Repost: How to feel beautiful every day

Today, I came across this lovely post by Marthe over at the Freedom Experience. I somehow feel the need to share it here.

What I would add? Sending lots of real, handwritten letters!! 

Happy weekend!

Love,

Svenja

10 Tips on How to Feel Beautiful Every Day

1. Morning magic

Make sure you wake up early enough to have a few minutes of luxurious self-care. It could be something as simple as doing your hair, painting your nails or take a hot shower with scented oils. Light a candle when you have your breakfast or put on your favourite song before you leave the house. Do something nice, just for yourself. Wear your best underwear, your favourite perfume or a special necklace or piece of jewellery.

2. Smile

This one is a classic, but one that really work. Smile, smile, smile – even if you don’t particularly feel like it. You will feel and look more beautiful instantly! Personally, I’m a bit shy, so I find it hard to smile to strangers sometimes. Kids, however, is a whole different matter. Make eye contact with a child and send them a loving smile. It’s the best feeling in the world!

3. Carry something sparkling

… and I don’t mean the drinkable kind. A little glitter and glam really goes a long way for feeling radiant and beautiful. I always carry a lip gloss, but I’m also in love with glittery nail polish, sparkly jewellery and pretty notebooks and glitter pens. Make sure you surround yourself with your favourite colours and textures – it will make you feel gooood.

4. Eat healthy and nutritious food

Eat the whole rainbow! I have this thing with colourful food and I swear I feel better when my plate at least contain something green, something yellow and something red. Orange food looks tasty, and purple food is just awesome! When you eat healthy food, you’ll feel more in touch with yourself and the world around you. You’ll get energy and power!

5. Work out

I feel that when I work out in the morning, I get a glow that is just out of this world! I get so many compliments on my work-out days because it makes me shine! You should try it sometime! ;)

6. Keep a gratitude journal and/or photobook

Look for the good stuff, the beauty, the love. I take instagrams mostly, when I want to lift my spirits. No matter where you are, there is always something around you that is beautiful, interesting or unique. The more positive you’ll feel – the more beautiful you’ll feel too.

7. Practice radical acceptance

You are the way you are. You look the way you look. You are human and you are unique. There is no one like you on this earth. You didn’t come here without a purpose. You are no accident, failure or coincidence. No matter how you feel about yourself, the way you look, who you are, who you want to be – there is a plan for you and you don’t have to change anything about yourself. All you have to do is accept and respect who you are. Trust yourself.

To emphasize this point, I will share a very personal example here. I have always been very tall for my age (I landed at 180 cm) and I always felt so different when growing up. It felt like my body was waaaay to big for my confidence and all I wanted to do was to disappear and so eating very little became my survival strategy. I absolutely hated being tall, different and clumsy (and to be honest I still feel this way sometimes). However, as of the last year or so I have come so much closer to accept who I am. I’m not religous, but I believe I was handed this challenge on earth for a reason. I’m starting to believe that I have been given all these challenges of mental illness so that I will be able to understand and help other people better. That’s radical acceptance in practice!

8. Write a love letter to yourself

… and never leave home without it. Make it into a poster and put it on your wall! Write yourself a love note with a whiteboard pen on your mirror! Send yourself love letters in the mail, take lots of self-portraits and buy yourself flowers. Make a list of what you consider a luxury and make sure you give it to yourself! You deserve it! (Or even better – you are entitled to it!)

9. Share your beautiful soul

You have so much to give! My friend Zubia just told me that in Islam, smiling is considered a charity. Isn’t that awesome? Give of yourself by smiling, sharing your wisdom, helping other people, be open about your struggles and problems, truly listen and let your love flow through your heart. Vulnerability is beautiful and there’s nothing more sacred that the true connection between human beings.

10. Think it to feel it

Thoughts create emotions and if you want to feel beautiful – guess what you have to do? Yup, you have to stop pushing yourself down and start thinking positively about yourself. That means you have to stop thinking “I’m not pretty/thin/elegant/stylish/beautiful/gorgeous enough” and replace it with “I’m already gorgeous/beautiful/stylish/elegant/healthy/pretty”. You think this about your girlfriends all the time, don’t you? Why not yourself? Why are you treating yourself so much worse than you treat the rest of the human population? This is hard work, but start slowly. Right now – write a support-thought on a piece of paper. Read it often to create a new thoughtway in your mind. See how it changes the way you feel about yourself. Here is my support-thought from the example above.

“I am just as tall as I should be. I am beautiful just the way I am”

What makes you beautiful? Please share your gorgeous self with us in the comments!