It's always important to practice self-love but as we're leading up to Valentines Day I think we need a reminder of how amazing we are as individuals. I feel like so many people confuse self-care with self-love. Don't get me wrong, doing a face mask and taking a bubble bath are great ways to pamper yourself but practicing acts of self-love go a bit deeper than just drawing a bath.
I found a journal entry I wrote from a couple years ago the other day and it truly shocked me to remember how much I was struggling with my confidence and my outlook on life. Thinking of how far I've come from those moments is amazing and I'm so dang proud of myself.
One of the smallest yet biggest impacts I made was repeating the phrase "remember to be kind to yourself." Every time I looked in the mirror and had a negative thought, if I was struggling in a class and felt stupid for it, if I literally tripped walking to my dorm (LOL) and felt embarrassed, I would say "remember to be kind to yourself."
You wouldn't be rude to another person, so why be rude to yourself?
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I'm definitely a visual learner. If you put something down in front of me and show me how to do it I can pick it up right away. In school I'd always hand-write my notes because physically writing out the words helped me to really remember them.
Journaling is not only a great outlet for decompressing but also a good way to stay in-tune with yourself. I've recently gotten into manifestation (I keep seeing 111 everywhere!!) and one of my favorite things are affirmations. If you don't know what affirmations are, they're basically phrases you can say or write that reflect positivity. Why are affirmations great? Well: "A positive mental attitude supported by affirmations will achieve success in anything." (thank you Wikipedia, sorry teachers).
A few self-love affirmations are:
I commit to get out of my head and into the world.
^ me saying "ooooooooo thats a good one" typing that out.
I accept all of me with love.
I will treat myself with the kindness of a friend.
I shower myself with compassion.
If you want to hear more about manifestation, check out my post linked here!
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Social media plays a huge part in the dangerous game of comparison. This person looks prettier, has more fun, has more friends--I wish I could be like them. I think we've all experienced this thought process.
One super important thing to remember is that social media is a highlight reel and the powers of editing are insane.
I know it's so easy to say, but stop comparing yourself to other people. The best thing about us is we're all unique with different paths in life and we should be celebrating that. I challenge you to compliment yourself everyday. I love my outfit today, good for me doing my laundry, I did a great job backing into that parking spot!
Positive mindsets are unstoppable.
I genuinely had a blast writing this post and hope you practice some self-love this Valentines.
xx Madison
P.S. Remember to be kind to yourself :)
Make sure to follow me on Instagram at MadisonSchramm and TikTok at madsandmore for even more!
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