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Wellness > Mental Health

How Affirmations Changed My Life

The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at DePauw chapter.

TW: This article contains the subject of body image. 

I know what you’re thinking: not another stupid article about affirmations.  That false positivity stuff literally never works.  I’m not going to look into a mirror and call myself beautiful every day.  Believe me, I was there.  Until I got desperate.  I don’t really know what exactly happened last May, but believe me, when I say, I was not feeling myself.  

And, then, I saw a TikTok (as we all do). And I tried it.  And it worked.  

So, what exactly did I do? 

Every single day in the shower, I started telling myself all of these crazy affirmations.  Anything and everything I wanted, I said it in the shower.  I found that showering was a very meditative state for me and I could almost picture the words almost running over me. 

The first day, it was “I am healthy, I am wealthy, I am rich, I am that -,” you know… That song.

And then I got more creative with it: “I am beautiful. I am gorgeous.  I am confident.  I can attain anything I want.  My skin is glowing. When I walk into a room, I am noticed.” Literally, whatever I wanted.  Any and all of your craziest dreams, say them out loud.  

And I am not kidding you when I say that it worked.  Miracles.  Within a matter of days, I was looking at myself differently.  I would pass a mirror and actually, be appreciative of my body and I began to see myself for more than just the physical.  I finally saw inner beauty, inner child healing, and myself for who I truly was.

 It became a meditative practice for me; to take a few moments and just appreciate myself.  To be proud of my body and how it carries me through life every day.

I wish I was not as cheesy as this is about to sound, but it changed me.  I have never been this confident or comfortable in my own skin. 

And I’m not saying that it completely solved all of my problems because body image is a struggle. It is a true rollercoaster. There are days when I completely hate what I look like, and other days I am in love with the way my eyes look.  But, it made the bad days a whole lot better, and it made me actually feel some sort of appreciation towards myself.  

All I have to say is: give it a shot.  

ANONYMOUS DEPAUW – Articles written by DePauw women