How to Use Affirmations for Manifestation

The way that we talk to ourselves paints the lens that we view reality through. When we consciously use our thoughts to affirm positive qualities about ourselves this actually affects the reality we live in. From increasing problem solving abilities to healing our relationship with ourselves, affirmations are a powerful tool that can help you live the life you desire.  

The Effects of Affirmations On The Brain

You may have been told that the way that you speak to yourself matters, but if you knew how much it could impact you, you may start choosing your self-dialogue even more wisely. Learning how to use affirmations for manifestation can help you completely shift the way you view yourself. 

A study led by Christopher Cascio and Emily Falk followed the effects of self-affirmations, which give proof as to why so many people have started using them to create the life they desire. In the study they found that affirmations stimulate the reward centers in our brain known as the ventral striatum (VS) and ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC). 

When the reward centers are stimulated you are flooded with neurotransmitters such as dopamine which is known as the happy hormone. Think of when you have achieved a long sought after goal and of the feelings that rushed through you then due to your reward center being activated. 

This is what happens when you use affirmations. You may be wondering exactly how much these good feelings that are produced by affirmations can do for you. Well, part of the reason this is so impactful is shown through positive psychologist Shawn Achor’s research. In his studies, he found that there is actually quite an impressive advantage to being happy. 

“Those who are happy experience 31% higher productivity, 37% higher sales, 3x greater creativity and 23% fewer fatigue symptoms. Happy people are also up to 10x more engaged, 40% more likely to receive a promotion, and 39% more likely to live to age 94.” 

Shawn Achor

The more that you practice affirmations, the easier they will become. This is because our brains themselves are neuroplastic which means the thoughts we think shape the structure of our brains. The neurons that fire together such as those in our reward center while using affirmations will wire together. This means that their connection will become stronger and eventually restructure our brain. 

Another study found that compassionate self-talk following negative statements have been shown to increase the positive feelings without dissolving our ability to take responsibility for negative actions. Being supportive to yourself with affirmations does not take away from our ability to perceive where we can improve. 

How To Practice Affirmations with The Law of Attraction 

First things first. The law of attraction is understood as how energy manifests and thus creates the reality around you. The concept behind this is that like attracts like. Meaning what you think, feel, and believe develops the reality in which you live in. 

For example, if you mentally repeat “I am rich”  in your head, but when you say it you don’t fully feel that way then you will not attract that thought into your reality. Instead what you will attract is the prevalent belief and emotion. You attract the state you are in and not simply empty words you say, but what’s behind them.

If when you say I am rich you are filled with the longing for it to be true then this is what you will manifest, a continuous longing for being rich to be true. The technique below has just the answer to this. 

Affirmations and Emotions a Manifestation Techniques 

Law of attraction teacher, Neville Goddard teaches how to align your emotions with your affirmations in order to fine tune your manifestations. Rather than using an affirmation that you don’t fully believe, adjust it to be one that you can feel as true. 

For example, with the affirmation I am a millionaire, try keeping the essence of what you are looking to manifest. In this case it would be money. Maybe something you can emotionally deem as true would be I make money easily or I am rich in my life. If you don’t feel like a millionaire pick a statement that brings forward the same essence you are looking to manifest, but in words that you feel are true. 

Over time you can guide your emotions to slowly acclimate to larger statements. If once you feel comfortable and feel that the statement I am abundant is your truth then you can start affirming a statement a little more specific such as my work pays me very well. 

Change The Way You View Yourself 

If you want an affirmation practice that will help you deeply integrate your affirmations into your subconscious, then mirror work is the practice for you. Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life, teaches the practice of mirror work which is speaking your affirmations to your reflection in the mirror. 

This can be powerful because as you are speaking them and looking into your own eyes, any part of you that feels resistant to the statement will become more prevalent. You are able to watch yourself receive the statements as well as tell yourself them. This then highlights anywhere you may feel uncomfortable saying this to yourself or even being told the statement. In my personal experience, this practice can make the affirmations feel even more real and sink more deeply.