We all know that self-love is important and that you need to focus on yourself sometimes, but with thousands of other things to think about during this pandemic, this has been hard for many. Weeks turn into months, and people that are having to isolate themselves can experience an increase in depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. This means that it is important now more than ever to get to know ourselves, take care of our minds and bodies and learn to love ourselves. As Mother RuPaul always says, if you can’t love yourself, how you gonna love somebody else?!
Taking care of our physical and mental health is always the top priority. At the end of the day, it’s all that matters. Good sleep, healthy eating habits and doing activities that make you happy are extremely important. Those are some of the first steps that can be taken in order to boost your relationship with yourself. And even if you have just one thing per day that you look forward to doing, it will help give you that extra boost and determination.
Maintaining good physical and mental health can be tricky, and this was very apparent when the pandemic started. People went stir crazy in their houses, trapped in isolation. Others experienced isolation and it heightened mental health issues, creating lots of anxiety and depression among many. Because of this, many suggested taking up habits to help combat these struggles— and with good reason. Finding a hobby or activity that truly entertains or excites you can completely change your life perspective and give you some goals to look forward to achieving. Things such as drawing, painting, cooking, baking are only a few examples of the many hobbies that are worth trying.
Pandemic or not, self-love has always been essential yet sometimes hard to accomplish. With the boom of social media comes an endless rabbit hole of comparing ourselves to others and striving to achieve some level of perfection within ourselves. With all this self-doubt and struggles with confidence or appearances, not only is our relationship with ourselves in jeopardy, but so are our relationships with others. Perhaps one of the biggest reasons behind rocky relationships are problems within each person, internal struggles that are individually dealt with. That’s why it is imperative to focus on yourself— learn what you like, what you don’t like, what defines you, what shapes who you uniquely are as an individual. Without knowing these things, it’s almost impossible to commit yourself to a relationship with another person.
Understanding who you are as a person is pivotal, as getting to know and love yourself is the most important relationship to work on of all. Your health comes before anything else, and adding in a little self-love and confidence will enhance your relationship with yourself.
(If you or someone you know is experiencing issues regarding mental health, the University of South Carolina offers assistance and care, or you can reach the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255).