In my post What is Mindfulness Meditation I briefly discussed how mindfulness it the key to developing compassion.  I also mentioned how compassion benefits you and others.   Another way to describe compassion is loving kindness.  Loving kindness is all about opening yourself to receive love from others and sending positive thoughts and wishes to them.  However, the primary focus is still on others.  I’m going to introduce the concept that before you can truly show kindness and compassion to others you have to be able to show it to yourself first.  I personally believe this is the first step to practicing mindfulness.

What is Self-Love?

Self-love is exactly what it sounds like, loving yourself.  What exactly does loving yourself really mean though?  Does it mean focusing only on your own needs and wants?  Not at all.  Loving yourself simply means being aware of what your needs are and making sure they are met.  This doesn’t mean you forget about everybody else in the process.  Crossing that line turns self-love into selfishness.  So, if you are tired take a nap.  If you are hungry or thirsty eat and drink something.  If you need to recharge your mental and spiritual batteries spend some time in meditation and prayer.  Remember you have to take care of yourself before you can begin to effectively show compassion to others.

Using Meditation to Develop Self-Love

Self-love meditation is a type of mindfulness meditation that focuses on developing compassion for yourself.  It teaches you to pay attention to your needs and wants.  Self-love mediation combats negative emotions and thoughts.  As time progresses you will gradually move to a more positive emotional and mental state.  You will be more capable of having healthy loving relationships with those around you both professionally and personally.

Benefits of Self-Love Meditation

There are numerous benefits to self-love meditation.  To begin with it encourages brain growth.  Meditation calms the mind fostering improved memory.  Research studies also show those who have a regular meditation practice have larger cortexes.  Another benefit of self-love meditation is reduces stress and anxiety.  It teaches the mind to disconnect from the present easing worries and fears.  It also helps you to become a better decision maker.  Mediation teaches you to analyze your actions and recognize patterns.  This enables you to make better decisions as time progresses.  Finally, self-love meditation cultivates self-awareness.  It also teaches you to express self-love in a healthy way.  The end result is you are able to maintain healthier relationships.

Self-love meditation is a technique that promotes emotional and mental wellbeing.  It teaches you to love and appreciate yourself just as much as others.  It will boost your self-esteem and overall wellbeing.  To have a happy and fulfilling life you must learn to practice it daily.