Marsha GillLet me ask you a question, do you love yourself? No, seriously, do you? It’s a question that I had a hard time saying yes to at various times in my life. My self-confidence was fake, my esteem was low, and my self-talk was garbage. I wanted so desperately to be happy, but how could I be when I didn’t love myself? How can you be happy if you don’t love yourself? Having a high degree of self-love makes it easier to take good care of yourself. If you love and respect yourself, you show others what your expectations of love are, and others are more likely to respect you, too. When you love yourself, you’re gentler, kind, compassionate, and considerate of yourself.
Life will pack some punches. Life is hard enough! It’s even harder when you’re hard on yourself. Ideally, you are your biggest fan in life.
Here are 11 practical ways to show yourself more love:
Make sleep a priority. Everybody needs sleep. I can appreciate a restful night’s sleep, and those around me can too. Trust me. What’s your sleep routine like? Are you doing too much, and it’s getting in the way of you getting amble sleep? When we don’t think very highly of ourselves, we often don’t get enough sleep which affects our well-being. If you’re irritable often, such home much sleep you’re getting. It’s easy for all the things and people in our lives to get our time and attention. Make sleep a priority.
Feed your body better food. This is something to think about. Maybe you’ve not connected eating well as a way of loving yourself; what an amazing way to show yourself that you’re a priority by giving yourself healthy food to eat.
Feed your mind better things, too. Okay, so it’s not just your body. It’s your mind, too. Consider the thoughts; I love the commercial where the lady returns negative thoughts. She said…I’m sure I got them from social media! What are you watching on TV, and what websites are you giving your mind to chew on? Are you spending your time the way you would want your 18-year-old child to spend his/her time?
Exercise. Taking care of your body with exercise is a sign of self-love. You don’t have to train for a triathlon but get some exercise daily. Get out in nature, walk, hike, and get moving.
Look your best. When people aren’t happy with themselves, their general appearance is one of the first things to slide. Give yourself the attention you need to look your best each day. Be the best-dressed and best-groomed person in the room wherever you go.
Make time to relax. Rest and relaxation are critical to enjoying life. After a long day, I enjoy coming home and grabbing a book or creating something. I’m relaxing at the same time; I’m building a skill. Win, win. I encourage you to build time into your day to kick back and do whatever you enjoy.
Forgive yourself. It’s pretty tough to love yourself if you haven’t forgiven yourself for your past mistakes and failures. There’s nothing you can do about the past, what happened, happened. The past cannot be changed but the future is yet in your power.
List your best qualities. Those lacking in self-love can quickly rattle off their shortcomings but struggle to identify their positive characteristics. Remind yourself of all the amazing qualities you have. Write down your positive qualities, even if they’re only slightly positive. List them all. Use that list to build your self-talk.
List your greatest triumphs. Girl, you’ve done some amazing things. Put pen to paper and write them all down. Go back to the beginning and relive your better moments. Celebrate you!
Separate from those that don’t treat you well. If someone in your life is a regular critic, consider giving them their walking papers; hello! There are so many people in the world that it doesn’t make sense to put up with someone that doesn’t treat you well.
Start making the changes you’ve been avoiding. There is no time like the present. You have a good idea of the changes you’d like to make in your life. Let today be the day you start implementing a few of those ideas.
If you can’t love yourself, who else will, other than your mother? It’s a valid question. Treat yourself like you matter, and you’ll begin to believe that you do. Our beliefs can be led by our actions. We can change our beliefs to justify our behaviors. Put your attention on your strengths and successes. Take care of your mind and body.
You’re the only person you have 24/7. You can’t get away from you. Everyone else is available on a limited basis. So, make yourself a priority in your life. You can thank me later.
