To fall in love with yourself is the first secret to happiness. – Robert Morley
Everyone of us needs to show how much we care for each other, and in the process, care for ourselves. – Diana, Princess of Wales
In my humble opinion, I feel self love is the highest form of self care. Some of you may be familiar with “The Mirror Work” exercise by Louise Hay. It is a simple exercise that she encourages everyone to do on a daily basis, which is practice saying “I love you” when looking in the mirror. You can also do this by inserting your name at the end.
“I love you (Insert your name)”
So, this week, I encourage all of you to practice this simple yet powerful exercise every time you look in a mirror. At first, you may not remember to do this on a regular basis. But, setting an intention to practice this self love exercise can have a profound influence on how we look at ourselves, which in turn can shift many areas of our life.
In EFT tapping, when we say the statement, “I love and accept myself”, initially we are not in alignment with the idea. The statement may feel false and phony for some of us. I have heard clients say, “But, I don’t love and accept myself”. After working on themselves for some time, they become more comfortable with the statement.
Author and speaker, Cheryl Richardson, who is also a huge proponent of tapping, writes in her book, “The Art of Extreme Self Care”, that initially when she began this Mirror exercise, she noticed more of her flaws, like the lines on her face, grey hairs and it was very difficult for her to practice this exercise. So, she went on doing this exercise for 30 days and towards the end she noticed that it got a lot easier and also realized that this was not a silly exercise.
So, whether you are tapping or doing the mirror exercise to love and accept yourself, give yourself time and send love, kindness and compassion to the part of you, that may be judging, bullying and criticizing you with a punitive voice. My mentor has taught that judgment of the self can be harsh and self love is the antidote to heal this wounded part of us.
Wishing you peace and happiness!
Until next time,
Keep tapping!
Meenakshi.