Self love

Self-Love Habits Every Woman Should Practice Whether you recognize it or not, our lives are a compilation of habits that we have acquired throughout the years. Some of them are sleeping habits, eating habits etc. But habits can be both good and bad. If you find yourself adopting poor sleeping or eating habits, it might be time to make some changes in your life. In the same way, constantly struggling with your self-esteem might call for you to practice new self-love habits. With Valentine’s around the corner, we know how much pressure is put on love. Instead of looking outwardly look inwards this year with these 14 habits of self-love to practice. What is self-love? To practice it, first, we need to understand what it means. It is a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological and spiritual growth. Simply put, it’s having a high regard for your well-being and happiness. Self-love means taking care of your own needs and not sacrificing your well-being to please others. Here are 14 ways to practice self-love. 1. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes Ever heard of the phrase, “Nobody’s perfect and everybody makes mistakes.” Then, isn’t funny how the older we get the quicker we are to forget this? We place so much pressure on being perfect which should not be the case. We are human after all. Take it easy on yourself. Make mistakes and learn from them. Embrace your past and look ahead. 2. No need to compare yourself with others Comparing yourself to others does not solve a thing. It only leaves you sad and disappointed that you haven’t achieved as much. You might argue that the human being is naturally born competitive. True, but comparing is harmful. Instead, focus on yourself as we cannot all have the same storyline. 3. Ignore other people’s opinions People will always have opinions. It doesn’t matter if you did something good or bad. They will always have something to say either way. Choosing to listen will always put you off your track and derail you from your own goals. Just be the best that you can be. 4. Forgive yourself Remember when we said earlier that everybody makes mistakes and no one is perfect? There’s no taking back what has already happened in the past but the future is something you can control. Let go of what went wrong and take it as a learning process. 5. Rediscover yourself After getting through a number of things that life throws your way, life can change your perspective and how you carry yourself and sometimes this is not for the better. By rediscovering yourself you allow yourself to fall in love with things that once ignited your soul and chase after them. Doing this requires a lot of self-reflection which could bring you to connect with your authentic self once again. 6. Be realistic There will be ups and downs, that’s just life, the sooner you come to terms with this fact the better. Don’t expect to always be happy or get your way. Also, adopt this mentality when it comes to setting goals for your future and growth. With goals, try to be more practical for growth, and understand that progress is not linear. 7. Practice Gratitude Daily gratitude is the key to happiness and loving yourself. Spare a minute or two every day to be thankful for things like your life, health, family friends and even small things like how you missed bumping your toe by the bed or how you got the last packet of milk on the shelf. Gratitude helps improve your overall well-being. 8. Put yourself first This might sound hard and selfish to do at first but it is possible. There’s nothing wrong with putting others first once in a while but everything in moderation. It shouldn’t be a habit that costs you your mental or emotional well-being. Whether it’s watching your favourite show or reading a book, find what helps you decompress and dedicate time to it. 9. Eat healthier Since your mental health is impacted by what you put into your body. When you eat something you know is terrible, you sit and feel ashamed of yourself. Choose to eat natural foods that you enjoy to practice self-love. Your body will appreciate it. 10. Exercise often Instead of committing to working out and failing to do so. Experiment with a variety of different sports or physical activities, then pick one that you like and enjoy and stick to it. 11. Don’t forget that your value is not in how your body looks In our world today, many things can distract us from this fact. Sometimes we even believe and tell ourselves these things that we are not worthy because we don’t look a certain way. Instead, be confident in your body. After all, It's all you’ve got. You might as well love it and appreciate it. 12. Let go of toxic people If someone is bringing toxicity into your life and bringing you down, and they won’t take responsibility for it, that might mean you need to step away from them. It might be painful but it’s important and necessary. 13. Celebrate Milestones Big or small, milestones deserve to be celebrated. Pat yourself on the back for your accomplishments. This not only helps you stay motivated but helps you be pleased with yourself. 