8 Benefits of Self Love

Self-love! We hear this term so often, but what does it mean? Does it conjure up images of hippies dancing bare footed in the forest, or a woman in much need of a hot bath whilst indulging in luxurious chocolate?

Well people, I can confirm SELF LOVE is simply the awareness of one’s own emotions, wellbeing, and happiness. Self-love is a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological, and spiritual growth. In other words, adopting self-compassion and accepting your true unique authenticity. It is not a selfish act to put your own needs first. Here’s why.

1. Boosts your Confidence

It’s very difficult to feel confident if you’re focused on criticizing yourself. People with negative self-talk often struggle with low self-esteem. A lack of confidence naturally follows. If you want to feel more confident, self-love is a good way to exercise that muscle. Recognize your worth and skills, be compassionate when you’re frustrated with yourself, and you’ll notice your confidence building.

2. Increases your Emotional Resilience

During hard times, it’s easy to slip into despair. Depending on the environment you’re in, you might be dealing with people who blame you for your hardships. You might blame yourself. Self-love helps counter negative, critical self-talk and put things in perspective. Even if your struggles are a result of a mistake you made, self-love encourages you to learn from the mistake and move forward. This builds your emotional resilience and prepares you for future challenges.

3. Increases your Happiness

When we love ourselves more, we instantly change our perspective of the world. Self-love can give us a more positive attitude towards life. Accepting and loving yourself is linked to higher satisfaction with life, and therefore, more happiness. When you’re constantly analyzing your flaws and criticizing your choices, it’s hard to feel happy about anything. Self-love encourages you to think of yourself like a dear friend. You can acknowledge that you’re not perfect, but still worthy of acceptance and support.

4. Increase Physical Health

During the journey of Self Love, you instinctively want to give your body everything it needs including quality sleep, nutritious food, water, and exercise. Living a healthy lifestyle can be difficult for most people, but it can be accomplished, and you will soon start to see the positive results of your lifestyle changes, increasing your own personal confidence. By accepting yourself as you are without judgement, you will be more motivated to make positive changes in your life.

5. Helps Reduce Stress

Self-care is a significant part of self-love. When you love yourself, you recognize signs of burnout and can take steps to reduce your stress. Without self-love, you might not believe you deserve a break. The thought of doing something “just for me” might be very challenging to accept. You are therefore more likely to power through a stressful time even when it hurts. People with healthy self-love are more willing to take time to care for themselves when they’re stressed.

6. Helps Manage Anxiety and Depression

Research suggests that people with high levels of self-compassion have a lower risk for developing anxiety or depression. This doesn’t mean that you’re incapable of loving yourself if you’re anxious or depressed. It does imply that aspects of self-love (such as self-care, self-compassion, and positive self-talk) can help manage symptoms. Self-love can also help free you from the common belief that mental illness is somehow your fault.

7. Increased Motivation and Productivity

Procrastination is a productivity killer. To get yourself motivated, you might resort to harsh tactics. Some people use threats of self-punishment to try and get going on a task, but research suggests that’s not an effective motivator. It’s better to have compassion for yourself when you procrastinate. Use your “failure” as a learning opportunity for the future. Instead of being bogged down with self-criticism, you’ll feel lighter and ready to make changes to your behavior.

8. Helps you Achieve your Goals

Self-love awareness creates space in your life for the dreams you hope to achieve. It isn’t selfish to go after what you want in life. You should live life in the way that fulfils you. Self-love also provides the tools you need to achieve your dreams, such as reduced stress, emotional resilience, increased productivity, and confidence.

The concept of self-love can be very challenging. You might be working through the belief that says self-love equals selfishness. Give yourself permission to make one simple small change today which supports your greater wellbeing, but most of all, enjoy doing it without the guilt. It is beneficial to you and those around you. Go on….. do something nice, for YOU!