Self-Love Is Not Selfish
I’m a HUGE advocate for self love. I strongly believe that everyone deserves to put themselves first.
And if you’re a parent, I mean even in front of your children. You might think I’m crazy but hear me out.
When you put yourself first, you’re teaching your kids that it’s necessary to take care of yourself. And caring for yourself first means that you’ll have the strength and energy to take care of your family.
It’s not selfish to love yourself.
I practice self-love everyday. When I get up in the morning, I start by looking in the mirror and I tell myself that l’m beautiful. Everyday. I don’t look for wrinkles. I don’t look for bags under my eyes. At all. I say positive things to myself. Kind things to myself. And I often do this out loud so that my girls can hear me. I say things that I’m grateful for too. I want them to grow up with the same kind of mindset. I want to teach them that self-love is being kind to yourself and appreciating all the things that you have.
I also spend downtime with girlfriends. My neighbour friend and I get together every Tuesday morning. We make that commitment to one-another. We have a play date with the kids and then we’ve even started spending our Tuesday evenings grocery shopping together at whole foods. We share a passion for healthy eating and organic produce. Self-love is also being kind to our bodies.
Even though I’m a busy mom and work 4 evenings and all day on Sundays, I have a side project on the go. In addition to this podcast. I always follow my heart and that has led me to a new passion, one that I’ll be sharing soon! But for now I can tell you, it’s hands-on and creative and takes me back to my childhood. And it fulfills my passion to share what I’m learning with you. This side project is another element of self-love.
Self-love for me is also taking time to go the gym most mornings. This way I get a break from motherhood (and a solo shower!!)
Self-love can take all kinds of forms.
It’s about making time for the things you love. Whether that’s daily or weekly or monthly. I do a massage once a month. In fact I have an hour and a half massage booked for the end of this month. That’s self-love. And it feels amazing to treat my hard working body to some pampering.
What does self-love look like to you?
Make sure that you’re re-arranging your life to include all the things that are really important to you.
Live the life you deserve to live.
And just a reminder...what you focus your attention on grows. So make sure that you’re focusing on the positive. If you say you don’t have time to do the things you love, try instead to be grateful for all the time you do have. I promise with this shift of focus, you’ll start to create more time.
And remember it is not selfish to take care of yourself. To put yourself first.
That’s self-love.
Sandy xo