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13 Steps to Achieving Total Self-Love

How To Practice Self-Love

By Jessica MillerPublished 4 years ago 3 min read

Self-love is essential to happiness and well-being. If you don't love yourself, it's hard to love others. And if you can't love others, it's tough to have healthy relationships.

So how do you go about achieving total self-love? It starts with understanding what self-love is and isn't. Self-love is a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological and spiritual growth.

Self-love means having a high regard for your own well-being and happiness. Self-love means taking care of your own needs and not sacrificing your well-being to please others. Self-love means not settling for less than you deserve.

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Self-love is not:

• Being selfish or egocentric

• Feeling superior to others

• Ignorance of your own faults and shortcomings

Self-love is:

• Caring for yourself and valuing your own well-being

• Having a positive regard for yourself

• Respecting your own needs

• Taking care of yourself both physically and emotionally

Once you have a good understanding of what self-love is, you can start working on developing it.

Here are 13 steps to help you achieve total self-love:

1. Be gentle and kind with yourself.

2. Give yourself time to heal after a setback.

3. Make time for yourself every day.

4. Set boundaries with others.

5. Prioritize your own needs.

6. Be authentic and honest with yourself.

7. Take care of your body by eating healthy foods and exercising regularly.

8. Give yourself permission to feel emotions, both positive and negative.

9. Accept yourself for who you are, flaws and all.

10. Forgive yourself for your mistakes.

11. Make time for fun and relaxation.

12. Appreciate and love yourself just the way you are.

13. Believe in yourself and your ability to achieve anything you desire.

Self-love means accepting yourself as you are in this very moment for everything that you are. It means accepting your emotions for what they are and putting your physical, emotional and mental well-being first. It means being kind to yourself, even when you make mistakes. It means forgiving yourself and moving on.

With time and practice, you can achieve total self-love and live a happy, healthy life. Just remember to be gentle with yourself and take it one step at a time.

Also, start truly caring for yourself by mirroring that in what you eat, how you exercise, and what you spend time doing. Do stuff, not to “get it done” or because you “have to,” but because you care about you.

Don’t feel like going to the gym? Then maybe put on a soul-soothing podcast and go for a walk. Create habits that are healthy, not just mentally but also emotionally.

You don’t need to love everything about yourself to develop self-love; all you need is acceptance. Next time something happens that makes you want to get down on yourself, see this as your practice to accept what is.

Self-love isn’t a luxury; it’s a necessity in today’s society. So, start implementing some of the practices above and most of all, have compassion with yourself when you fall short. Then simply brush yourself off and get back into it again. As they say, practice makes perfect.

Finally, realize that by caring for yourself, you care for this world. Your actions have a ripple effect on others.

By following these steps , you can achieve total self-love and happiness in your life.

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