Tips to Practice Self-Love and Acceptance

Let’s get real: everyone struggles with self-love and acceptance. Most people are their own harshest critics, which makes it that much more challenging to find self-confidence and peace with who you are. Even celebrities like Beyonce and Oprah struggle with this from time to time. That doesn’t mean you should give up on it completely—it just means you’re normal! However, that doesn’t make the feelings any less difficult to deal with at times. Here is some advice on how to practice self-love and acceptance in your life so that you can feel peaceful about who you are, inside and out.

Know that you deserve to love and be loved.

The first step in loving yourself is knowing that you deserve it. You are a beautiful, unique human being, and if you didn’t deserve self-love, you wouldn’t have been given it in the first place. But we often don’t remember that, especially when we’re in the middle of a tough time. Sometimes, it’s helpful to look at the reasons why we should love ourselves as a reminder to treat ourselves well. Do you have a disability you’ve been struggling with since you were young? Do you have a history of trauma you’ve had to overcome? Do you have a significant other who loves and accepts you for who you are? Is there anything else about your life that you should remind yourself of? There are plenty of reasons why you should love yourself, and they’re there for you when you need them the most.

Set little (and big) self-care goals and stick to them.

If you’re struggling with self-love and acceptance, it can be easy to fall into a cycle of not caring for yourself at all. There are times when it’s important to put yourself first, but you also need to make sure you’re not neglecting your basic needs. It’s important to set small goals so that you don’t feel overwhelmed while also making sure you’re taking care of yourself properly. You could for example, start by setting a goal to drink water instead of fizzy pop every day or maybe put your fave perfume on each day. What are some of your small daily self-care goals? These are things that make it easier to love yourself, like setting aside time each day to do something you enjoy, taking a walk outside, or reading a book. You can also set bigger self-care goals, like going on a holiday or quitting a bad habit. Sometimes, it can be helpful to use the SMART method when setting self-care goals. That way, you can make sure they’re attainable and you can check them off your list when you’ve completed them.

Write a letter to your 16-year-old self.

Think about the person you were when you were 16. Were you confident about yourself? Did you know what you wanted to do with your life? Did you have the best body you could have? Most likely, you didn’t have everything figured out yet. You were probably dealing with a lot of changes in your life, and you may have been bothered by some aspects of your looks or body. If you ever feel like you’re falling into a cycle of hating yourself and your body, try writing a letter to your 16-year-old self. Think about what you wish you could have told your 16-year-old self during a time when you struggled to love yourself. What would you say about your changing body? What would you tell yourself about your looks? What do you wish you knew about yourself back then? What do you wish you could have done differently? Writing a letter like this often helps you realize how much you’ve grown and how far you’ve come.

Practice gratitude daily.

It’s important to practice gratitude every day, but it’s also a great way to help you fall back in love with yourself. You don’t have to write down a list of things you’re grateful for every day, but make sure you do it at least once a week so that you’re consistently reminding yourself to be grateful for the things that happened in your life. It’s helpful to tie gratitude into your self-love practice so that you can bring yourself more positivity. If you’re struggling with self-love and acceptance, start by thinking about what you’re grateful for in your life. What would you have missed out on if you didn’t exist? What do you have that you might not have had if you hadn’t been born? What are some of your favorite things about yourself? What are some of your favorite things that happened in your past? All of these things help show you that you deserve to love yourself and have a positive relationship with who you are.

Help others, even when you don’t feel like it.

Sometimes, we fall into a cycle of hating ourselves and feeling like we don’t deserve to love ourselves because we don’t help others enough. This cycle is, at times, unavoidable, but you can use it to your advantage. If you’re struggling with self-love and acceptance, try to find ways to help others. You can do this by volunteering to help those in your community or helping someone online. It’s a proven fact that helping others releases endorphins in your brain that make you feel happy, which can help you fall back in love with yourself. Find out what you can do to help others in your community or online. You don’t have to do anything huge—even something as small as offering to walk a neighbor’s dog or helping someone in an online forum can do wonders for your self-esteem. Remember that you are worth it and that you deserve this kindness, too.

Bottom Line

Self-love and acceptance can be tough, but it’s important to keep trying to get better at it. If you’re struggling with these things, try some of these tips and see if you find yourself feeling better about how you view yourself. If you are really struggling, reach out to myself or whoever else you like for support. Remember that you deserve to be loved and to love yourself.