Self-Love, Self-Care
by Ruby Roxx
Self-care is an incredibly important, yet often overlooked step to creating a life filled with self-love. Without self-care, we cannot be completely open to accepting self-love into our lives. However, as important as the link between them is, they are completely different practices.
To me, self-care is taking the time to genuinely take care of ourselves (nourishing our bodies, moving our bodies, taking a nap if we need it, going to the spa, taking a hot bath, shopping, etc.).
Self-love, on the other hand, is TRULY and genuinely accepting and loving who you are, regardless of size, shape, income, relationship status, where you live, your weight, or your number of followers. It’s a deep love and appreciation for yourself from the inside.
Of course, we can foster self-love through our self-care. The holidays can be a very stressful, yet joyous time for many people, and it’s very easy to let our self-care slip. We spend so much time taking care of others around this time of year, that we forget about ourselves!
One of the ways I practice self-care, even during the busiest times of the year, is to give myself a ME day! A ME day is a day that you book in advance that is yours to spend however you like, so long as it has nothing to do with work or responsibilities. Book the day in advance, and don’t let yourself book anything else that day. Take yourself to the spa, or go see that cheesy holiday movie in the theater (and you don’t have to share your popcorn with anyone!). Go out for lunch to your favorite restaurant. Maybe buy a new sparkly holiday dress. Spend the day by yourself, or with people you love. But remember… NO WORK! Everyone needs a break once in a while, and that includes YOU! During your ME day, be sure to remind yourself that you are worthy of this (I know I personally suffer from guilt sometimes when stepping away from responsibilities), and you DESERVE this. Don’t let that little voice try to convince you otherwise. We ALL deserve self-care and to love ourselves without reservation.
When we begin to care for ourselves from a place of pure love, we can step into our self-love even deeper than before.