Valentine's Day is fast approaching - a day where we celebrate all types of love. While most of us use this holiday to focus on love while in a relationship, there is one type of love we recommend to invest a little more time into: self-love. Taking care of your body and soul is a highly recommended, often neglected form of self-love. Remembering that each and every person is beautiful, unique and worthy of respect can help you improve your relationship with yourself, and encourage you to partake in healthy habits that benefit your wellness all year-round!

What is self-love?

Self love is love for who you are. It is about respecting your own qualities and abilities, strengths and weaknesses, and choosing to appreciate yourself regardless of mistakes you may make. The term “self-love” can sometimes be a way for people to excuse or enable unhealthy behavior, like eating sugary snacks or fast food on the regular. Of course treating yourself is important, but it should be just that- a treat!

True self-love comes from knowing and understanding that you have value as a person, that your body is just as important as your mind, and that you have the power to choose healthful habits, including giving up some instant gratifications for long term gains. Self-love is recognizing that your mental and physical health both contribute to your wellness and that it’s important to take care of both. We may be biased, but we also believe that self-love is finally about taking care of yourself with regular adjustments and exercise to make sure your body is always working in tip top shape!

How to love yourself

There are so many ways that you can work on and show your body and soul some love. Giving yourself time to meditate and feel your emotions is one way to allow yourself to remember you are loved. Even if you’re not a religious person or don’t enjoy meditation or being still, being able to sit in silence with your accomplishments and consider all of the good things about yourself can be a vital and inspiring act. There are many advantages of journaling, and writing down and out how you feel, your ideas and dreams and plans can help you inspire creativity, encourage your self confidence and boost your mental health and critical thinking skills.

An alternative way to practice self-love

You could easily google “self love” and come up with a million and one different articles, but somehow they all come up with the same four recommendations: Be kind to yourself, don’t compare yourself to others, have positive affirmations, and cultivate gratitude. We wanted to give out an idea that might not be so common, but can help “align” yourself on your journey towards self-love!

Align your body - and your soul

Meditation and reflection are often used and recommended to align your soul. But how can you become aligned spiritually, when your body is not aligned physically? That is why we always recommend getting a chiropractic adjustment.to show yourself some love.

Surprisingly about 60 - 80% of the population will experience back and neck pain in some way, shape, or form. Trying to show yourself some love is not easy when your body is in physical pain! Your spine is a part of your core, it holds up your body and houses all of the nerves that run through all of your limbs. Your neck supports your head and brain, so of course, when you are experiencing pain or a pinched nerve, it could very well all be because your spine and neck are out of alignment! It's been reported that a misaligned spine can lead to a number of different issues, including poor posture, decreased mobility, respiratory problems, and a reduced range of motion. Allowing yourself to continue with poor posture or head and neck pain is certainly not a way to maintain a loving relationship with yourself.

Self-Love Journey

Loving yourself is a journey, just like wellness. Taking care of your soul and mental health is only one half of the equation to living a life full of self love, gratitude and healthiness. Taking the extra step to show your body and spine some love this Valentine’s Day is a great way to help relieve your pain and align your body on the right track to self-love. When you are ready to take that step and seek care or a chiropractic adjustment, the caring and amazing team here at BC + PT is ready to help you! Give us a call or fill out a form to schedule today!