I’ve gotten really into the practice of self-love over the last year. After many years spent in a sort of love-hate relationship with myself, it has been a little strange, somewhat refreshing, and VERY healing to openly and actively practice self-love on a daily basis. We are truly our own worst enemies, but we can also be our own best friends and biggest supporters. No one knows better than you do what you need, and no one is better positioned to give it to you than you are.
Loving, appreciating, and caring for yourself is not conceited or self-centered, it’s necessary. If your tank is empty you aren’t going to be able to shine your light and share all your wonderful gifts with the world. So fill yourself up! Love yourself fully and completely because you are perfect and wonderful and unique and special just the way you are. Love yourself so that you can be a beacon of love and positivity in a world that can be shallow, critical, stressful, and downright negative.
And if you’re reading this and thinking, WTF, I don’t even know how to go about loving myself, or what “loving myself” even means, then here’s a list of 33 simple ways to show yourself some love. Small, simple acts of self-love add up over time to have a big impact on how you feel!
- Go for a walk outside.
- Do a face mask.
- Take a hot bath (light some candles and/or add essential oils for even more love!).
- Volunteer your time or donate money to help someone less fortunate than you.
- Meditate.
- Write in a journal.
- Listen to your favorite music. Just sit down and listen and enjoy–no multi-tasking!
- Eat something green.
- Or better yet, do a Whole30!
- Go through your wardrobe and clear out all the clothes that don’t fit, don’t make you feel amazing, bring back bad memories, or don’t resonate with you. Give them away, so someone else can appreciate and use them.
- Call a friend just to chat.
- Buy yourself flowers or a houseplant.
- Clean your house.
- Organize a potluck, happy hour, or other social event so you can get together with your friends.
- Read a book for fun.
- Make a list of all the things in your life that you’re grateful for.
- Make a list of three ways that you provided value to someone else today (remember that something as simple as smiling genuinely at someone provides value to that person!).
- Ask your closest friends what their favorite thing is about you (YES, really. You will be surprised how readily and happily people will share this information, and how it will give you a whole new perspective on yourself. You can do this via email if the thought of doing it over the phone or in person really weirds you out.)
- Send a heartfelt message to a friend or loved one detailing all of the things you love and appreciate about them, why you are grateful to have them in your life, etc. Freely sharing your love is an excellent way to cultivate self-love. Giving is receiving.
- Spend 15 minutes walking around your home and collecting things you no longer use or love into a bag and then give them away.
- Exercise.
- Talk to your guides, even if you think they can’t hear you. Tell them all your deepest fears and worries and ask for help in releasing them. (You don’t have to do this out loud, they can hear you no matter what!)
- Go to bed early.
- Get up early and take some time for yourself before jumping into your day.
- Cook for yourself.
- Stop checking email/social media first thing in the morning. Or last thing at night!
- Set some boundaries. Being a good friend, parent, or employee doesn’t mean shelving your own wants/needs/opinions.
- Make a list of bad habits that you’d like to stop doing along with reasons why and what you’ll do instead. The act of just writing this down is very powerful for change-making.
- Likewise, write down a list of things you’d like to manifest, and start the list with “I deserve the following things:”
- Do a social media fast or technology fast – pick a day and don’t check social media or look at the internet (or both!) all day.
- Sit outside and feel the sun on your face.
- Save some of your income every time you get paid.
- Lower your expectations for yourself. You are already enough exactly as you are.
True story: I wrote this post several weeks ago but didn’t publish it because I kept thinking I’d need to edit it. Well, it didn’t really need any editing, but every time I looked at it I’d add more things to the list. I had to force myself to just publish it because it could never be truly finished: there is an infinite number of ways to demonstrate your love for yourself. What are some of your favorites? Please feel free to share them in the comments so that we can all benefit from your love!
