Mental Health Moments: Four Affirmations to Help You Get Over Your Sickness

By Kaylin R. Staten

I am the world’s worst sick person. As a sensitive person overall, my inner voice thinks the world is crumbling around me when I feel less than 100 percent. I could feel 90 percent (which is good!) and still lament with “Will I ever feel normal again?” inner soliloquies.

My anxiety and depression have nowhere to go when I’m sick because my negative self-talk usually overwhelms my positivity. So, negative self-talk spews out of my mouth in strains of word vomit. This is when I need some positivity -- and fast.

If you’re a workaholic who lives for being motivated (like me) and finds yourself spiraling in and out of negativity when you’re under the weather, here are some mantras you can repeat over and over. And when I say over and over, I really mean hundreds of times until you actually start to believe them.

Here are some affirmations to help you wage war against that cold, stomach virus or another ailment:

I will feel better again.

My mind tricks me into thinking that I will never be better again, that I will have this sickness for all eternity. OK, drama queen. It’s just a cold. With medication, fluids and rest, it will go away in due time. Patience, my young Padawan.

I will work again.

Nothing bums me out more than not being able to work on my own terms. I have gotten better with work-life balance over time, but work usually still wins in the end. If I feel too tired to work because of an illness, my brain automatically turns over into crisis mode. The best part about getting better? I can be productive again and knock out that to-do list with the same fervor as before.

It’s OK to rest.

I fight sleep more than a toddler does. I think sleep makes me appear lazy and unmotivated, so I fight it until my last melatonin-laced breath. You definitely need sleep when you’re sick, so just give in to that and general relaxation. Take a bath. Watch something from your Netflix list. Do something other than fight your natural urge to sleep. This is probably nature’s way of telling you to slow down anyway.

My vibes speak louder than my words.

To prepare for a new year of self-growth, I purchased Gabrielle Bernstein’s The Universe Has Your Back 52-card deck and supplemental journal. Over the weekend, I began daily card readings. I know, it sounds like tarot, but it’s actually with affirmations to help keep you in a positive mindset. I drew a card for my “health” the other day, and I got the above mantra. If that’s not a positive kick in the pants, I don’t know what is. My negative vibes were bringing me down, so I needed to make an adjustment to my outlook in order to help me heal.

Once you accept your sickness and that it will go away in due time, your road to recovery will be much smoother.

Please note: These blog posts are not clinical, although we will provide symptoms and other information. These posts are based on my experiences with anxiety and mental health in general.

If you or someone you know needs help, visit a website like Mental Health America to learn more.

Mental Health Moments blog posts are every other Tuesday of the month. Our CEO and contributors highlight what it's like to live with a mental health disorder and continue to fight the stigma through storytelling.


Copyright © MMXVIII Hourglass Media, LLC

Kaylin R. Staten, APR is an award-winning public relations practitioner and writer. She owns Hourglass Media, a consulting company based in Huntington, WV.

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