Learning How to Accept Yourself

Many of us view ourselves and our lives through the lens of judgment, going from room to room in our mind, continually searching for ways to improve. And whilst self-improvement is always a good thing, it’s also important to remember to practice self-acceptance. Because if we don’t, and we only view ourselves critically, we end up with poor self-worth, which impacts all areas of our lives.

Self-acceptance is about celebrating the good as well as the aspects
​of ourselves that we wish to improve. 

So how do we practice self-acceptance?
 
Quite simply, self-acceptance starts with liking yourself, which begins with respecting yourself, which starts with thinking of yourself in positive ways.
 
 In practical terms, to practice self-acceptance consider implementing the following:
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• Get a diary and make a list of the key attributes that you love about yourself and review this list (and add to it) as often as possible.

 

• Each day as you have a shower and wash each body part, say out loud that you love and appreciate each body part. This sounds weird, I know, but it is a powerful self-acceptance exercise, especially when practised daily. For added benefit, consider doing this exercise while lying in bed and drifting off to sleep at night.

 

• Accept compliments from people - don’t deflect compliments with self-deprecation or excuses as to why the complement shouldn’t be valid.

 

• Use positive self-talk to describe yourself. Do not speak disparagingly about yourself. To become mindful of how you talk about yourself, get a ‘self-acceptance’ buddy who can point out to you when you do speak poorly about yourself. If you catch yourself speaking critically about yourself, reframe what you said to be that of positivity and empowerment.

 

• Implement self-care practices daily - some suggestions of self-care are: 

          Giving yourself the gift of time (just for you) 
          Enjoying a nourishing meal 
          Exercising
          Meditating 
          Getting a good night’s sleep
          Treating yourself to something you want - flowers or a night out, for example.
          Setting, committing to and communicating your boundaries,
 
These are just a few short tips on how to practice self-acceptance.- If you need more ideas, please feel free to reach out to me.
 
To reiterate - don’t just focus on what you want to improve - recognise and spend time celebrating how great you are just because you are you. The more you practice self-acceptance, the more your self-worth will improve, which will increase your motivation for your other goals.