How can you balance the demands from other situations and people if you are neglecting yourself? What does a good relationship with YOU look like? What does it mean? If these concepts are foreign to you, you are not alone, friend. It is time to get along with you. And, if not, now, when?
❤️ The most important relationship you will ever have is the relationship you have with YOU.
Balancing the demands of work, financial security, relationships with friends & family and taking care of yourself can leave you wondering where your priorities are. But, managing those demands while giving yourself permission to put your first is much easier by applying the techniques listed below.
Pause. Take a deep breath and really think about what it means to love yourself. It begins with a pause, a breath and a term referred to “metacognition” or, “thinking how you think.” Let’s explore some of the basics of a healthy relationship with yourself.
Acceptance. Accepting who you are, physically, emotionally, and all of your quirks. Knowing why you make the decisions you do, and what drives you, and respecting those parts of yourself that you don’t understand. Part of acceptance is acknowledging the parts of yourself you’d like to develop further.
Inner Awareness. Building awareness of triggers that elicit emotions, such as anxiety & depression is a good place to begin. Learning to recognize when emotions are strong and how to incorporate mindfulness into your life can be very helpful. Mindfulness requires you to be present. The past and future are not real. What is REAL is here & now. Stop reading this and look up then look around you and name 5 things in your current surroundings. You got this. Just be. It feels so good. After all, you are a human BEING, not a human DOING.
Taking Care of Yourself. Which habits are healthy and which aren’t? The nutrition we give our bodies fuels us, and our emotions are often linked to them as well. Are you using the physical power in your body and exercising? Are you getting enough sleep and are you able to relax? Are you maintaining healthy boundaries without apologizing? Boundaries are quite simply rules of engagement.
Life Purpose. What is your passion? What makes you get out of bed each morning? Why? Having a variety of hobbies helps to develop your awareness of your life purpose. For some, it’s helping others, and for others, it’s building, creating, and managing.
Self-esteem. Abundant self-esteem makes you feel confident and confidence is probably one of the most important components to a healthy relationship with yourself. Your core belief, (the story you believe about yourself), and levels of attachment to those beliefs are thoughts developed from You aren’t born confident; you learn confidence.
Growing Your Potential. Catching, interrupting and replacing any negative beliefs about yourself with positive ones. Challenging yourself to keep learning and developing as a human in your personal and professional life. Do you discredit any achievements you make? Or do you take pride in your accomplishments and keep pursuing more opportunities to grow?
Trust In Yourself. Having confidence that you can trust yourself to make good decisions is a huge factor to a healthy self relationship. Trusting in your ability to make good decisions and acting according to your beliefs and morals rather than the pressures of society and your loved ones. Taking responsibility for yourself and your feelings and consequences.
The most important relationship you will EVER have is the one you have with yourself.
❤️Loving YOU and all your quirks requires inner awareness.
Taking care of you, practicing self-compassion, improving your self-talk and nurturing that relationship will affect every aspect of your life. So when you feel overwhelmed and stressed, stop and think and consider this, “Are you are treating yourself like you would toward your best friend?”