Dear Curious,

I love, love, LOVE this question, so thank you! Self-love means that we never criticize ourselves for anything. To me, self-love is holding the belief that everyone is doing the best they can do. It is when our actions match our words; where we show up for self. Showing up for self means digging in, owning our shit, and being fucking real.

Self-love means that we surround ourselves with words, music, activities and people that fill us up. It means that we look within and start to hear our thoughts, and question their truth. Self-love means that we are our biggest cheerleaders; that we learn from our “face down” moments; that we love exactly who we are; that we embrace what we feel. We hold the belief that we are in the right place, doing the best that we can do. Self-love means that we simply accept and believe that we are enough. It is believing we are whole on our own. Self-love means that we work at replacing our negative self-defeating thoughts with self-loving words of encouragement… over and over again.

In a nut shell, the essence of self-love is knowing you and loving all of it. There are always parts that we are not fond of; moments in our lives that we wish we could re-do, but I am going to venture a guess and say that these “less than desirable moments” helped shape us and that there is goodness in the dark spots. Self-love means that no matter where we are at, or where we are looking to land, we support, encourage and cheer for ourselves along the way… like we would for a friend, lover, child, or colleague. Self-love is a joy filled space, and I highly recommend it.