February is the month of love where people show how much they love each other. Valentine’s Day is a wonderful day to show this love. But do you actually love yourself? They say you can not truly love others until you love yourself.
There are many people who do not love themselves and the degree to which this occurs can vary. Sadly there are many people who have severe self hatred where they are so repulsed by themselves that they can not even think one kind thought about themselves. This is very prevalent among people who suffer from eating disorders or people who are “people pleasers”. They will do anything for others but will never show the same kindness to themselves.
Learning to love yourself is a gradual process where you begin to learn to accept yourself for who you are at this moment in time. Finding acceptance can be very difficult for some people, particularly if you have body image issues. It may be essential for you to address underlying issues before you can move forward in learning to love yourself.
One day you will begin to see a glimmer that you actually like yourself for who you are, warts and all. As you begin to realise that no one in the world is perfect, then you can accept the areas that are not your strong points and put it all into context. This process varies from person to person. Some people reach the stage where they love themselves very quickly while other people spend years working through deep seated issues.
All I can say is your whole world will change when you move from a position of self hatred to self love. You will enjoy life and who you are as a person. You will find yourself and explore all the things you have wanted to do but never let yourself do. As they say “life is not a dress rehearsal” so make the most of it now.
