Original article

Three Daily Affirmations For Happiness

Did you ever wonder why being loved, successful, or admired is something for other people, but not for you? The answer to that question is very simple: the other people have heard and accepted positive affirmations about themselves, for years, from people they believe. Think for a moment about the simplicity of that: Positive affirmations feed your belief in yourself.

Many of the miseries of life are the result of belief in the negative things which were stated as fact about us as children. Adults often say and do frightening things to and around children. These are taken in by children in a very literal way and interpreted as a true view of who they are. Children accept the authority of adults without question. And, because children tend to want to keep adults happy, they often act out what they have heard from those adults in order to prove the adults right. Often, the adults are unaware of their power, and thus seem confused when the children then act badly.

This begins young, and can run throughout life.

Here are some examples:

A. Grandma tells me she will take away my new toy and give it to my cousin if I don't play with it "right."

Grandma does not tell me what "right" means to her.

I love my Grandma, and therefore feel vaguely "wrong" about how I play with this toy, no matter what I am doing. Because of this, I avoid playing with it.

Grandma takes the toy away because I don't play with it "right." I am left alone in my "wrongness."

Because I don't know how to resolve this, I come to believe that I don't deserve new toys.

Because I don't deserve new toys, Grandma has the right to take things away. And around we go again with the next new toy.

This becomes: "I don't deserve new things," which is in fact easier to live with than the confusion between Grandma and what is "right."

The child who decides early on that Grandma is a nut case, and has other loving adults who agree, makes further life decisions of a very different nature from the one who continues to try to love and please Grandma.

B. When a child expresses needs that counter the parent's needs, or touches very sore spots in the untrained parent's psyche, the angry response might be: "Who do you think you are, MR. BIG?"

The child can internalize this as: "I am unable to express my needs." Or: "I am not safe." Or: "Mother will not satisfy me." etc. The child, unsafe to express needs and get them met, becomes more and more needy, probably clingy or disruptive, and less and less tolerable to the parent who is threatened by such neediness. And round we go again.

The decisions, "I don't deserve", "I'm not safe", "I am unable", or "I am alone", become foundation blocks upon which the further behaviors of the individual are built. They become life patterns. Changing those patterns changes the foundation itself. Affirmations rebuild the foundation. The new foundation is positive and supporting. Old behaviors change easily to express the beauty of the new one.

In my career as a therapist, the list of negative statements and put-downs that my clients bring is long and utterly dreary:

"You Jerk!; Why are you so stupid (clumsy, silly, needy)?; Who do you think you are, the Great I Am?; There you go again.; What are you doing here?; You're just like your Dad (Mom, bad sister, etc); Go away!; I should never have had you!; Why can't you get it right, for a change?; You little bastard!; You are what's wrong with this family!; Don't be an idiot!; Now What?; Are you still here?" Etc.

The ones that my clients wish they had heard as children are surprisingly, and poignantly, few:

I love you. We love you. You are loved. I am worthy. I'm OK. You're so smart. You can do anything you put your mind to. I'm so proud of you. I love you. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Just reading that list is like a cool breeze. Did reading one make you feel strange? That is the one for you. Now for two others. Pick three statements from the list below, especially if they make you feel funny when you first read them, and write them on pretty paper. The three you pick are just for you---they are yours, for you are unique, and are now beginning to express the truth of your amazing nature.

I believe in myself.

I am worthy.

I can do anything I put my mind to.

I am satisfied.

I find joy every day.

I am loved.

I love.

Stick your affirmations onto your mirror, fridge, dashboard, notebook cover, in your wallet, and (yes, AND) anywhere else you will see them. Say them out-loud all day, greet yourself in the morning with them. Begin today. Now. Print them out right now and Begin. Your life will become more livable, more flexible, more enjoyable than it is right now.

http://www.katebowditch.com/
I write about hypnosis practice itself and about those experiences that are felt and interpreted by the deepest aspects of ourselves. As a hypnotherapist and author for 15+ years, I explore how we incorporate information from our subconscious mind into our daily lives.

Please visit my website/blog to order my book, "20-20 Insight, Advanced Theory and Practice of Hypnosis:"
http://www.katebowditch.com/ (click on "hypnosis")

Original article

Positive Daily Affirmations Made Easy

I hate my job. I'm so unhappy. No one loves me.

Does any of the above sound familiar to you? Don't be surprised if you've thought one or all of those statements at one time or another. In today's society we are programmed to focus on the things we are unhappy with and the things that we wish would change. Unfortunately, this mindset leads to negative thinking, and these kinds of thoughts can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. Many people are starting to realize that to change their lives they first need to change their thoughts; this is where positive daily affirmations come in.

Everything we think, everything we say, is an affirmation. Whether conscious or not, we are continually analyzing our existence. The way we think about ourselves and our lives shapes the way that we respond and react to the environment around us. If we tell ourselves we hate our job we'll spend so much time focusing on that, we will fail to notice things such as we have friends we work with, the great employee care our company offers and career advancement opportunities. Conversely, if we were to tell ourselves we loved our job we would smile more at work, be more productive and excited about our work and network and make more connections that could lead to a coveted promotion.

Positive affirmations work by the power of thought, and the power of thought plays a large influence on our lives. Many of the extremely successful people today operate with daily affirmations, and you can too. You are the only limit to your dreams; only you can create the reality you want.

Daily affirmations are available in many places (online, in books), but the more personal they are, the more effective they will be. This is why we encourage you to write your own. It's easier than you might think. First, grab a paper and a pen. Write down what you are unhappy with, or what you would like to change in your life. Then, write in present tense what would make you happy. This might look something like, "I hate being broke," and then, "I am financially secure and happy." If you have trouble with this, start simple and short. You can always edit your statement later on to be more specific. "I am happy," is a fine beginning.

Now that you have your affirmation, you need to use it. You'll want to make positive thinking a part of your daily routine. Try to do this first thing in the morning, and then throughout the day if you find your negative thoughts are creeping back in. Look at yourself in the mirror. Be convincing, be enthusiastic, and make yourself believe what you are saying. Keep a paper with your positive statements on it with you at all times. Take it out and read it to yourself if you need to. Don't feel silly. Remember that you have the power to change your life, and positive daily affirmations can be the first step in a great journey.

Original article