Try Creating Mantras to Help You Cope

Mantras are positive sayings, quotes, or sentences that help you reach a certain 
mindset. These mantras can be common ones that other people use, or ones that you 
have created yourself. They are an excellent tool when you start journaling for your 
eating disorder, but can also be used for so many other things as well. 

Why Use Mantras?

There are quite a few reasons to use mantras both while you are coping with your 
eating disorder, during recovery, and when you are journaling. Here are some reasons 
to use mantras:

They give you a singular focus. One good reasons to use mantras in your journaling 
is to have a singular focus. Many of them allow you to think about one thing and 
concentrate on it, as is often done in meditation practices. For your eating disorder 
recovery, this might include being grateful for something about yourself, whether it is a 
specific feature or trait, being alive, or being healthy. 

It helps you express gratitude. Gratitude is an amazingly therapeutic tool to be joined 
with journaling. It gets you into a different mindset where instead of dwelling on negative 
emotions that have led to your eating disorder, you are able to appreciate the good 
things in your life and encourage positivity.

You can meditate or practice mindfulness. Mantras are frequently used during 
mindfulness, meditation, and yoga practices. You can choose a word or phrase that 
relaxes you and allows you to live in the moment without other distractions.
How to Use Mantras

The main way to use mantras with journaling is to write them down. Each day, you can 
either write down the same mantra that is working well for you, or switch it up. You can 
also have a few pages in the front of your journal dedicated to all your favorite mantras, 
which you read out loud (or quietly) to yourself each day before or after you begin that 
day’s journaling session. 

Saying them out loud is highly recommended, but if you are journaling with other people 
around, you can always just read them or write them down.

Examples of Mantras

There are many examples online and in books, or you can use your own favorite 
sayings or phrases for them. Here are some examples to give you an idea of what they 
might say:

I am good enough.
I will be kind to myself.
I appreciate the body I was given.
I will stop my destructive behaviors.
I can recover from my eating disorder.
