“Self-love” is one of the trendy terms of our time, but not that easy to implement in reality. We’ll show you some tips on how you can learn to love yourself for who you are.
How can you learn to love yourself?
Most of the time it is comparatively easy for us to love other people and to show our love to children, partners, parents or friends. But when it comes to loving ourselves, we often find ourselves at a dead end. Self-love is essential in order to cope with problems, deal with stressful situations and ultimately love other people as well. You are also walking clearly more confident, relaxed and free through life when you know and appreciate your self-worth.
But can you learn to love yourself? Definitely yes. There are some tips and tricks that you can integrate into your everyday life and that can help you to better perceive, accept and appreciate yourself. However, the basis of all these practices is the principle that self-love only from inside you can come and is not triggered by external influences.
Self-love through mindfulness
Self-love starts with Perceive feelings and signals from the body. Often we rush through everyday life in such a way that we no longer feel the state of our body. Only in the evening do we notice a headache, Weakness or nauseathat we cannot explain.
To protect yourself from this, it usually helps several short breaks of two to three minutes. Close your eyes for a moment, breathe in and out deeply and feel how you are in this moment. This special kind of attention is called “Mindfulness” designated. Mindfulness specifically relates to the perception of the inner and outer state and the ability to accept it, without judging. Mindfulness exercises help you to focus on yourself.
Mindfulness forms that, so to speak Basis for self-love. It helps us to get to know and understand ourselves better. Often we know far too little about our own personality because we don’t take the time to deal with ourselves. But how do you want to love yourself if you don’t even know your own strengths and qualities? Most of the time it is very easy for us to list our weaknesses and disadvantages. But when we are asked about our strengths, we simply cannot think of anything. Mindfulness exercises can help you improve your to perceive one’s own qualities better. But they also support you in recognizing your weaknesses and limits and accepting them with serenity and calm.
Finding yourself through meditation
One method to “train” self-love and mindfulness is this meditation.
- There are several ways to do this. Help you in the beginning guided meditationsto get to know the basis and different variations (You can find recommended mediation apps here).
- Later you can also do the exercises on your own and tailor them to your needs.
- With every meditation you sit in a position that is comfortable for you, close your eyes and begin to perceive your body, your surroundings and especially your breathing movement. It is important that you only register without evaluating anything.
Another method that you can incorporate into your meditation is that “Bodyscan”:
- You lie down on a soft surface and take each part of the body carefully.
- For example, you start with the left little toe and then work your way up to your forehead.
- Notice which areas of the body are loosening up and which are perhaps feeling tense.
- Here, too, the main thing is to feel and register without making an assessment.
Love yourself: yoga can help
A dynamic variant of meditation in which you bring your mind and body into harmony is yoga. You can choose from a variety of yoga forms. The spectrum ranges from powerful vinyasa power yoga to calm Yin yoga.
A principle in yoga is the motto: “Can do anything. Nothing has to be.” This also relates to accepting your (physical) limits. Perhaps you are not that flexible yet and cannot do a split or headstand. Accept this state with serenity. Only then will you be able to expand your limits through mindful training. So don’t force yourself into postures that don’t feel good, and treat your body with care and respect.
If you manage to transfer this thought to your everyday life, you are a lot closer to self-love.
Self-care – dealing with oneself
As you begin to perceive and accept your body’s messages, you will probably automatically have the need to pursue them. Here comes the Self care in the game. You surely know the need to take care of the well-being of people close to you. And just as you take care of people you love, you should treat yourself too.
This can manifest itself in different areas. For example, by taking the time to have a balanced, healthy dinner Cooking for you, lighting a candle and watching your favorite movie. Or by taking a relaxing bath after a stressful day, going to the sauna or going to a yoga class.
In addition to our job and everyday duties, we often neglect the things that we actually enjoy. But an essential part of self-love is that you consciously take the time to do things that are good for you.
“Body-Image” – satisfaction with one’s own body
Advertising posters, fashion shows, fashion magazines or the fitness mania that is spread especially through social media, throw especially young people into self-doubt again and again. Terms like “Body shaming”, who denotes shame about one’s own figure, make the rounds. Eating disorders and compulsive exercise are not uncommon.
Many of us will know the feeling of standing in front of the mirror and looking at our own reflection in a disparaging, disappointed or even angry way. This feeling of being uncomfortable in one’s own skin is mainly due to the constant Comparison through social networks, in which seemingly “perfect” people, in bikini or well-trained in the gym, present themselves.
One reaction to these developments are countercurrents to the fitness trend, which the Diversity of the human body stress and to Self-love and satisfaction with your own figure call. Ultimately, each of us has different genes and therefore an individual body that is too valuable to compare with others. We should therefore stop constantly emulating a supposed ideal of beauty. Try to accept your body for what it is. Then you are also able to treat yourself with respect, appreciation, and self-love.
The ideal of beauty has unfortunately been firmly anchored in our heads for a long time, as it is nourished and confirmed every day by external influences. There seems to be THE only perfect body that should be the goal of every human being. To get this image out of your mind and learn to appreciate your own figure and individuality, there are some tips:
- Stop comparing yourself to others! You have your own prerequisites, genetic makeup and, above all, your very personal story that shapes your body.
- Broaden your aesthetic horizons! Instead of being showered again and again by the same models who set the tone in the media, look for other inspirations. There are many strong women (and men too) who radiate beauty and self-confidence with a wide variety of figures.
- Be grateful for what your body does for you every day: That it carries you from A to B, allows you to try new things, to make an effort and to relax. Form a unit with your body and don’t work against it.
- Concentrate on your inner being! Unfortunately, our society is far too focused on trying to impress with external, superficial stimuli. It is the inner values that make us who we are. No six-pack will make you a good, lovable person, but values such as helpfulness and compassion will.
Of course they are healthy eating and getting enough exercise is an important aspect of a healthy lifestyle. The goal should always be your well-being and not an unattainable ideal of beauty.
If you try to integrate these suggestions into your everyday life in the long term, you will notice how much more relaxed and loving you are with your own body. Be patient with yourself. Learning to love yourself takes time.
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