The Way to True Self-Acceptance
Imagine if you had to be with someone every single second, a person that you don’t accept, let alone love, it wouldn’t be so pleasant, right? Now imagine not accepting yourself.
One of the topics in my 21 Day Self Love Course is self-acceptance. As I took feedback from my students, they mentioned wanting to learn more about this topic, and coincidentally, I had planned to write it anyway! So, today let’s deep dive into self-acceptance and how to bring it into our lives.
So, what is self-acceptance? I guess you already know implicitly, but let me put it across in direct terms. Self-acceptance is embracing yourself just as you are. There are no conditions attached. You accept yourself fully.
It’s really important to bring in our lives because we are choosing to live. And, in every moment of life, we are with ourselves. Imagine if you had to be with someone every single second, a person that you don’t accept, let alone love, it wouldn’t be so pleasant, right?
Now imagine not accepting yourself. If self-acceptance isn’t there, the quality of our life diminishes. And, since you and I are here, we both want the best for ourselves.
We want to take care of ourselves. Otherwise, why would we be on a platform that helps people become better friends with themselves? Self-acceptance is a big part of this.
Now that we’ve understood its importance, let’s learn how to attain true self-acceptance.
- Understand that it accelerates self-improvement
- Use introspection to support you
- Be kind to yourself
3 Steps to True Self-Acceptance
1. Understand that it accelerates self-improvement
Self-improvement and acceptance go hand in hand. In fact, self-acceptance helps you become better.
Let me quote myself from my course - Acceptance should not be postponed to the point when we feel that we are as perfect as it's possible for us to be. This doesn't mean that we're looking at our flaws as good things, we're just accepting them as they are in us.
People can only work on themselves when they are aware of what is there, accept that it is a part of them that they should improve, and then work on making it better.
It’s a very simple concept, really. And, the simplest things are sometimes the hardest to practice. Wherever you want to go, whatever you want to achieve, and whoever you want to become, the person that you are right now is the one who’s going to take you there.
Related: 5 Steps to Increase Your Self-Awareness
2. Use introspection to support you
As you choose to accept yourself, take your time to introspect on the part of yourself that you have not fully embraced. There might be a few things that you already know, but there might be more, and introspection is going to help you recognize them. It can be anything,
- Things about your past
- The way you speak
- How you deal with shock
- What you think of people you’ve lost contact with
Some questions that you can ask yourself are:
- What would you prefer to do less of?
- What would you like to do more of?
- What frustrates you the most?
- What are you holding onto that you need to forgive yourself for?
- What have you been holding on to that you need let go of?
- What do you not like about yourself?
- How can you be more accepting of yourself?
- What do you judge yourself for that you know is unfair?
- What do you like about yourself as a friend? How can you do more of that for yourself?
Use a journal to help with this. As answers turn up, you have to first accept all of it. Then, choose what you want to work on. Don’t start despising yourself for anything.
Create a judgment-free zone for yourself. Whatever is, is. Remember that self-acceptance is about embracing yourself just as you are, with no conditions attached.
Related: 70+ Journal Prompts for Self-Reflection
3. Be kind to yourself
It’s important for us to remember that all of this will take time, patience, and repeated efforts. We can’t force ourselves to feel something. Remember that it’s not going to happen right when you decide to.
But, step by step, as you keep compassionately reminding yourself, you’ll get there. Wholeheartedly accepting all that you are is not a quick win, but it definitely is something that will open the doorway leading you to form a beautiful relationship with yourself.
Positive affirmations can help you greatly here. Here are affirmations for self-acceptance from my self-love course:
- I am exactly who I need to be at this moment.
- I accept myself just as I am.
- I choose to love and accept myself.
- I bring consciousness instead of judgment to myself.
- I am willing to accept my wholeness.
- I choose wholeness.
- I celebrate all of who I am.
- My imperfections make me beautiful.
- I accept everything in my life.
- I am at peace with myself.
Keep affirming these affirmations to yourself. One day, these words will truly become your voice.
And, that’s it! I hope you found this helpful. I’m happy to see that you made it to the end of this post, and proud of you for making this effort. Do share it with someone who you think might need it. Take care :)
👉 Continue reading:
Gratitude - The One Thing We All Need
6 Real Ways to be True to Yourself
