Your best life, the one you deserve, begins with self-love. If we lack love for ourselves, it’s incredibly difficult to allow others to love us – or to even share our love with those around us. To be able to stare back at our reflection in a mirror and be able to say “I love you” is a practice we must all aspire towards. 

One of my favorite meditations that drives this messaging home is on “Insight Timer” with Sarah Blondin. You can access it here: 

Sometimes, when I’ve said or done something I wish I hadn’t, I struggle to find love and compassion for myself. In these times, I look for a quiet place to sit and focus on a few affirmations that are really powerful in allowing myself to move past the moment I’m stuck in. This process gives me the space I need to move forward towards my greatest potential and unequivocally helps me reconnect to self-love and forgiveness for my imperfections.

Here are a few of the affirmations I tap into:

  • I am enough, I matter
  • I do not have to be perfect  
  • My flaws are my character, and they are beautiful
  • I am beautiful
  • I love myself, my body, my heart, and my soul
  • I am deserving of love
  • I am deserving of success and happiness
  • I choose myself
  • I am doing my best
  • I do not need validation from others
  • I believe in me
  • I forgive myself
  • Positive thinking creates my positive life

Once we all commit to practicing self-love daily, we 100% have more gas in our tanks to provide authentic love to others. If you find yourself lacking or depriving yourself of this gift – make it a practice to pull in some positive affirmations. In class, do things like feel the floor holding you up and feel what it feels like to turn this into a metaphor for how there are supports around us all of the time, just take the opportunity to notice and submit. Or when you are in a stretch and forward fold, notice the surrender and calm of bringing two parts of your body closer together transforming this awareness into the metaphor of giving yourself an internal hug.

Lastly, in our day to day lives and certainly in our Dailey Method practice, sometimes self-love shows up when you allow yourself a break by taking a reset of a position or pulling back a little in honor of your body’s messages. In life, it could just be taking a walk to breathe some fresh air to clear your mind. Regardless of where, the little bits of added support you provide and then gift yourself are simple and tactile ways of demonstrating SELF-LOVE. 

Do it. 

Be the ripple effect. 

Loving yourself, first, is the gateway to giving others permission to do the same.