14. Learn Continuously Try new things, read, explore, and learn. It’s one of those things that never stop. Learn from your wins and your mistakes. Start with this article, for instance, don’t just read and keep scrolling pick one or two things from here and follow them through. Stay informed, stay in control 0 By society’s standards, it seems there’s very little a woman can ever get “right.” loveyourself-timidwoman-fingerspointed-450x338As women, we’re supposed to be a perfect combination of features… many of which require possessing a certain set of genetic attributes. Though this arbitrary list of characteristics varies greatly depending on whom you ask, one thing is certain: We are not, under any circumstances, supposed to feel good about our body or our appearance. Even in the new(ish) groundswell of memes encouraging women to love themselves, there’s always the implication that you shouldn’t love yourself too much. “I’m a work in progress,” is about the nicest thing we, as women, are allowed to say about ourselves. If we love ourselves even a little too much, and dare say, “I’m really happy with all of who I am,” the vanity police step in to keep us in line. “How dare she!” they quip. “She really thinks she’s something, huh?” they say. So here’s my question: What if a woman does think she’s all that? What if—stay with me here—a woman decided that she was enough? What if, somehow, a woman decided she liked all of who she was? What if she looked in the mirror and thought she was just ravishing? What on Earth is wrong with that? loveyourself-womaninmirror-450x305It’s as though we believe there’ a finite amount of confidence out there, and if one person collects some, it lessens our potential to find some for ourselves. Loving oneself in no way attacks another. Truly loving oneself does not come with comparison or hierarchy of greatness. Only insecurity does that. I even catch myself keeping my own self-love in check, like some kind of awkward secret, so as to avoid the eye rolls or character attacks that are bound to pop up if I make any positive remark about myself. It’s as if I don’t want to stand out in the sea of women reciting “I’m a work in progress.” These days “vain” seems to be just one more way to condemn a woman for how she chooses to show up in the world. loveyourself-erin-It’s insecurity, not confidence that is so detrimental to ourselves and our relationships. Let’s stop asking women to be “the perfect amount of confident” and give one another the space to find our own confidence. A woman who is self-assured and grounded both, in her body and her beliefs, has the power to live authentically. She has the strength to trust her instincts and intellect as she moves through the world. She celebrates her successes and good fortune, and in the face of setbacks or failure she never forgets her worth. Here are four things you can do to start changing the dialogue, own your confidence, and create an environment that allows other women to do the same: Encourage people in your life to speak openly about their accomplishments. Celebrate together. Become a safe space for confidence by encouraging that kind of positive self-talk. Accept compliments without caveat. You don’t have to minimize or shut down a compliment for yourself for anyone. Try this: Just say “thank you.” It’s OK to really just receive a compliment. Applaud other women when you see their confidence, rather than criticizing it. “Good for her” can become a regular part of your vocabulary instead of “Who does she think she is?” Give everyone permission to be themselves and proud of it. Refuse to take part in confidence-knocking conversations. Instead you might ask those chatting, “Why does her confidence bother you?” Or again, “Good for her,” works like a charm. Being mindful of not knocking others’ confidence will have a positive effect on those around you too. By shifting the way you talk about yourself and others, you can change the dialogue around confidence. Being mindful of not knocking others’ confidence will not only have a positive effect on your own self-concept, it will also have a positive effect on those around you, giving everyone permission to be more themselves and proud of it. We realize that reaching a place where you feel confident in and about your body, where you are at peace with your body—where you actually love your body—may sound like an unattainable goal to some women. But we are here to tell you: you can. Do you struggle with body image? Have you ever… Felt anxious about clothes shopping or wearing certain clothes? Dreaded going to an event (like a reunion or a wedding) — or even skipped the event altogether — because you felt too self-conscious about how you looked? Found yourself not wanting to be in pictures or videos, or hiding behind other people in the picture to shield your body? Scrolled through social media and felt worse and worse as you went? If these sound familiar to you, you are not alone. Based on our years of experience working with and talking to women — and going through our own body image struggles — we designed this free course to help you start improving your body image immediately and give you the tools you need to finally feel good in your own skin. 0 0