I am positively doodling!

 Let's be positive!

I am positive that a regular sketchbook journalling practice is good for you. If you just want to relax or you can't think of what to draw, you don't need to wait for inspiration when you have a few ideas like this in your toolbox!

This is a summary of a workshop session, put together to guide the participants - please feel free to use these ideas, and share on my soical media if you found it useful or interesting.

Positive affirmations

... are statements or mantras you can use to change your mental habits. They help you replace negative beliefs with positive ones. They can help you change your thought patterns, too.

This journalling exercise uses affirmations and mindful doodling to help you relax and to feel more positive. 

I've written more about affirmations at the end of the post.

Here we go!

open your journal and write a positive quote or word in middle of your page

Use decorative or block letters and draw box round it.

Drop a thread or yarn on your page and arrange it into loops.
Draw round the loops.

Remove the thread or yarn and go over your lines so that they are more confident and flowing.

Add "I am" statements, and variations in the curves.

Continue to enhance and improve the shape of the lines.

Optional, depending on your paper size and time availableMake a grid with the yarn, draw round sections, and add more affirmations and positive words

Colour in the spaces
Use 2 primary colours, their secondary colour, and other blends of the two primary colours

eg: blue and yellow - and shades of green

yellow and red - and shades of orange

red and blue - and shades of purple

Use one colour at a time, select the parts you colour so that you create balance

You can add more words and more colour at another time if you need to

Examples of affirmations 

(more below the image)

Do you need more ideas? 

This site is very helpful: 150 Positive affirmations

You can use other sentence starters:

I can . . .
I accept . . .
I release . . .
I have . . .
All is . . .
Everything is . . .
I feel . . .

Here are more statements for you to use, or inspire you to think of your own:

I am enough.
I have enough.
I am in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.
I can do hard things.
I allow myself to be more fully me.
I believe in myself.
I am grateful for another day of life.

I am grateful for...
I am worthy of ....
I choose myself.
I am resilient.
I am proud of my achievements.
I do my best
I prioritise my well-being.
I let go of my fears

I am OK when I am out of my comfort zone.
I love, and I am loved.
I trust myself
I accept my emotions and let them move through me.
I take care of myself, mind, body, and spirit.
I trust myself
I give myself permission to ...
I can speak up for myself and others.
I am heading in the right direction.
I am ok with my mistakes as they help me grow.
I accept myself without judgment.

I accept...
I have everything I need to achieve my goals.
I am safe and supported.
I love and accept myself.
I am kind to myself and others.

What are positive affirmations?

You’ve probably heard of affirmations, especially if you’re interested in well-being and personal growth. They’re a method for transforming automatic negative thoughts into positive thoughts.

Positive affirmations are statements you can use to cultivate a positive mental attitude and improve your mental fitness.

The fact that we feel uncomfortable using words of self-affirmation indicates that most of our self-talk is negative.

Positive affirmations can help you replace negative beliefs with new, more positive ones and can help you become more resilient. Positive affirmations can rewire your brain, so your automatic thoughts become predominantly positive.

Positive daily affirmations can help you to:

Improve your self-worth

Cultivate a positive self-image

Improve your physical health

Change negative thinking

Transform low self-esteem

Boost your self-confidence

Improve your mental health and fitness

Develop your problem-solving abilities

By repeating a thought or action, it becomes part of the physical structure of your brain.

Neural pathways can form and change throughout our lives through a process called neuroplasticity. This is what enables us to learn new skills at any age.

The stronger a neural pathway becomes, the more automatic and frequent the thought or belief becomes.Positi ve affirmations harness the power of neuroplasticity to create new neural pathways. At first, these new pathways are weak, which is why, at first, affirmations can feel uncomfortable.

With time and repetition, these new, more positive neural pathways become stronger.

To create positive affirmations, start by becoming aware of your automatic negative thoughts. Write a list of your negative beliefs. Then, turn them into positive statements.

Positive affirmations work through repetition. It’s not enough to just read them once, try different things - write them down, say them outloud while looking in a mirror, read them through before you sleep, or when you wake up.

More ideas for doodling in your journal when you just want to be mindful 
- or more accurately, be mind-free

From Este Macleod (find her on Instagram). Use these examples to set you off, then try making flowers, cats, dogs, people, robots....

Four seasons trees - doodled from letters 

and fabulous fish - doodled from numbers