Mantras and Scriptures to Say Daily for Anxiety, Depression, and Your Overall Mental Health

When you wake up in the morning, what do you say to yourself?  When life throws you lemons, what do you say to yourself?  When you’re feeling afraid, feeling angry, worried, unsure…what do you say to yourself?  Believe it or not, you are always talking to yourself.  Your mind is constantly feeding you things…good or bad.  What you tell yourself on a regular basis is the root of how you feel and how you behave.  So, today I want to give you a few mantras and even scriptures that I hope you say to yourself daily to ensure that you are feeling good and you’re behaving in a healthy way. 

What you tell yourself determines how you feel about yourself, your situation, and even other people.  There are a few things that I really hope you tell yourself every, single, day.  These mantras and scriptures can help you feel more at peace, have more confidence, feel more beautiful, feel more hopeful, and just put you in a better mood about life, regardless of what’s going on.  Here are a few mantras and scriptures that I hope you say to yourself every day.  These saying aren’t anything fancy, but they can truly change how you view life.

Mantras and Scriptures for Your Mental Health

Thank you!

Whether you wake up feeling flawless or you wake up feeling a whole lot less excited, the fact of the matter is…you woke up.  So, say thank you!  This all goes back to the importance of gratitude.  No matter how you’re feeling, what you have planned for the day, all the things you have to do, how bad your sleep was last night…just laying in bed and saying thank you can shift your mood.  It can take you from dread and anxiety to feeling happy to be here or as my grandma would say, “you’re be glad to be in the number one more time.”  Everyday is a privilege and if you begin to look at life that way, you’ll feel better about waking up each day.  I know you are about to go to a job you don’t like, but, you’re alive!  Ok, your kids are already up and arguing, but, you’re alive!  It’s another day that you’re stuck in the house…you’re alive!  Get it?  Instead of focusing on what’s going wrong, you take a moment to be thankful for one thing that went VERY well, and that’s being alive.  Begin your day with a thank you.  It can even help if you just sit in silence and come up with a list of things you’re thankful for.  Starting a gratitude journal is a great way to put life into perspective.  I promise it can really be a mood changer and change your outlook on your entire day.

Today is going to be a great day!

Now this may sound simple or even childish, but just hear me out.  Saying this is something I started doing when my son started going to school.  Each day on the ride I’d have him repeat after me and the first thing we’d say is “today is going to be a great day!”  And over time it’s something that I began saying to myself without the kids.  Saying this is basically you declaring that today will be good.  It doesn’t mean that miraculously everything will go perfectly.  Declaring that today will be good will help you see the good in your day.  Even on our worst days, there is good in it.  We just don’t see it.  Declare that today will be a great day and keep an eye out for good things.  I encourage you to take these words and apply them directly to your life.  If you’ve been feeling like things are chaotic, declare “today is going to be a peaceful day.”  If you’ve been stressed declare “today will be a relaxing day.”  If you have a lot to do say “today will be a productive day.”  Make it work for you!  Don’t let your day run you and your emotions.  Let your thoughts and words put the life you want in motion.

I can do hard things.

I really need a shirt or bracelet that says this because I say it to myself so much and I remind others of this all the time.  You tell yourself this whenever there is a mountain to climb, an ocean to cross, or anytime you feel a little unsure about your abilities.  Living the good life that you desire may require you to do some hard stuff.  It won’t be easy and there isn’t a crystal staircase to get to your destination.  It may take some hard work…and you just have to start in your mind by telling yourself that you can do that hard work.  You are capable of solving the problem.  You just need the will to do it.  And yall, when I say “hard things” I’m not just talking about running a marathon or starting a business or literally climbing a mountain…I’m talking about finishing your paper.  I’m talking about breastfeeding.  I’m talking about staying disciplined with your budget and not ordering anything on Amazon.  I’m talking about being kind to that coworker you don’t like.  I’m talking about working and schooling your kids.  Those are all hard things!  And you can do it!  The battle is halfway won if you can get the correct mentality.  Controlling your thoughts is hard, but again, you can do hard things.  If you’d like some help doing those hard things click here to learn more about The Anxiety Management Group for Women.

God is in control.

Ah, control…it’s something that we all want, but we don’t have much of.  Fortunately, I can remind myself that God is in control and that He is what I need, not the control.  You cannot control everything, and that is a good thing!  Imagine the stress you’d feel trying to manage and control it all.  Accept and be thankful that you don’t have to do it all.  Life is a lot!  There are even things that are going on around us that we aren’t aware of.  Be thankful that God is in control and that you don’t have to stay up 24/7 trying to figure it all out.  It feels good to be like “God, you got this because I don’t. I can’t.”  Anytime I’m in a situation and I’m not sure what to do I’m reminded that God is in control and to just ask Him to lead and guide me.  As long as I have Him, things are in control.  So daily, remind yourself that you don’t have to do it all.  You don’t have to figure it all out.  Thankfully, God is in control. 

I am amazing!

I mean, because you are!  This “I am” statement is interchangeable.  Tell yourself whatever you need to hear.  It can be, I am beautiful.  I am intelligent.  I am a boss.  I am a leader.  I am patient.  The list is endless…just keep it positive.  “I am” statement are powerful because again you are declaring what you are.  You are speaking over yourself.  You are telling yourself who and what you are and when you do that you begin to walk in that.  You begin to feel that.  I know a lot of parents tell their kids to do this, but I recommend that grown folks do it as well.  Affirm who you are daily out loud and to yourself.  It can make a major difference. 

Deuteronomy 31:6-8

“Be strong and bold; have no fear or dread of them, because it is the Lord your God who goes before you.  He will be with you; He will not fail you or forsake you.  Do not fear or be dismayed.”

I love this scripture because it reminds me that God has already gone ahead and mapped out my day.  It says God goes before you and I’m so glad about that.  To know that everywhere I go, God has already been and prepared it just for me is so comforting.  This scripture is one that should make you feel more relaxed and at ease about what comes your way because you know that it comes from God.  That he is leading you and guiding you and most importantly he has already gone everywhere you are about to go. 

2 Timothy 1:7

“God did not give me the spirit of fear, but he gave me power, love, and self-discipline.”

This scripture is a reminder of what you have inside of you!  You have power, love, and self-discipline.  Fear isn’t something that was given to us by God, it is of this world.  This scripture lets us know that even when we feel this worldly emotion, God has placed things inside of us to combat it.  Power: which shows our strength to face difficult things.  Love: which is the greatest gift that God has given us.  And self-discipline.  I found this to be interesting because when trying to do hard or amazing things, many of us lack the discipline needed to get things done.  But this scripture lets us know that we have the discipline.  It is inside of you, you just have to tap into it and do the work. 

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all things through him who gives me strength.”

This scripture is a no brainer.  This reminds you that you don’t need to have it all, you just need to be in tune with the One who has it all!  God gives you the strength you need every day.  You just have to remember that He lives in you and that you have to look to Him in difficult situations, not look to yourself.  If you try to do it all alone, life will feel overwhelming.  When you tap into God’s strength that lives inside of you, big things begin to look much smaller because you have someone bigger living on the inside. 

So, those are just a few of my favorite mantras and scriptures to place in my heart and speak daily and I highly encourage you to do the same thing and create your own mantras that fit your life’s purpose.

LaShawnda McLaurin is a licensed clinical mental health counselor offering counseling and coaching services to women, exclusively online. She specialized in anxiety counseling, anxiety, fear, and worry coaching, trauma, and relationship issues. To learn more about LaShawnda’s services click here.