It seems everywhere we turn, we hear more and more about self-love. Everyone talks about how we don't love ourselves, and this is the cause of all our problems. Not loving ourselves means talking negatively or doing bad things to ourselves. This could be right as well as wrong depending upon the situation. To us, a person is actually alive only when he is in love with his own existence, but often the concept of self-love is misinterpreted.
Today, we are going to shed light on a few common myths about self-love, these are actually quite the opposite of what 'Self Love' really is:
Myth 1: Self Love is Selfishness
No, loving oneself and giving the first priority to one's own happiness is not selfish. A change should start from ourselves. Love should also start with ourselves. How can someone who is not happy make others happy? Taking actions without considering others feelings is what selfishness is, but making a decision to do something that gives a person joy is not being selfish. There is a thin line between these two which could only be understood by keeping a broader perspective.
Myth 2: Material beauty is self-love
Selflove is not about your surface-level self-care. Things like pedicure and haircuts are often just the things that society has set as criteria for being lovable. And this mentality labels people with nice nails and haircuts as lovable and people with ugly nails and messy hair as hateful. We are not stopping you from doing those things if you truly love them. We are trying to encourage you to look beyond the ways you present yourself to the external world and stop pressuring yourself to blend in with society and its standards.
Myth 3: Self Love is egotistical and self-centred
Self-love does mean thinking of the self but there is a huge piece here that differs from being egotistical. When we think of ourselves in a light that says we are better or more worthy than others, we lose the ability to extend love and kindness to both ourselves and others. Self-love is the process of granting ourselves compassion and when we do so and truly believe in nurturing this mindset, we extend that compassion and understanding onto others as well.
Myth 4: Self Love is for the weak
There is no weak or strong here. Everyone needs it. If people had more self-love in their lives so many of us wouldn't be walking around bitter, lonely, sad or crying out for attention. With more self-love, there would be fewer heartbreaks or less pain. People would stand up for themselves and walk away from crappy relationships. They would have enough respect to not put themselves in dangerous or reckless situations. Weak or strong, rich or poor, everyone should be sourcing a sense of approval, joy and acceptance from inside themselves.
Ditch the misconceptions and make the decision to choose self-love. You will be much happier than you did.
Be Confident. Be Beautiful. Be You.
