How To Stop Criticizing & Start Loving Yourself Fully

Why are we our own worst critic? Why do we nit-pick ourselves over the littlest things? Why are we the first person to pick out all our tiny flaws when most people don’t even consider them flaws? Why is that when we have one bad moment with our kids the next thing running through our heads is how horrible of a mom we are? Why, for the love of God WHY?

We are quick to compliment others but never compliment ourselves. We are blown away by how great other moms are with their kids but never see how great we are doing. We show love and pride to our friends and family, but what about ourselves?

When was the last time you complimented yourself? Better yet when was the last time you went a day without criticizing or berating your looks, how you parent, your attitude, or your life? I’m sure for most of you the answer to both of those questions is a long time.

We have to stop living life this way, where we lift everyone else up while we tear ourselves down. The only thing this does is create a perfect storm for your life to start spiraling down. Not to go totally out there into Woo Hoo land but our words hold power and a lot of it. When you are constantly using negative language, it breeds a negative atmosphere.

Have you ever walked into a room and could feel the thick negative atmosphere hit you like a ton of bricks? It presses on you like a weighted blanket and the longer you’re around it, the longer it takes to shake it off. The same thing applies, but at a greater level, when that atmosphere is what you live in all day every day. It has to stop. This kind of atmosphere is not healthy to live in. You need and deserve more. So let’s change it.

LOVE YOURSELF MORE

Each time you start to say something negative about yourself stop yourself and change up the wording to make it positive.

I’m a horrible mom. ——- I’m a wonderful loving mom.

I’m fat. ——- I’m a beautiful and fierce woman.

I hate my life. ——- My life is full of love and joy.

My life is chaotic. ——- I am in control of my life and I’m at peace.

I’m constantly stressed. ——- I’m thriving and enjoying my life.

I wish I had more in life. ——- I’m content and happy with my life.

BEDTIME GREATFULNESS

Each night you lay your head on the pillow give yourself 5 compliments about yourself or your day.

1. Today I was a wonderfully attentive mom to my kids.
2. Today I was productive and organized.
3. I am gorgeous even without makeup.
4. I am an empowering and strong woman.
5. I am loved by so many people and have a wonderful life.

SELF CARE

I can’t stress how important self-care is when it comes to loving yourself and kicking the negative atmosphere to the curb. Taking time to put yourself first and disengaging from the chaos we call motherhood is crucial. If you don’t separate and let your brain and body reset then the constant nagging, tantrums, and butt wiping are just going to feed the negative atmosphere.

If you need to learn a little more about Self Care check out the post 5 Reasons Why You Should Make Self-Care A Priority.

If you need some ideas on Self Care activities check out the post 10 Simple & Free Self-Care Activities for Every Mom.

DEVOTIONAL

When you’re surrounded by negativity it’s like sitting in eternal darkness. The only way to get out of that is to start surrounding yourself with light.

Get a devotional and start reading it daily. You can check out my favorite devotional here. The Best Devotional for the Busy Mom & Her Kids

If a Devotional isn’t your thing, then you can start reading your favorite passage or book of the bible. Some of my favorites are Psalms, Romans, and all the Gospels.

Something simple to do is find inspirational bible verses and print them off and post them around our house or save them to your phone. That way when you’re feeling down you can either pull out your phone to read over them or see them throughout the day as little nuggets of encouragement.

As moms and women, we have to stop berating ourselves and putting ourselves last. We are too important for that. So, show yourself some love today and give yourself a compliment… or two.