5 Powerful Benefits of Self-Love
The benefits of self-love cannot be overstated enough. It is an important aspect of our overall mental health and when you prioritize and take care of your own needs, you can better take care of the needs of others.
During the inevitable hard times we will all face in this life, it is easy to fall back on bad habits and negative self-talk, both of which can contribute to low self-esteem. However, it is during these times that it's even more important to love on yourself.
THE FIRST LOVING RELATIONSHIP YOU HAVE IS WITH YOURSELF
What is the actual meaning of Self-Love?
Self-love is a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological, and spiritual growth.
Some understand self-love as self-compassion. Dr. Kristin Neff, associate professor of Human Development and Culture at the University of Texas, led the research on self-compassion. Neff’s work outlines the three elements of self-compassion: self-kindness vs. self-judgement, common humanity vs. isolation and mindfulness vs. over-identification.
Self-kindness is being gentle to yourself during life's challenging moments. Common humanity is realizing that your experience is a shared human experience. What you are going through is not happening to only you, you are not alone. Mindfulness requires you to have balance, not allowing negative self-talk to take hold over your mental health.
Self-love means treating yourself as you would treat a best friend. Allowing yourself grace when needed. Protecting your emotional and mental health. Honoring your past experiences as a badge of personal growth and learning.
5 Powerful Benefits of Self-Love
Once you start practicing self-love, you will notice the positive changes that begin to take place in your daily life.
- Less Stress and Anxiety
When all of the benefits of self-love begin to manifest you will experience lower levels of stress and anxiety. When your relationships are healthy your stress levels are lower. When you have high self-esteem, your stress levels are lower. When you have good health, your stress is lower. You get the idea. Self-Love = Lowered Anxiety - Higher Self-Compassion
Self-compassion means showing the same empathy, acceptance, and love that you would give others, to yourself. You grant yourself kindness and understanding during times of personal shortcomings without negative judgment. - Boost in Confidence
When your self-love is high, confidence follows. Your confidence comes from self-acceptance and a connection to your purpose. It comes from being happy with where you are in life. And confidence is sexy. - Greater Sense of Self Worth
You are worthy of love and positive self-talk is a beautiful side effect from self-love. You do not need to compare yourself to others. As you learn to practice self-love you learn to value every aspect of what you bring to the table. You have a higher esteem and inner strength that is rooted in your core values. - Increased Energy
Constantly saying ‘yes’ to everyone else and their needs takes energy. Learning to prioritize your time actually conserves your energy. As you learn to say ‘no’, you make room for the things you actually want and need to do for yourself. This does not make you selfish or lazy. Quite the opposite in fact. You must learn to pour into yourself before you can pour into others. Valuing your energy is an important aspect of self-love.
Looking to Take Your Self-Love Journey Even Further?
Join us for a 5-Day Mini Self-Love Challenge to learn simple, realistic ways to begin showing yourself some love and care. Throughout the challenge, you will receive daily tasks that will take as little as 10 minutes to complete and will help you start to build the habits necessary to cultivate self-love and acceptance.