Love Yourself

Lately I have been reading a lot of marriage/family books... maybe because that is the point in my life where I am at right now, but they are also really interesting. I borrowed one from my mother-in-law and as soon as I started reading in one of the chapters I knew I had to write a post. It's taken me a while to finally write this, but better late than never.

In the book Married for Better, Not for Worse the Gary and Joy Lundberg give you an exercise to do that I feel can be applied to wellness. They say,

When you step out of the shower look at yourself in a full-length mirror. Really do this--it's the beginning of being able to be comfortable with seeing and being with yourself as you are. The first time you do it just look yourself in the eye and say, "Hi," then get dressed. Do this again a few more times and don't look for imperfections and pick yourself apart. Soon you will be more comfortable looking at your whole body and will be able to accept yourself as you are. This exercise is to get you beyond being critical of your body and getting to the point when you can say, " I like me. I'm glad I've got a body and I'm glad that, for the most part, it works. I'm just fine the way I am." That doesn't mean you may not work on making a few changes if you need to, but that is not the main focus here. It means you can accept yourself and are happy to be you, just as you are.

I really feel that this is one of the underlying causes that our society feels we need quick fixes--plastic surgery, fad diets, lap band surgery, etc... We are not truly comfortable with who we really are so we try to be like everyone else or how people are portrayed in the media. When you love yourself, you are more likely to have confidence, go out there are follow your dreams, make new friends, and serve and love others. I'm not saying that there may not be things that you want to change; there is always room for improvement! Whether you need to lose 5 lbs or 100 lbs or just want to be more fit, we need to love ourselves as we go through the process. If we don't love ourselves, then where is the motivation going to come from when our other motives fail us? Love you for you and enjoy the journey!

Challenge: Next time you shower do the exercise the Lundberg's suggest. Really look at yourself and love  who you really are.

Namaste

This blog post has reference to my religion. I am not trying to force what I believe upon you. I feel that it ties in with Namaste and is a very important subject that applies to mental health.

"I honor the place within you where the entire Universe resides; I honor the place within you of love, of light, of truth, of peace; I honor the place within you, where, when you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us"   -- Mahatma Gandi 

Namaste is the belief that there is a Divine spark within each of us. In Yoga, we use Namaste to begin meditation and to become unified. However, if you stop and think about it, shouldn't we think of Namaste always? Each day we have multiple opportunities to build friendships, help others, strengthen ourselves, and succeed. We cannot go through life alone. We are here on earth to help and support others. By serving others, we in turn receive. We begin to understand who we are we have purpose. We then have the confidence to achieve our dreams and our goals. It builds trust, it brings love, and it unifies us.

I am a girl, and lets face it, there are forces out there trying to bring us down. Telling us we can't, telling us we aren't pretty enough, telling us we aren't skinny enough, and even telling us who we should be. I feel that it is more prevalent in women than in men, but sometimes we all can become down.

I feel that I have been blessed because of the religion that I have had in my life. When I was a young woman I would stand each week with the other women in my ward and say "We are daughters of our Heavenly Father who loves us and we love him..." As I think back, I really didn't understand the power in that phrase. I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father. He knows me, he loves me, and I have a divine purpose! So powerful! It gets even better though; it's not just me who is a daughter (or son) of God, it is EVERY person that I meet! EVERY person that I walk by is a child of God, EVERY person I see has a divine purpose, and EVERY person I meet has light and love in them, but do they know that? Do they have the confidence to be themselves and to love life? I am not too sure each person does. It has taken me a while to truly accept who I am and that I don't have to be a stick to be pretty. I don't have to have the latest fashion to fit it. I don't have to be sad when I am alone. I have a purpose. I know I have not even had a glimpse of the potential I have with that purpose, but by helping others, I have found out who I am. I have been assured that I have a divine purpose. I have grown to love others and have peace and be happy!

Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all understood Namaste and used it in our everyday dealings? YOU have a purpose. YOU have potential. YOU are beautiful. YOU are here because others need you. Namaste brings peace, love and happiness to you and others around you.

Challenge: Write down one thing that you are good at (don't compare how good at it you are with anyone else!) and share it with someone. Write down how you feel after you help that person so you will remember it.