Louis Michael: The benefits of loving yourself
Whether I was born with it, or pieced it together like Lego blocks from different defining experiences at a young age, I am blessed to have a positive disposition. The reason I say blessed is in part because I practice gratitude in my every day life and in part to recognise that in this day and age it seems that more often than not that sunny side up mentalities are over real easy.
But despite the fact that it's second nature to me, that doesn’t mean I keep smiling without thinking. Since leaving the protective chrysalis of childhood I’ve wondered more and more often about the state of the world, the consignment to the relentless trudge of the miserable everyday. So many people, feeling trapped by their circumstance, give in to hopelessness and accept undeserved punishments, like early mornings chained to a desk of endless paperwork. For many, somewhere along the way the sunlight leaked out of their world.
But its my belief that sometimes we offload the blame on circumstance as a way of directing the finger of blame away from ourselves. Because for many cases it’s the state of mind that’s the issue.
“ Sunny side up mentalities are over real easy ”
Positivity starts at home. We can pluck positivity from outside ourselves, but eventually it will always dissipate. For the real genuine good feelings we all want, it has to take root within us. To do that, we need to nurture it, and the way to nurture positivity is to fill your body with love. How do you do that? By loving yourself.
And no, loving yourself isn’t arrogant. Arrogance is thinking you’re better than everyone else. Love yourself! Tell yourself you’re worthy of love, that you’re worthy of your own love! Treat yourself like you’d treat your best friend. Give yourself a break. And eventually as the bruises you gave yourself begin to heal, and aren’t replaced by new ones, you’ll begin to see that the world isn’t so bad.
This, hand in hand with a grateful mindset, the small change in belief that nothing should be taken for granted, everything is a blessing, will transform this cautious optimism and allow it to blossom into a confident contentment.
It goes without saying that those with neurological imbalances and mental health issues are on a different journey, but I sincerely hope that you too can find a pearl of wisdom somewhere in my words to alleviate some of your burden.
