Why Are Affirmations Important For Your Children

“The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice” – Peggy O’Mara

How often do you think about what exactly you say to your kids?

Have they ever surprised you by saying something you’ve said before that you wish they hadn’t repeated?

I confess I’m a yeller even though I really try not to be. And I’m not the most positive person because my anxiety gets the best of me. But I want my kids to be positive. How do I make that happen?

We as parent’s want the best for our kids. 

As parents of special needs kids, kids with autism, all we want is for our kids to know how truly capable they are.

This is why affirmations for your kids are so important. Words that lift them up and help them remember what they can accomplish.

Why are affirmations important to kids?

ripplekindness.org talks about the importance of affirmations for kids:

“We all develop our belief systems about ourselves and the world around us from our environment. Our family and friends, role models, television, magazines and advertising can either be nurturing or damaging.”

We as parents have such an important role in our child’s life. We truly can make a difference on how our child sees themselves.

psychologytoday.com puts it very simply:

“At the simplest level, when we feel good about ourselves and have a positive attitude, our lives tend to run smoothly.

On the other hand, when we feel bad about ourselves and have a negative attitude, we tend to engage in self-defeating behaviors which may cause negative outcomes, like financial mishap, interpersonal drama, or acute or chronic illness.”

What does science say about affirmations?

According to positivepsychology.com there is evidence based science on what exactly happens in your brain with positive affirmations.

One example from many that they list:

“There is MRI evidence suggesting that certain neural pathways are increased when people practice self-affirmation tasks (Cascio et al., 2016). If you want to be super specific, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex—involved in positive valuation and self-related information processing—becomes more active when we consider our personal values (Falk et al., 2015; Cascio et al., 2016).”

What does the Bible say?

Let’s take a look at what the Bible says about raising our children and words we use.

Proverbs 22:6 – Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it

Psalm 115:14. – May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children.

Psalm 127:3 – Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.

What should you say to your kids?

There are some great words that you can take straight from the Bible and say them to your kids to bless them.

Words from Bible

Psalm 115:15 – May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 129:8 – May those who pass by not say to them, “The blessing of the Lord be on you; we bless you in the name of the Lord.”

Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

 Things you can say to your child to lift them up

-You are beautiful

-You are unique

-You are loved by God

-You are amazing at …(list their strength)

-You will be an encouragement to many

-Jesus loves you

-I see you’ve been practicing

-You are amazing

-You can do anything

-You inspire me

-You’re doing a good job

-I know you’re trying your best

-You are a great friend

-You are a hard worker

When can you say affirmations to your children?

Any time is a good time to say kind, inspiring things to your child. But here are a few ideas:

-you can verbally say affirmations to your children.

-write your kind, inspirational words down and attach to child’s notebook or backpack

-start a journal for your kids

-beginning of the day

-at bedtime

-throughout the day

-after bath time

-when they are having a tough time

-a canvas or some other image displayed in their room, or their bathroom

Example:

When I take my middle little guy, T to school we are usually all packed up in the car. We have about 15 minute drive to the school. I use this time to talk to my kids about their day. We may have had a difficult morning already by this time so it is also a good restart to the day.

I talk to each child individually. I say “C (T or M…), you are my favorite first born (second, third born and so on) 10 years old, 5th grader named C. I love you so much, and papa loves you and Jesus loves you. You are amazing and your brain is amazing. You are (and I list the strengths of each child when I talk to them). You can do anything. I hope you have a great day today. (Then I list things they are having difficulty with or something they are looking forward to for the day). 

After I talk to each child, then each child takes turns and says a prayer for the day.

I love that we take this time in the morning to talk. My goal is for them to remember throughout the day, especially if they are having a hard day that I love them and that they are capable of anything.

TALK to your child, mama. Lift them up. They will remember your voice in their minds for years and years to come. Let’s make sure they remember all the wonderful things.

You got this, mama!