Self Love is Not Selfish
We are taught Self Love is “Selfish”. So how can we adopt the, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself” mindset when we have no concept of how to love ourselves?
Love Your Neighbor As Yourself
How can we love our neighbor as ourselves when we don’t love ourselves properly?
We are taught from an early age to be respectful to others. We are force-fed archaic religious ideologies to fit into our society.
Love God with all of your heart, all of your soul, all of your mind, all of your body, and all of your strength. Love your neighbor as yourselves.
The problem is, we were never taught how to love ourselves!
Do Unto Others As You Would Have Done Unto You
How can we properly treat others when we mistreat ourselves?
If a person needs our help, we do not hesitate to assist. We are programmed to go beyond the call of duty for others but ignore our own needs and desires.
If we see someone who is sick, we insist they rest and take care of themselves.
When we have a problem, we push ourselves too hard. If we need rest, we call ourselves lazy or weak.
It Is Better To Give Than Receive
How can we accept gifts if we are taught to only give?
When a person we care about wants something, we go out of our way to get it.
As parents, we buy the most expensive toys, gadgets, gaming systems, etc.
As lovers, we buy expensive gifts, vacation trips, clothing, you name it.
When it comes to ourselves, we make excuses as to why we don’t need a particular item or we talk ourselves into thinking we can’t afford it.
We need to reprogram our belief in self-love
Love Yourself as You Love Others
We need to start loving ourselves the way we love others.
To give you an example of how to do this properly, think about how you love others.
How do you treat others in comparison to how you treat yourself? You will be amazed at the lack of love you truly show yourself.
Loving yourself is more than working out and eating healthy food. It’s the inner essence of how you feel about yourself.
Can you look at yourself in the mirror and truly see the beauty you see in others?
They say, “how you treat others is a reflection of how you treat yourself.” This statement is absolutely false.
There are countless cases of amazing humans who went above and beyond for others but still fell short of their own needs due to depression which is anger turned inward.
We have to look at our lives and see where we can start the process of learning to accept and love ourselves.
Do Unto Yourself As You Do Unto Others
Pamper and spoil yourself.
Be kind to yourself. Take yourself on a date. Go out to your favorite restaurant. Have a spa day. You can even make it a day of relaxation and reading.
You deserve to be pampered and loved just like you do for others. Once you start treating yourself correctly, you will not allow others to mistreat you.
Receive Gifts and Favors From Others
When someone wants to give you something, receive it with an open heart and gladness.
Why is it so hard for us to receive favors or gifts from others? It is due to the programming. We have no problem giving gifts. Again, the root of it all is self-love.
The reason we feel we should not accept gifts is due to the programming of it being selfish to receive.
If someone gives you a gift, just know they believe you are worth it. Why can we not believe in ourselves?
Make The Choice To Treat Yourself As You Treat Others
Think of ways you can bless yourself.
Make it a habit when you wake up to take a moment to give gratitude to yourself.
As you are laying in bed envisioning your day full of to-do lists and deadlines, be sure to plan something nice for yourself.
Anytime you pass by your reflection, wink at yourself with the intention of, “You got this!” Start telling yourself in the mirror, “I Love You.”
We give so much of ourselves to our families, jobs, friends, even pets. It’s time to take that same energy and apply it to ourselves. We are worth it.
