Self love (noun): meaning regard for one’s own well-being and happiness (chiefly considered a desirable rather than narcissistic characteristic). According to the organization Do Something, “7 in 10 girls believe that they are not good enough or don’t measure up in some way, including their looks, performance in school and relationships with friends and family members.” Once you allow yourself the luxury of love, you let go of any extra baggage that you’ve been carrying around in your mind. We are no longer tethered to what others think of us, we have the ability to tune out their negative presence. We are able to accept every single part of ourselves, no matter if it is so-called "perfect" or not.
Speaking from personal experience, all of these ideas are fine and well; it's just the implementation that proves difficult. You want to be able to believe that you are capable of what, on the surface, seems like a small feat. Self love is no small task. It’s a mental and physical undertaking that requires a full commitment of not just you, but your friends, as well. You need to have a support system behind you that can hold you up and remind you that you are doing right by yourself, and they should be your cheerleaders. You will begin to realize your purpose in the world and you will be more present in every day life. You will notice all the beauty that surrounds you because you are no longer clouded by the quick judgment of others surrounding you.
Failure becomes something that you don’t beat yourself up about; you accept the fact that you are human and you will make mistakes. The idea becomes that instead of it being the end of the world, it’s a learning experience. A moment to take the time to reflect on what went wrong and figure out how to right those wrongs that you made in the past. “We find courage to accept failure because we know that it is one step closer to growth, and our significance isn’t dependent on what we produce” (Mind Body Green). No longer do you feel like you have to constantly prove yourself to anyone, you are proving yourself to to just you. Self love also teaches you how to effectively deal with your stress. You find the root of what is causing you stress and you take it a part to figure out how you can flip it so that it is no longer stress, but something that can again become a learning experience rather than an obstacle in your life.
So, I’ll leave you with this, even though self love is quite the thing to take on and master, it is something that is entirely possible. You can take it one small step at a time, even if that means just trying it out for a day and seeing how your life has even the smallest of change. At the same time, you may not notice the changes immediately. It will take time and effort, but in the end, it will be worth it. Wouldn’t you rather live life seeing the beauty and the positives than in a blur and bubble of constant negatives?
