Time and time again, I am sure we have all come across a piece of poetry or literature that recites to us that we must love ourselves first in order for someone to love us in return.

I am here today to debunk this myth that society tries to feed us everyday.

First of all, the reason society chooses to constantly supply us with this false statement is due the fact that they think it is the absolute best reason to force us to love ourselves.

They feel that if they give to us this lie over and over again, that we might actually begin to believe it. Since a significant other loving us is the be all and end all of our existence, we must work hard to love ourselves in order for someone else to accept us and love us.

This is bullshit.

Of course, most of us want to fall in love someday, but romantic love is not the only love that exists or is of importance in this world.

Remember your family and friends that were there for you throughout your journey to self love. Remember who was there to pick you up when you were down, reminded you of all the things they love about you when you felt so incredibly awful about yourself, or saw you at your absolute worst. They did not abandon you. They did not hate you. In fact, they probably love you even more than they did before. They love you unconditionally.

Do not refute platonic love. Anybody who wants the best for you, loves you. This counts as "real" love.

This being said, someone WILL love you for you one day. I know it is cliche and overstated, but it's the truth. You DO NOT have to love yourself in order for someone to love you. They will accept you and your flaws and your problems and help you through them. If they choose not to help you, then they are not the right one for you. Don't settle. Wait for someone who wants the best for you, and will love you even when you experience rampant insecurities and self doubt.

Secondly, there are much better reasons to learn to love yourself. Personally, not receiving love in return is not a good enough reason for me. Why should I have to work towards this goal solely for the approval of someone else? Maybe I want to do this only for myself. I want to do it to feel better about myself.

I want to be in a relationship as much as the next person, but I have learned to not work towards loving myself just because of how badly I want someone to love me. My ongoing struggle to love and accept myself has been a tough battle, but I have learned so much about life and myself because of it. These are lessons I believe I would have not attained if I had only been working towards the possibility of someone loving me someday.

However, all of this is not to say that this is not a good enough reason to love yourself. If you work towards self love because you believe that someone will not love you until you do, that's okay! I'm absolutely not saying that there is anything wrong with this belief, but I am simply stating that loving yourself is not a requirement for someone to love you in return.

So, work towards loving yourself. Do it for yourself. Love will come along one day. They will love you regardless of your feelings towards yourself. Do not change for anyone but yourself.