Taking care of our basic needs sounds easy right? But in our busy and often distracted lives it can fall to the wayside, becoming less of a priority as we focus on just getting through the day.
When we take some time to nourish ourselves daily through small (or big!) acts of mindfulness we can come back to the present and most importantly, back to our Self.
Self-love means that you accept yourself fully, treat yourself with kindness and respect. It grows from actions that support our physical, psychological and spiritual growth.
1. Self Responsibility
Self responsibility is to understand that you, and only you, are responsible for your happiness and wellbeing. When you can fully own your thoughts, emotions, and actions, you create a sense of stability, self reliance and inner peace.
Self Responsibility looks like:
• Knowing that I am the one who makes the decisions on how I feel, what I think and what I do.
• Knowing that I am in charge of my life.
• Standing in my power and knowing that I can take care and provide for myself and ask for help when needed.
2. Self Acceptance
Self acceptance is about being at peace with your whole self - the light, dark, strengths and weaknesses. Perfection is an impossible standard, all we can be is ourselves. Being able to accept all parts of ourselves and being able to find ways to celebrate or learn from those parts, gives us the confidence to stand tall in who we are.
Self acceptance looks like:
• Being conscious of the light and darker parts of myself.
• Being present and open to my successes and failures and giving myself credit for what I have achieved.
• Accepting myself as I am - fully and wholly.
3. Self Compassion
Self compassion is about being kind to yourself and choosing to be nurturing and supportive instead of critical. Releasing self judgment lets you move past challenges so that you can move forward freely and without shame.
Self compassion looks like:
• Speaking to myself and about myself with kindness.
• Acknowledging some of the harder or more painful times in my life.
• Forgiving myself.
• Listening to my body and resting when needed, treating my body with compassion instead of judgment.
4. Self Worth
Self worth is knowing that you are loved, lovable, valuable and worthy and necessary to this life. Feeling worthy of having your needs met, knowing your values and feeling deserving of what you desire, allows you to take up the space you deserve.
Self worth looks like:
• Being able to express myself fully.
• Valuing my contribution, opinions and presence.
• Knowing that I am worthy of and deserve to have good things.
• Feeling like I can advocate for myself, I know my values and worth.
5. Self Respect
Self respect is having boundaries and knowing and keeping to our personal values. Knowing your boundaries and needs and having high standards for what you let into your life elevates not only how you see yourself but how others perceive you - how you treat yourself teaches others how to treat you.
Self respect looks like:
• I know my boundaries and can clearly communicate them to others.
• Trusting myself and my intuition to make decisions that are aligned for me.
• I am conscious about the experiences I allow into my life and how I spend my time.
• I have a high level of self care.
Feeling worthy of a higher level of self care for our physical and emotional needs means that we show up for ourselves and others in a way that cultivates love and gratitude.
An easy way to check in with yourself is to ask yourself these questions and go from there:
- How do I want to feel today/when I…..
- What actions can I take to support myself in feeling that way?
The answers to these questions look different for everyone but the most important part is taking small actionable steps towards self care and ultimately self love
