We’ve all heard the saying before that you can’t love anybody else until you love yourself. Many of us try to go against that, maybe not so much on purpose, but in lack of awareness. The truth however is that loving yourself is the best way to also extend love to others.

Self love is having a high regard for your own wellbeing and happiness. It can seem narcissistic at first, but in its purest form, it is where real love resides. Having love for yourself does not always just surface over night, and like many different acts of self-care, it needs maintenance and upgrading ever so often. When we have a positive outlook on ourselves, we are prone to having a positive outlook on others as well. Think about anytime you’ve had an issue with someone for no apparent reason (be honest). If you took a minute to dissect it, the person that you had issues with probably reflected something negative within you. We tend to be more judgmental when we have low self love and sometimes may not feel empowered to take responsibility for ourselves. Low levels of self love can effect faith and hope in the future and can stop you from pursuing your dreams. The lack of self love will always manifests itself in the way that we see others and the world. This is why it is imperative to keep maintenance on.

Exploring who you are is always a great first step to upgrading your self love. We are stimulated with so much outside noise all of the time, so it can be very easy for you to be heavily influenced to the point where you don’t know exactly who you are. Taking the time to get to know yourself is a great place to start in order to figure out how you like to be loved. It can also bring you into awareness of yourself. Have you ever heard the same thing about you said by more than 3 other close people that you were just so confused about? That’s something that you aren’t aware of. Take time to figure out why you do certain things, or feel certain ways, or think certain thoughts. There are so many tools available to help you look inward, a few being therapy, journaling or voice recording your thoughts on the phone.

Honoring your body can be another act of self love. So often we can easily find what’s wrong with our bodies instead of showing gratitude for what our bodies have carried us through. If we approach thoughts and actions about our bodies with radical gratitude, we’ll find that our bodies will better serve us. Honoring your body can look like dancing, or working out, getting a massage, or eating food that will nourish you.

Self love can also be fueled by challenge. Growth happens in uncomfortable places. Allowing challenge in your life will help you to grow in many different facets. If you’re used to only exercising for 30 minutes, challenge yourself to go for 45 min every once in a while, or end with a burnout exercise. If it usually takes you an hour to complete a task or chore, challenge yourself to finish sooner. Small challenges can help you build trust and love in yourself.

You deserve nice things. Treating yourself is always a great way to add to your self love. Sometimes it can be easier doing nice things for other people instead of doing it for ourselves. Learning how to “treat yo self” every once in a while can help you understand your value and motivate you to keep going. Treats don’t have to take you away from your goals though. You can treat yourself to a nice lunch or dinner, or maybe even in an investment. It doesn’t have to have to have a large price tag to be considered a treat also. Generosity can go a very long way, even for yourself.

As we go through the journey of discovering self-love, it’s major to remember to extend grace to yourself as well as self forgiveness. You can hold yourself accountable without tearing yourself down. Staying grounded through meditation can help balance the highs and the lows throughout this journey.

We wait way too often for someone to come along and love us when really, the wild romance that we dream about starts with us loving ourselves. The better you love yourself the better you’re able to share your love with everyone else. All of the love that you’ve waited for is already inside of you.

Thanks for reading!!!