“You are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.” ~ Maya Angelou
Dear Body:
I loathe you. I hate that you don’t look the way I want you to. That you aren’t a perfect size 0. I hate that I push you and push you and you fight me by gaining weight or making my hair fall out. I hate that you aren’t perfect. I hate that I have to take care of you and you still don’t look like I want you to. It’s very frustrating. I hate that you can’t or won’t do all that I ask. There is so much in my life I want to do and you aren’t there for me. Why won’t you do what you’re supposed to do? How can I love you if you’re not perfect?
Sad to say, that was my journal entry only a few years ago. There was no self-love to be found in my life at that time. I had this image in my head of what a perfect body was, but that wasn’t necessarily God’s plan. He created each of us perfectly to reflect Him in a specific way. We were meant to be different! Nor are we created to do everything.
In the Introduction to my best-selling book, More than Enough, I wrote in-depth about self-love. In part, I shared:
Self-love is a gentle acceptance, and unconditional sense of support and caring, and a core of compassion for yourself. It is an abiding willingness to meet your own needs, allow yourself to feel and think whatever you feel and think, and see yourself as essentially worthy, good, valuable, and belonging in the world, deserving of happiness. And, most importantly, you believe you are ENOUGH, as you are. Self- love is developed early in life, and if childhood experiences damage our sense of self significantly, a lack of self-love can hurt us for a lifetime.
Folks who struggle with self-love don’t believe they are ENOUGH. No matter how hard they try or how often they hear it from others, they can’t seem to believe they are good enough.
A few of the more common characteristics of genuinely low self- esteem are:
- Struggle with anger or depression.
- Easy frustration.
- Eating disorders.
- Social withdraw.
- An inability to see yourself squarely or to be fair to yourself.
- Can’t accept compliments.
- Self-neglect.
- Treat others well but yourself badly.
- Reluctant to take on challenges.
- Reluctant to put yourself first.
- Reluctant to trust your own opinion.
- Low life expectations for yourself.
Self-esteem is important for many reasons. We need to have a healthy self-esteem because it affects every aspect of our lives. Having a good self-esteem is essential, because:
- Without it, we can crumble and not show up for our life.
- It helps us feel good about ourselves.
- It gives us courage to try new things.
- It helps us honor and respect ourselves, even when we make mistakes.
- It encourages us to make healthy decisions for our minds and bodies.
This does not mean that people with good self-esteem discounts others. Instead, they value themselves and ensure their own feelings or needs are not discounted.
Rocking what you’ve got is SELF-LOVE at its finest! It’s about embracing yourself as you are in this moment. Knowing you are ENOUGH. Loving all of you, even if your body doesn’t look like OR act like what you think it should. It’s about reminding yourself you are worthy and dressing your best each day to reflect your worthiness.
It starts with a mindset of ENOUGH. Choose ENOUGH instead of punishing yourself with words that put you in a deeper, darker mood and tearing yourself down physically, emotionally and spiritually. I’m encouraging you to be gentle and loving to yourself.
I encourage you to appreciate who you are right now. Know you are ENOUGH. Right here. Right now. You don’t have to be someone you are not. Be the best version of YOU. Rock What You’ve Got is about accepting and loving the body and all of who you are or have in this moment. And, when you love who you are in this moment, you naturally begin to dress to reflect that beautiful inner you and feel rockin’.
A friend of mine had heard me talking about Rock What You’ve Got. One day when she was getting dressed, she started feeling bad about herself and her body when the words Rock What You’ve Got popped into her head. She told me later that when that happened, it helped her reset to a whole new outlook that perked her up. She ended up having a great day, partly because she reset her self-perspective.
And, that’s the best version of YOU.
Today, my journal entries reflect that new me as well.
Dear Body:
Thank you for hanging in there with me. I love you. I honor you. I respect you. I appreciate you and your strength. You are resilient, patient, and beautiful! You are exactly who God created you to be. I see you. I hear you. I am listening.
Next time you’re feeling down about your body, like my friend above, remember the words Rock What You’ve Got and do a mental reset. This quick reminder will fill your soul with the message that you are enough and allow you to show up in the world honoring and radiating who you truly are.
©2017. Lara Jaye. An excerpt from More Than Enough: Discover Your Limitless Potential and Live Your Bravest Dream. www.LaraJaye.com
