Unlocking Resilience: How Affirmations Transform Trauma Recovery

<p><!--block--><br>Unlocking Resilience: How Affirmations Transform Trauma Recovery&nbsp;<br>ABGW's rapid rockets exercise can help you break free from trauma recovery<br>Cheryl: You ever wondered your inner dialogue shapes your ability? Or maybe you're curious to learn a secret that the most successful people know? Or maybe you're even feeling in your journey towards recovery and just want to know a fun, effective way to break free. Well, this episode is for you. Hello, everyone, and welcome to ABGW. Amazing, brilliant, gorgeous, wonderful. Trauma recovery redefined from struggle to strength. And we're here today for a rapid rockets exercise. Yes, rapid rockets are extra episodes so that I can answer a few questions so that you can start bagging it out. Actionable steps towards working smarter and definitely not harder. As I've said before, some of these questions come from messages I've had from your social interactions with us on Facebook and Instagram. And some are from private messages and others are just questions I thought it'd be useful for me to answer so that it makes it as easy as possible for you to take action. So without any further ado, let's dive straight in.<br>Affirmations are positive, empowering statements used to overcome negative thoughts<br>This episode of ABGW is brought to you by her guru coaching and hypnotherapy. Exploring the potential within. Her guru provides both physical and mental fitness coaching and hypnotherapy services. You can find out more details by visiting Herguru UK. Trauma recovery redefined from struggle to strength for a life you love, more often than not, you.<br>Nyah: What exactly are affirmations?<br>Cheryl: Affirmations are positive, empowering statements, basically used to overcome negative thoughts, and they're particularly beneficial for any kind of trauma recovery. So the way I think about it is affirmations are gentle but powerful tools. A bit like, martial arts, Tai Chi. Tai Chi is such a beautiful thing when you watch it, but it's also very powerful when it needs to be. And it's the same with affirmations. They're tools for healing and reprogramming our subconscious, especially after trauma. And the thing is these short, positive statements that, when repeated and repeated, can gradually reshape your thoughts and your beliefs. And they act like a beautiful, soothing balm that help heal the wounds in your subconscious mind. And for someone who's experienced trauma, for me, affirmations are like, having that nurturing voice, countering the often harsh and negative internal dialogue that a lot of us tend to have. Do you remember in the film eat, pray, love? There's an amazing scene, where Elizabeth, who's played by Julia Roberts, affirms her quest for self discovery and healing during her travels. It's so beautiful because it captures the essence of using affirmations to seek inner peace and overcome past trauma. One of the most amazing ways that I think that you can use affirmations is, you can do, one of the things that I've done and I've encouraged some of my, clients, to do is to create an affirmation jar. And it's basically a decorative jar. It could be a jam jar that you've decorated, but you fill it with various affirmations, and then every day you pick one out at random. And, this adds to the element of surprise because you don't know what you're going to pick out. And of course, the whole anticipation, because you don't know. But the thing is, when you practice them every day, you get the surprise, you get the anticipation, but you also get the benefit of the reinforcement of that positive self talk. Absolutely. An affirmation for trauma recovery could be something like, I am worthy of love and respect. For me, it's like whispering a secret of hope to your unconscious mind, because every time you say it, you're planting seeds of healing and self worth and self compassion, which counter, any negative beliefs stemming from past trauma. Interesting fact, studies&nbsp;</p><p><!--block--><br></p><p><!--block--><br>show that affirmations can significantly boost self esteem. And with studies linking them to increase activity in the, valuation areas of the brain. So the bits of the brain where we get rewards.&nbsp;<br>Nyah: Can you give me an example of an affirmation?<br>Cheryl: One of the ways that I would encourage you as a way of getting the most out of affirmations is to take photographs that represent your affirmations. So an example might be a photo of a sunrise as an affirmation about new beginnings. And then when you take those photos, sharing them with your family and friends as, ah, an additional way of getting support.<br>Nyah: How can affirmations change my life?<br>Cheryl: Affirmations, in my opinion, are a particularly transformational way for those recovering from trauma because they work like a gentle daily exercise on your mind. I love pilates. I have, ah, an aero pilates machine. And it's the thing with that machine, I can adjust my exercise to intense or gentle. But the thing with affirmations, you get gentle exercise for your mind every single day as you gradually build up your strength and your resilience. And like the physical therapy that you get from pilates, it helps, mend anything that's broken. And affirmations help heal those emotional wounds. So over time, these positive, amazing present tense statements can lead to profound shifts in how you view yourself and view the world. And, for me, that's about cool, because it's like fostering a more positive and hopeful outcome so that you allow yourself to have more of the life that you love. One of the favorite things that I love about affirmations is that they're everywhere, okay? We just don't even realize it. Muhammad Aleen, renowned for his boxing, was almost famous for his affirmations. Do you remember that one? I am the greatest. To me, that just exemplifies the power of positive self talk in achieving success.<br>Using affirmations can help boost resilience during trauma recovery<br>Nyah: What's the best time to use affirmations.<br>Cheryl: If you're thinking about trauma recovery? For me, using affirmations, is best during moments of calm. So that's like first thing in the morning or early in the morning when you first get up. I, for myself, find that especially effective because these are the times when your mind is more receptive and will allow the affirmations to seep deep, deep, deep into your subconscious. It's a bit like quietly slipping a message of hope into your mind when your mind is most ready to listen. Here's a fun fact for you. The ancients practice yoga and meditation. Often incorporated affirmations or mantras into these transformational moments to enhance their mental and, physical well being. How mad is that?