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A past post on The Food Allergy Counselor's social media platforms that really resonated with people focused on allergy affirmations. Therefore, let's explore what affirmations are and why they can be useful when managing food allergies.
What are affirmations?
At the risk of dating myself, do you remember the SNL skits with Stuart Smalley and his daily affirmations? While they were cringe-worthy skits, they helped people understand what affirmations are.
Affirmations are helpful statements, usually with a positive tone, that can help you challenge and overcome thoughts leading to struggle, and instead, focus on pursuing purposeful action in life.
Why are affirmations so useful?
Unfortunately, we tend to be self-critical and focus on our shortcomings. We are quick to put ourselves down and judge our own actions harshly.
Ever pay attention to the things you think about yourself?
Would you ever say those things to a friend or loved one?
Probably not! In which case, we shouldn't be saying them to ourselves.
Dr. Kristin Neff's research on self-compassion (which is the antidote to self-criticism) reveals that people who can speak kindly to themselves are much less likely to be depressed, anxious, and stressed, are able to be more resilient, and typically feel more optimistic about their future.
Especially if you find it hard to speak kindly to yourself, one way to help pave the way to changing that is through affirmations.
And since managing an allergic condition or parenting a child with food allergies can feel overwhelming at times, which opens the door to self-criticism, it makes sense that allergy affirmations could be a useful tool to have in the allergy management toolkit!
Daily Food Allergy Affirmations
The affirmations above are only a handful of food allergy affirmation examples, but hopefully they can help you on the path to developing your own.
As you think about what self-directed affirmations might help you feel more empowered and able to engage in an optimistic outlook on life with food allergies, consider the following questions:
In what scenarios do I feel I'm struggling with most, and what do I need to hear myself say in those moments?
What would I want to hear someone else say to me that I could start saying to myself?
What would help me feel capable of getting through tough situations, emotions, and thoughts?
How can I remind myself of my strengths and how far I've come in managing this food allergy?
Use your answers to these questions to help you develop your own meaningful food allergy affirmations.
Tips For Incorporating Daily Food Allergy Affirmations
Start simple.
Choose one food allergy affirmation to say to yourself today, either at the start of the day or when you notice your mind getting stuck in struggle with thoughts. Then, keep practicing that daily for the rest of this week.
Even if you don't believe what you're saying to yourself - that's okay!
Just by saying kinder, more empowering statements to yourself about yourself helps pave the way to a more positive mindset and feeling more capable of managing food allergies.