Call our free 24/7 helpline now
1-888-510-2481
Did You Know Watershed
Staffed 24 hours a day by Professional Staff.

Learning to Love Yourself: How To Be Comfortable In Your Own Skin

Sharethis Watershed

Love is a complex phenomenon, and what stems from this is an even more intricate element: learning to love yourself.  To add to the mix, developing this self-love can be remarkably difficult for someone who suffers from low self-esteem.  Even with decent self-esteem, how does a person love themselves while embracing their internal and external flaws?  It can seem like an impossible matter to some, especially alcoholics and addicts who may have become accustomed to treating themselves poorly.  This is why learning to love yourself and accept yourself for who you are is essential in order to truly love others.

Learning to Love Yourself: Importance of Self-Worth

Self-worth is the perception of your own value, which means learning to love yourself.  It is necessary to value yourself because without this, you may be inclined to disrespect yourself. If you don’t treat yourself with any respect, what would make you so sure that anyone else would? When you don’t feel good about yourself, you are prone to develop a negative perspective of who you are.  This can shape your thinking and make your thoughts turn negative about yourself and even the rest of society as a whole, which can lead to depression.  It is also essential that you don’t let another person’s opinion of you, dictate your self-worth.  What people think of you is a reflection of them, not you.

Learning to love yourself using good self-esteem vs. big ego

People tend to get confused as to where the line is drawn between having “good” healthy self-esteem and being entirely egotistical.  The main difference with the two is that a big ego deals more with the concept of vanity and pride in one’s self, while a healthy self-esteem generally gives a person the ability to see a clearer, more positive view of themselves and others.  The ego is all about self, so it can make a person’s selfishness and self-seeking tendencies rise.  Someone who suffers from a big ego may appear to be narcissistic, but many times the person really suffers from lack of self-confidence.  The best way to derail this kind of thinking is to stop yourself from these selfish perceptions.  It can benefit you greatly by being of service to others because it diverts your self-centered thoughts and puts the focus on someone else.  Simple actions like picking up something that someone has just dropped, listening to a friend vent, or helping a person by carrying their groceries to their car can take you outside of your head and allow you to humble yourself.  It can be easy to get swept away with an ego when you trying to focus on yourself, so keep in mind that mostly everything in life will require balance and moderation.

Learning to love yourself is not an easy matter.  It can be an experience that takes practice, but it may come over time.  Be patient, loving, and kind with yourself.  Understand that you deserve good to come your way and you shouldn’t beat yourself up over matters.




Posted in Blog, Recovery | Leave a comment