What can we do to quiet all those negative voices and pessimistic opinions (from others and ourselves) that might be haunting our daily lives? As a single parent, we may hear plenty of “no” voices and not enough “yes” voices. Instead of expecting those “yes” voices to come from somewhere outside ourselves, we may need to be our own loudest cheerleader.
Many people turn to visualization techniques and the use of positive affirmations to help keep the outlook positive. For a single parent, we really do need to find ways to cheer ourselves on and pat ourselves on the back–since we don’t have a partner or a cheering section greeting us every day. For many of us, we may have had just the opposite life experiences–maybe even people who tried to judge us or tear us down instead of build us up. We cannot expect our children to be our cheerleaders on a regular basis, even though they need that from us.
Visualize peace, success, accomplishment, humor, ease, or whatever it is that you are working toward. Many of us learn how to calm ourselves and get centered using visualization techniques. Of course, this is not just for single parents, but it can be a great tool for a single parent who needs to retrain their thinking to focus on the positive. The same goes for positive affirmations–having a few key, encouraging statements, prayers, verses, or quotes placed around your line of sight during the day can do wonders when you need a pick-me-up or encouraging word. Find words and people that truly inspire you and speak to the very core of your experience (not just phrases that you think “should” mean something) and see if using visualization and affirmations don’t encourage you in your role as a single parent.
Also: Do You Use Quotes and Affirmations?