As February rolls around, the most romantic of us become overwhelmed with images and messages about love. But it's important to remember that loving yourself should come first.
How can we effectively give or accept love from others if we don't possess a good foundation of self-love? There is a lot of talk about loving and caring for oneself these days, but what does that actually mean?
Each of us may experience this differently, but the most crucial thing is to realize that, regardless of your upbringing, experiences with prejudice from others, or mistakes in the past, you are a fantastic person who deserves to be recognized for the distinctive individual that you are.
Photo from the wires
To help you out this Hearts Month, here are 3 books that provide ideas on practicing compassion and understanding towards yourself…
1. Healing is the New High by Vex King
To free himself from his terrible past, heal his emotional turmoil and trauma, and establish a new and powerful belief system, Vex devised potent inner healing procedures. Since then, he has assisted thousands of people worldwide in starting their recovery processes. He is now here to help you in learning how to heal yourself.
Through the use of yogic principles and straightforward, approachable procedures, Vex demonstrates how to encounter recovery through the levels of oneself for extraordinary, long-lasting outcomes. Among these transforming actions are:
- Utilizing the energy in your body
- Investigating and enhancing your inner vibration
- Building enduring relationships
- Looking back on your past and rewriting limiting beliefs
- Finding your authentic self and rekindling your fire
One of the best ways to love yourself is to take control of your inner healing. By committing to this process and boosting your vibration—the energy that flows through you and radiates out into the world—you'll make room to embrace more pleasurable events.
2. Come Home to Yourself by Déjà Rae
Déjà Rae examines the highs and lows of letting go of previous relationships and embracing loneliness to learn about oneself in her second release of published writing.
Throughout her writing, she shows how each next season depends on its predecessor by taking the reader through seasons of abundance, truth, and grief. This book serves as a catalyst for change, a manual for letting go, accepting isolation, and figuring out one's true identity and purpose.
Déjá Rae illustrates this by demonstrating that the love we seek has always existed inside us and is patiently waiting for us to return home.
3. What I Wish I Knew About Love by Kirstie Taylor
Growing up, we learn a lot of subjects like algebra, physics, and how to pay our taxes (kind of), but we have yet to learn about love. Author Kirstie Taylor decided to take a break from dating and study everything she could about how love works after a decade of heartbreaks and unsuccessful relationships. This book is a compilation of poetry and essays covering all of the lessons Taylor discovered about love.
What I Wish I Knew About Love by Kirstie Taylor leads you from a position of experience, compassion, wit, and understanding, much like an older but wiser sister or an eccentric aunt who punctuates passionate sentences with long sips of wine.
Final Thoughts
It's typically easier said than done to show ourselves a little self-love in a world of self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and having to handle challenging situations that might leave us feeling a little critical of ourselves. The ability to love yourself and recognize the sources of unfavorable self-talk (and how to respond to them!) must be actively practiced, just like any other skill.
These self-love books are so motivating that you'll want to reread them if you need help or just want a good reminder (or lend them to your friends because they could probably use a reminder, too).