5 acts of self - love you can do today

Self - love is one of those things that I’ve learned to embrace through my own journey in life little by little or one step at a time. And there have been many times when I’ve accidentally abandoned myself, acted out of integrity with myself or just plain slipped up and made mistakes with loving myself.

But you know what? It’s okay <3

Because we learn and grow through experiencing our lessons and learning how we want to show up in this life. This includes how we want to love ourselves and show that love. This means that a very big part of the self - love journey is supplying yourself with the love you desire through creating acts of self - love to receive from.

Once I started acts of self - love, I realized I had tapped into a form of self - care that not only I benefited from, but others did to. Because when I show up to love myself, I do the heavy lifting it takes for me to receive love from others and those around me. This leads to self - confidence, higher self - seem and self - worth outlook which means I am able to just enjoy being alive with myself and those around me.

As you decide what kind of love you want to show yourself and create your acts of self - love, be clear with yourself on what your main desires are. My main requirements of any act of self - love is that it be simple and accessible to me. Because if I can’t do it right now in the moments I truly need it, chance are I won’t do it at all. And part of learning to love all of myself was accepting just that - that I didn’t have to perform a giant ritual of self - love to prove to myself that I did in fact love myself.

I found that I receive the greatest love from simple acts, in the moment that are repeated often and felt deeply inside of myself.

And now I’m sharing them with you! Below are 5 acts of self - love ( that I love and do often ) that you can do today. You can pick one to start with and bookmark this post to come back to, or you can try them all today <3 I hope they help you feel into just how amazing you are and just how much love you have inside of yourself to receive <3

Connect with your body

I’ve found it to be an incredible act of self - love to connect with my body physically. This is because it hasn’t always felt safe for me to inhabit my body. My mind usually runs the show.

I had to learn and re - learn how to care for myself and love myself fully through listening to the wisdom my body speaks to me and communing with it. To help make this connection, I regularly take quiet moments to tend to my physical body through loving touch.

Try it : Turn your phone and TV off and close your computer. Give yourself a loving massage and focus on your entire body. Just connect with your muscles and your skin. Thank your body for everything it’s been through with you along the way and everything it does for you.

If self - massage feels like a lot for you then try placing your hand on your heart and just say, “I love you” to yourself. I also love giving myself hugs by just wrapping my arms around myself.

Write yourself love letters

I fell in love with writing notes to friends in class when I was younger. I also fell in love with writing snail mail letters to pen pals and watched my mom write letters to her sister living in Thailand for years. I loved seeing them arrive in a baby blue beat up envelop with my auntie’s handwriting and a stamp on it from Bangkok. It felt so distant yet so close.

As an adult, this inspired me to write love letters to myself. I thought if we could send snail mail across the world and feel deeply connected to each other, then why couldn’t I write myself a love letter to help me feel more connected to myself? Now, I’ve been writing myself love letters for years and have a shoebox full of them. Back in the day, I used to mail them to myself so I could physically receive them. Today, I still place them in an envelop and seal it up with decorative little sketches or tape. I’ll leave them on my desk, on my table or near my bed and nightstand to open later and receive.

Try it : Take a 5 minute break, grab a pen and some paper. I love handwriting my own love letters because I connect with the physical act of writing deeply.

For 5 minutes, write a love letter to yourself telling yourself how much you love yourself and what you love about yourself. Praise yourself for who you are and everything you’ve been through to get here in this moment. Thank yourself for showing up. Seal it up and tuck it someplace safe like under your pillow or in an upcoming chapter of your current reading book. Open it when you want and read out loud to yourself.

Take deeper breaths

Breathwork has helped me so much with managing my own emotions and has been my #1 self - help tool for catching myself in negative self - talk and overthinking that leads to self - doubt and the opposite of self - love. Taking slow and deep breaths is also proven to help with anxiety and everyday stress through activating the parasympathetic nervous system ( rest and digest mode ). It engages us in a way to help promote mindfulness and self - trust. This makes it a perfect tool for cultivating self - love. Bonus points for not needing anything besides yourself to do it <3

Try it : Sit in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and your hips square. Gently close your eyes and place one hand on your belly. Place your other hand on your heart and set your intention for receiving self - love.

Gently breathe in for 3 counts and focus on bringing your breath deep into your belly. Feel your belly move out as your diaphragm expands with air. Exhale slowly out your mouth for 6 counts. Repeat for 6 cycles or 2-3 minutes. When done, release this pattern and just notice how you feel. Thank yourself for showing up to this practice.

Really look at yourself

This one was a huge game changer for me. It was also one of the tougher acts of self - love for me to perform. I never realized that I never actually looked at myself in the mirror and that’s why it made such a profound impact on me. I used to just be rushing through my morning routine, absent mindedly brushing my hair or applying my skincare routine. Today, I love looking at myself in the mirror! I love looking at my hair and watching it pass through the teeth of my brush. I love applying my moisturizer to my face as I gently watch myself massage my forehead, cheeks and neck. I love looking into my eyes as I brush my teeth and noticing how dark and deep brown they are.

Try it : Look deep into your eyes in a mirror and tell yourself “ I love you “. Notice the color of your eyes as you do this to bring yourself deeper. Thank yourself for this love you’re receiving.

Dream about your desires and believe they are already here

Allowing myself to dream about my desires and also truly believing they are here for me in my life already is one of my favorite acts of self - love. It might seem like a frivolous way to spend time, but research shows that when we engage in the creative and dreamy state of our brains, it’s actually really healthy for us. This is because we are tapping into a whole different way of thinking and being. They key for me in making this a self - love practice was truly believing and feeling that I was worthy of my desires and that I didn’t need to prove that I was.

Try it : Daydream or write out what your truest, deepest desires are. Set a timer for 5 or 10 minutes and just visualize it. Activate your senses by writing down or imagining what the moment feels like to receive your desire. What smells are you smelling? What physical sensations are on your skin? What are you seeing in detail? What are you hearing around you?

Allow yourself to be filled with your dreams and feelings they give you. Tell yourself you are worthy of receiving these dreams and that they are already here for you. Bonus points for taking a small and simple action step post dream time to really make it real.

*If you’re looking for deeper support in cultivating a loving relationship to yourself then join me for a gentle group experience over the course of six weeks that will provide us with the opportunity of community while exploring inner self - support through breathwork and the somatic body - mind connection.

Enrollment closes July 30th.