What is love?

Is it something given to a child by their mother?

Or maybe something given to a spouse by their spouse?

Well, what about the love given to you by yourself? Self-love. Perhaps the most crucial type of love.

We are never really taught to truly love ourselves.

The very first thing we are taught about love at a very young age is to “love thy neighbor.” What if I told you that loving someone else is nearly impossible if you have no love for yourself? It is self-destructive to give love to someone when you have no love within.

Learning to love yourself is no easy task.

We often ignore its importance and seek love and validation from those around us, which is not necessarily bad. But how can you expect someone to love you if you don’t love yourself?

Self-love is the key to mental and physical wellbeing, and it keeps the anxious thoughts we drown ourselves in at bay.

We are our own greatest enemies as it pertains to self-love. We are so critical of ourselves; we critique every little thing we think is wrong and it leaves us feeling like a shadow lingering in the corner of an empty room. This lack of self-love invites dependency on other sources to bring us happiness. People who practice self-love will rarely ever need anything or anybody to bring them joy, because they have it from within.

Loving oneself is never selfish, and anyone who makes you think otherwise is selfish. Self-love is the core of who we innately are as human beings, and sets the standard for how other people will love us. Loving yourself prevents you from expecting other people to carry that weight for you.

Once you start understanding and accepting that concept, everything else will fall into place.