Love Yourself : A Practice of Self-Appreciation
It all started with a recent training on self-compassion. The practice of self-compassion has resonated with me so much since I was introduced to it during The Daring Way™ training in 2015 and I was so excited to dive in. So I was surprised at how much of a challenge the exercise of self-appreciation was!
Fast forward to our Harper Therapy FaceBook community and the post I made there...
What if you simply devote this year to loving yourself more?
This post got so much attention, and I wanted to share the steps of self appreciation with you in an effort to help us love ourselves more! (see the steps below the video!)
Take two or three deep breaths and close your eyes to settle and center yourself. Give yourself some kind, compassionate, soothing touch.
Think of 3-5 things you appreciate about yourself. The first few things that come to mind might be superficial, so see if you can dig a bit deeper. Take your time and be honest!
Think of each of these positive qualities and, one by one, offer yourself a not of appreciation for having these gifts.
Notice if this might be uncomfortable for you. By acknowledging your good qualities, you aren't saying that you ALWAYS show these qualities or that you're better than others. You're simply acknowledging that these things are true.
Now consider if there are friends, parents, teachers, coaches, even authors of books who had a positive impact on you and send each of these people some gratitude and appreciation as well.
Let yourself savor, for a moment, feeling good about yourself. Really loving yourself. :)
If you're ready to change some of your internal dialogue from critical to self-loving and appreciating, call Harper Therapy today!
Find out more about our therapists by clicking here.
Yolanda Harper, LCSW * Harper Therapy Co-Founder + Co-Executive Director