<br>Nyah: My conscious mind keeps interfering. What should I do?<br>Cheryl: You know, it's quite normal for your conscious mind to resist, especially if you've experienced any kind of trauma. But the thing is, your conscious mind is used to old patterns in order to protect itself. And all we're doing with positive affirmations stated in the present tense is we're allowing your mind to get used to new patterns, new ways of thinking. So it's really important that you remember to be gentle with yourself because it's okay to let these positive affirmations in. And with time and consistency, your subconscious will start to accept these new, healthier ways of thinking and believing.&nbsp;</p><p><!--block--><br></p><p><!--block-->A bit like, when I start my allotment and throw down the new seeds after the harsh winter. Amazing, brilliant, gorgeous, wonderful. Helping women just like you who are unhappy, perhaps even with your supposedly quote unquote good life. This is a mum and daughter duo, not, ah, pulling any punches as we explore trauma recovery and ideas for building resilience so you work smarter and definitely not harder to create a transformational life, a life you love more often than not. Fun fact for you here, which is one of the reasons why I think affirmations are so, so powerful. The conscious mind can process about 40 bits of information per second, while your subconscious can process about 20,000 bits of information per second. That disparity explains why changing deep seated beliefs can be so challenging. And, why affirmations are there to help us along the way?&nbsp;<br>Nyah: How do affirmations work?<br>Cheryl: Affirmations kind of work by slowly reprogramming negative thought patterns that have often been ingrained by traumatic experiences. Or maybe you haven't had one traumatic experience, but you've had a lifetime of traumatic things happening to you. And the thing is, they're like, for me, a compassionate, persistent recoder, rewriting the script to your subconscious mind. So with time and practice, these positive statements rewrite the code so they overwrite all the old, harmful, negative narratives. a bit like when you update the software on your Apple phone with something that's far more healthier and far more supportive to the life that you love.<br>Nyah: How do I use affirmations?<br>Cheryl: Do you remember in the film the pursuit of happiness, Chris, who's played by Will Smith, consistently affirms his and his son's potential for a better life despite all the hardships that he's going through. And there's like, a really cool moment when he tells his son, I think it goes something like this. Don't ever let someone else tell you you can't do something. I think it goes like that. it's the scene, where it captures those affirmations. And the thing is, it can help drive you towards achieving your goals, even in adversity. Don't let someone tell you you can't do something. Well, one of the best ways I think, to get started is by identifying the areas in your life most affected by trauma. like maybe self esteem, or maybe there might be trust issues. Then create affirmations that directly address those issues. Repeat them daily. So, like I said, ideally, set a time that you do them every single day and rinse and repeat them daily. Because like I said, it's a bit like nurturing my allotment garden. Initially, you might not see any of the growth, but with regular care, you'll start to notice a flourishing and that flourishing change happening over time. How cool is that? I don't know if you've ever noticed, but famous athletes often use personalized affirmations to enhance their performance just before they're about to do their event. So they might be on the start of the 100 meters and you can see them visibly talking to themselves, telling themselves their personalized positive affirmations so they get the most out of their performance.<br>Nyah: Any tips for writing my own affirmations?<br>Cheryl: When crafting affirmations, especially for me, anything to do with trauma recovery, what I would say is to focus on what feels most healing and empowering to you. So, what I would say, though, is that it's really important that it's positive. It's stated in the positive, so what you want, not what you don't want, it's in the present tense. And to make them as personal as possible. So one of the ways you can think of doing this is like, if you were going to write a love letter to yourself, to the most wounded parts of your mind, what would you say to yourself? You'd be offering yourself hope and&nbsp;</p><p><!--block--><br></p><p><!--block--><br>affirmations and, powers of self discovery, self care, and self compassion. So do that when you craft your affirmations. Did you know that Shakespeare often used affirmations in his play to demonstrate their power and timelessness? So you think of all the books that you've read, especially Shakespeare's planes, like a midsummer night's Dream and Hamlet. When you read those again, why don't you have a look to see how many affirmations you can notice?&nbsp;<br>Nyah: What should I do if I don't.<br>Cheryl: See results right away, it's okay, because healing from trauma is a journey and it takes time. So if you don't see immediate results from your affirmations, just remember to be patient with yourself. Remember self compassion. Like I said, it's a bit like nurturing the plant. The growth happens beneath the surface long, long before you see anything blooming. So what I would say to you is trust in the process and continue up your affirmations because your subconscious is listening, even if it takes time to show any visible results. Thank you for joining us today. Hope you found some of those questions useful. Remember, your presence here is valued so, so much. So tune in for more empowering content from amazing, brilliant, gorgeous, wonderful. And remember, your journey to resilience and transformation is a masterpiece in the making. So remember to embrace it with open arms. Let your story shine bright. Okay? We'd love it if you would leave a review because we appreciate your feedback and support. And you might want to subscribe while you're here so that you hear the next episode or even leave us a review. Either way, bye for now.</p>