Do you struggle to love yourself? Do you feel guilty about what you have or haven’t done with your life? When you are filled with regrets you become trapped in the past that you can not change. Yet how do you move forward and love yourself more?
There are strategies you can embrace to help you adopt self-care and develop an inner appreciation of who you are and what you bring to the world. Self-compassion is key to finding yourself. When you feel that you are enough, the regrets and mistakes that keep you from loving yourself will fade away. Learning to love yourself more is the same as learning anything, you need to choose to prioritise your needs. Think about it, you have to allocate time and effort when you decide to learn a new skill.
Today I want you to make a commitment to yourself and allow yourself to let go of all the mistakes that you feel responsible for. Practicing self-compassion is a way to give your mind space to adopt a new way of thinking about yourself. Self-love is the way to quiet the critical inner voice that makes you question your decisions and prevents you from living a life that brings you happiness and fulfillment.
Psychology studies support the importance of developing self-care, love, and compassion for mental well-being. Here are four steps to nurture self-love even when life may be challenging.
Dedicate Time to Yourself
Any relationship needs time to grow, your relationship with yourself is no different. You need to take time to show yourself that you are important. Dedicating just 10 minutes a day to yourself and telling yourself that you are enough, can change how you view yourself in the long term.
Show Yourself Gratitude
Most people know that being grateful can help to grow feelings of positivity and happiness. Self-gratitude is another way to show yourself love and appreciation on a daily basis. Take time to thank yourself for everything you do every day.
Forgive Yourself
Regrets can eat away at you and stop you from loving yourself in the present. Letting go of your past can be challenging, especially when you feel angry with yourself. This is why forgiving yourself isn’t easy. You need to choose to forgive yourself. One way to do this is to tell yourself ‘I forgive you’ every time you start thinking about the past and things you think you should or should not have done.
Celebrate Your Achievements
When you finish that book, manage that morning run, or even remember to brush your teeth before bed, take a moment to celebrate. Achievements don’t need to be big things, when you are finding it hard then it is the little things that are often the biggest achievements. When you associate good
feelings with an action your brain will also want you to do it again. So when you manage something that is good for your mental or physical wellbeing take a moment to congratulate yourself.
You Can Love Yourself More
Give yourself time to learn to love yourself. Take baby steps by just doing something every day, it could be as simple as thanking yourself in the morning for getting up and facing the day.
Sometimes the best way to show yourself, love, is to reach out and speak to someone about your feelings.
If you feel are struggling reach out.
The Samaritans have an everyday, 24-hour free helpline 116 123
You can also contact our friendly team at The Happy Healing Hut . We will never judge you and can help arrange ongoing, long-term support and counselling for yourself or someone you care about.
If you are feeling lonely or isolated contact The Healing Hubs 10-2:30pm 8-11pm 7 days a week Tel: 0300-102-1546 (or) ask your GP to refer you to our be-friendly service.