How do we love ourself?

Question

How do we love ourself?
I wish I could love myself...Can somebody tell me how??

Answer

Dont put conditions on your love for yourself. Its easy to say quotI hate myself because I amhave insert negative qualityquot and quotIf only I were like insert positive quality, Id be happy and love myself.quot The problem is that you will never be perfect, and even as you improve, your expectations for yourself will always stay out of reach.brbrIts a lot easier to say than do, but accept yourself as you are. Affirm yourself. That is, say to yourself, quotIm a good person.quot Say it out loud if you have to, even if you think it sounds weird. Make a list of your good qualities at least and read it to yourself every day. When youre down, its easy to pretend that you dont have any good qualities, but you know that you do. Force yourself to look at them. And dont let yourself twist those good things into bad ones I bet you know exactly what I mean, so I wont keep explaining.brbrThese things arent the only things to do, theyre just a start. Loving and accepting yourself and feeling peace takes time speaking from my own experience, it can be a hard painful journey. If youre feeling a lot of despair and have felt negatively about yourself for a while this is a bit simplified, but a doctor will diagnose depression if a person has had persistent negative thoughts and feelings for two weeks, no answer you find here is going to change that.brbrSee if any of this sounds familiar Have you been feeling down for awhile? Have you had changes in your appetite or sleep pattern? Do you not feel like doing fun things or the things that you normally love? Do you always feel alone or ashamed or guilty for no reason? Have you ever thought about suicide?brbrIf none of that sound familiar, then ignore what Im saying. But if you have felt those things, do something about it. Do something now. Talk to your family. Talk to a doctor. Im sure that there are people that care for you a lot, even if you feel like no one cares. It can be extremely hard to take that step, but I promise that if you do, youll be on the path to loving yourself and being happy. You can figure out the best plan for you, be it a medication that helps balance the chemicals in your brain or meeting with a therapist that can help you see the negative thought patterns that you have and teach you how to change that.brbrWhatever you do, just dont wait. Theres no reason to go on hating yourself and feeling miserable. You dont deserve it. Like I said it can be really hard, but it really is possible to love yourself and find peace.brbrSorry if Ive overanswered the question. Ive just felt the way that you feel before. I know what its like to be there, and I know that life really can get better.