How you live your life everyday says a lot about you, and how you feel about yourself. Whether you are a workaholic who “never has time” for anything else, or a yogi who eats right at every meal, or somewhere in between, the way you care for yourself says a lot about how much you value yourself. As a former workaholic, I see that the more I love myself, the more I naturally start to take better care of myself.

While this might sound simple, it damn sure ain’t easy.

TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF CONSISTENTLY, YOU MUST REALLY LOVE YOURSELF. 

In order to practice self-care as a way of life (and not just sporadically), you must love yourself. Your self-love must come from a deep place. As I move closer to self-love, I see that self-love is very different from the times in life where I’ve practiced “self-like”. Self-like says, “I like myself”; self-love says, “I know myself inside and out, and I accept myself”. Self-like changes depending on life’s circumstances (changes in body weight, career ups and downs, love life changes, etc.). But, self-love never leaves, despite what mistakes you feel like you’ve made. And for that kind of love, your mindset has to be grounded in something deeper.   

Muhammad Ali, a man I used to think walked on water :-), taught us so much in his life, but especially how to be connected to something bigger than yourself. He walked a walk that showed what really being in faith was all about. He genuinely believed that life is a divine gift and he treated it as such, in the way he enjoyed his life and helped others. When you truly understand just how precious life is, you are able to walk with humor, confidence, faith, and love for yourself and others–as he did.

(Photo from fearlessmotivation.com)

Now, this doesn’t mean that you need to assign yourself to a religion to embrace these principles, but my belief that I am more than just this human shell, makes me feel worthy of really and truly enjoying life and savoring it. My belief that I am divinely connected to the world around me, helps give me perspective on my petty day-to-day issues, and remind me of my strength and power as a divinely created instrument. If we are all the results of God’s creations, then we are miracles that deserve honoring. We deserve the best care, we deserve to be happy, and others deserve that too.

Having a child and really watching a human being go from nothingness to becoming her own person is a daily reminder of a connection to a force greater than myself. Three years ago, she didn’t even exist and she wasn’t even a thought in my mind. And now, she’s here, and every day she is growing. She went from a tiny microscopic collection of cells to this beautiful toddler before me that runs, jumps, speaks, plays. Her body is on autopilot and knows what to do, without any conscious action on my part. No matter what your beliefs, that is CRAZY. That is BEAUTIFUL. We are little miracles. We need to honor the amazingness in ourselves. We need to honor that essence in others too.

That’s why self-care is so important! When I take care of myself, I honor God. When I live in the present moment, I honor God. When I laugh and relax, I honor God. When I love, I honor God. When I’m honest with myself and others, I honor God. When I set limits for work, I honor God. When I tell myself and the world that I am great, I honor God. I’m saying to the world that my miraculousness deserves honor and respect, and so does yours.

If you don’t know how to take care of yourself fully yet, if you don’t know how to set limits for yourself, or slow down and relax, or be in the present moment instead of always concentrating on the future or the past, or if you’re unable to be grateful for your life–perhaps it is because you haven’t embraced and internalized your own divinity. You deserve all these things.

 

What are some things you can start doing today to honor yourself?