What are Affirmations? (Hay)

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Chapter 2: "WHAT ARE AFFIRMATIONS?" Written by Louise L. Hay Excerpted From: "You Can Heal Your Life Affirmation Kit -- Guidebook", Written by Louise L. Hay, Published by Hay House Inc., Copyright 2005. "For those of you who aren't familiar with affirmations and have never worked with them, I'd like to explain a little about what they are and how they work. Very simply, an affirmation is anything you say or think. A lot of what we normally say and think is quite negative and doesn't create good experiences for us. We have to retrain our thinking and speaking into positive patterns if we want to heal our lives. "An affirmation opens the door. It's a beginning point on the path to change. In essence, you're saying to your subconscious mind: "I AM

TAKING RESPONSIBILITY. I AM AWARE THAT THERE IS SOMETHING I CAN DO TO CHANGE." When I talk about DOING AFFIRMATIONS, I mean consciously choosing words that will either help ELIMINATE something from your life or help CREATE something new in your life. "Every thought you think and every word you speak is an affirmation. All of our self-talk, our internal dialogue, is a stream of affirmations. You're using affirmations every moment whether you know it or not. You're affirming and creating your life experiences with every word and thought. "Your beliefs are merely habitual thinking patterns that you learned as a child. Many of them work very well for you. Other beliefs may be limiting your ability to create the very things you say you want. What you want and what you believe you deserve may be very different. You need to pay attention to your thoughts so that you can begin to eliminate the ones creating

experiences you do NOT want in your life. "Please realize that every complaint is an affirmation of something you think you don't want in your life. Every time you get angry, you're affirming that you want more anger in your life. Every time you feel like a victim, you're affirming that you want to CONTINUE to feel like a victim. If you feel that Life isn't giving you what you want, then it's certain that you will never have the goodies that Life gives to others -- that is, until you change the way you think and talk. "You're not a bad person for thinking the way you do. You've just never learned HOW to think and talk. People throughout the world are just now beginning to learn that our thoughts create our experiences. Your parents probably didn't know this, so they couldn't possibly teach it to you. They taught you how to look at life in the way that THEIR parents taught them. So nobody is WRONG. However, it's

time for all of us to wake up and begin to consciously create our lives in a way that pleases and supports us. YOU can do it. I can do it. We ALL can do it -- we just need to learn how. So let's get to it. "Throughout this booklet, I'll talk about specific topics and concerns (health, fearful emotions, critical thinking, addictions, forgiveness, work, money and prosperity, friends, love and intimacy, and aging) and give you exercises that will show you how to make positive changes in these areas. "Some people say that "affirmations don't work" (which is an affirmation in itself), when what they mean is that they don't know how to use them correctly. They may say, "MY PROSPERITY IS GROWING," but then think, 'OH, THIS IS STUPID, I KNOW IT WON'T WORK.' Which affirmation do you think will win out? The negative one, of course, because it's part of a long-standing, habitual way of looking at life. Sometimes

people will say their affirmations once a day and complain the rest of the time. It will take a long time for affirmations to work if they're done that way. The complaining affirmations will always win, because there are more of them, and they're usually said with great feeling. "However, SAYING affirmations is only part of the process. What you do the rest of the day and night is even more important. The secret to having your affirmations work quickly and consistently is to prepare an atmosphere for them to grow in. Affirmations are like seeds planted in soil. Poor soil, poor growth. Rich soil, abundant growth. The more you choose to think thoughts that make you feel good, the quicker the affirmations work. "So think happy thoughts, it's that simple. And it IS doable. The way you choose to think, right NOW, is just that --- a choice. You may not realize it because you've thought this way for so long, but

it really is a choice. "Now ... today ... this moment ... you can choose to change your thinking. Your life won't turn around overnight, but if you're consistent and make the choice on a daily basis to think thoughts that make you feel good, you'll definitely make positive changes in every area of your life. CREATING AFFIRMATIONS "Doing affirmations is consciously choosing to think certain thoughts that will manifest positive results in the future. They create a focal point that will allow you to begin changing your thinking. Affirmative statements are GOING BEYOND THE REALITY OF THE PRESENT INTO THE CREATION OF THE FUTURE THROUGH THE WORDS YOU USE IN THE NOW. "When you choose to say, "I AM VERY PROSPEROUS," you may actually have very little money in the bank at the moment, but what you're doing is planting seeds for future prosperity. Each time you

repeat this statement, you're reaffirming the seeds you've planted in the atmosphere of your mind. That's why you want it to be a HAPPY atmosphere. Things grow much quicker in fertile, rich soil. "It's important for you to always say your affirmations in the PRESENT tense, and without contractions. (Although I use contractions throughout the running text of my books, I never use them in affirmations, since I don't want to diminish their power.) For example, typical affirmations would start: "I HAVE ..." or "I AM ...". If you say, "I am going to ..." or "I will have ...," then your thought stays out there in the future. The Universe takes your thoughts and words very literally and gives you what you say you want. ALWAYS. This is another reason to maintain a happy mental atmosphere. It's easier to think in positive affirmations when you feel good. "Think of it this way:

Every thought you think counts, so don't waste your precious thoughts. Every positive thought brings good into your life. Every negative thought pushes good away; it keeps it just out of your reach. How many times in your life have you almost gotten something good and it seemed to be snatched away at the last moment? If you could remember what your mental atmosphere was like at those times, you'd have the answer. Too many negative thoughts create a barrier against positive affirmations. "If you say, "I don't want to be sick anymore," this is not an affirmation for good health. You have to state clearly what you DO want: "I ACCEPT PERFECT HEALTH NOW." "I hate this car" does not bring you a wonderful new car because you're not being clear. Even if you do get a new car, in a short time you'll probably hate it, because that's what you've been affirming. If you want a new car, then say something like this: "I HAVE A

BEAUTIFUL NEW CAR THAT SUITS ALL OF MY NEEDS." "You'll hear some people saying, "Life sucks!" (which is a terrible affirmation). Can you imagine what experiences THAT statement will attract to you? Of course, it isn't life that sucks, it's your THINKING that sucks. That thought will help you feel terrible. And when you feel terrible, no good can come into your life. "Don't waste time arguing for your limitations: poor relationships, problems, illnesses, poverty, and so on. The more you talk about the problem, the more you anchor it in place. Don't blame others for what's seemingly wrong in your life --- that's just another waste of time. Remember, you're under the laws of your own consciousness, your own thoughts, and you attract specific experiences to you as a result of the way you think. "Now, let's deal with some specific topics." (End of Chapter

2). *** Please note: "All exercises in the chapters that follow need to be done on a separate piece of paper, so I recommend that you keep a pad of paper or a blank journal handy as you use this guidebook." ~~~~~ Personal Note From PJ, owner/affirmations to de-stress: I highly recommend this product for anyone wanting to have success in doing affirmations! The affirmation kit is very useful & user friendly for successful affirmations. Right now, the affirmation kit is on sale for $15.96 (from the normal retail price of $19.95), IF purchased through Louise Hay's website. See: www.hayhouse.com to order or for more information. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/AffirmationstoDe-Stress A positive thinking, positive affirmations support group, that empowers us with ways to sail through daily life stress. Come aboard! PJ and Gang