How to Love and Care for Yourself
Love is in the air this February. The kind of love we are talking about has nothing to do with your partner, and has everything to do with you. The most important type of love comes from within. Afterall, if you don’t love yourself, how can you truly accept love from others?
One way to help fight against your mental illness is by taking the time to intentionally love and care for yourself. This month we are giving you several ways to work towards loving yourself and find confidence in who you are.
1. Enjoy time with yourself. Become your own best friend by intentionally making alone time. Have a date with yourself at your favorite coffee shop, go to the movies, bring yourself to the store and buy a gift. Most importantly, find joy in your own company.
2. Forgive yourself. Stop overthinking everything you’ve ever done. Learn from it, and move on. Do not harp on things you cannot change. Know that in the moment, you did your best and keep moving forward. Loving yourself regardless of the mistakes you made in the past is essential for your self-worth.
3. Write down your thoughts. Get to know yourself by recording feelings that come up for you. Journaling can be intimidating, instead bullet out whatever is going in your brain and it will have the same effect. This is imperative for self reflection as you can go back to a later date and see how you coped with certain situations.This will also help you get rid of negative thoughts and make room for positive ones.
4. Make a list of your accomplishments. We often get down on ourselves when we aren't exactly where we pictured we would be right now. Instead of comparing yourself to others, jot down all of the things you have accomplished. Feeling gratitude for these accomplishments will make you feel good about yourself. Find happiness from your actions and you will continue to be motivated to keep it going.
5. Take care of yourself. Self care doesn’t have to be a spa day or a face mask. Self care can be saying no and yes when you want. Fuel your body with nutrients and fuel your soul with sweets and move your body in ways that feel good. Eat a full breakfast in the morning and wrap up your day with meditation. Putting yourself first and continuously show up for you. Take care of yourself the way you would take care of someone you love and you will find your self worth.