Beauty From Within: What’s missing from your Daily Routine?
The journey of self -love is one with no clear beginning or end, but we all embark on it at some point in our lives. I’ve found that it can be a daily struggle to keep negative thoughts at bay, especially when listing all the things we dislike about ourselves comes a lot easier than acknowledging the things we do like. This shouldn’t be the case however. If small self-loathing thoughts go unchecked, they slowly build up into a much larger, unhealthy view about one’s self.
As Black women, we’re fighting off daily opposition from every direction from our skin to our gender, or the fact that we dare to have a voice in the issues that impact us 1.The last place we’d expect opposition to come from is from ourselves, and yet ironically, that happens to be the most brutal opponent of them all and the hardest one to fight off.
Now you’re probably wondering, once you’ve identified the problem, what should my next steps be? Well, the first is being conscious of the things you say or think about yourself and internalize. Even small things we say to ourselves that may seem harmless can have a big effect of our self-image. Something like “Oh I can’t wear red lipstick because my skin is too dark” SAYS WHO SIS?!? You better wear that Fenty red lip like your life depended on it! Matter of fact, let’s just make step 2 throwing out the word ‘can’t’, because Beyoncé didn’t become the first Black woman to headline Coachella… I mean BEYCHELLA , by using that word.
Okay now onto step three: apply a generous amount of daily affirmations to your regular routine. Then rinse and repeat. What are daily affirmations, you may ask? They are simple positive statements/mantras declaring specific goals in their completed states. For example, ‘I know I can accomplish anything I set my mind to’ or ‘ I commit to learning new things’ can be affirmations you repeat to yourself.
Now I know this practice may be foreign to some people, so I’m here to ease the process by giving you a few ways you can incorporate these affirmations into your life. If you’re an app person, you could download a daily affirmation app. One that comes highly recommended is Unique Daily Affirmations, which generates uplifting statements and quotes that you can repeat out loud while standing in front of a mirror. Research has shown that the more stimuli your mind receives, the better it is at retaining information, so by repeating these affirmations out loud in front of the mirror you stimulate your sight and hearing to receive these affirmations. On the other hand, if you’re one of those people that spends most of their time on one particular app- yes I’m talking about the gram- then here are some Instagram accounts that you can follow to help flood your timeline with some positive reminders throughout the day @alex_elle @thebehappyproject @lisaoliveratheraphy.
“The most important thing about embarking on this self-love journey is that you start. Even if it’s just one sticky note on the edge of your mirror, you have to start somewhere in order to see growth”
Lastly, and my personal favourite way to practice daily affirmations is bombarding yourself with visual stimuli. Visual affirmations can literally take form in anything from a poster to a coffee mug or even a notebook. Some examples of visual affirmations I keep around are my laptop screensaver which says “Dear Queen, your story isn’t over yet,” a painting on my wall which says “ The road may be long but the journey is worth it” and a little pink sticky note on my mirror which reads “Hey there Beautiful!”. These visual affirmations that you interact with subconsciously can also have an indirect effect in reshaping and refining a positive mindset.
All that being said, the most important thing about embarking on this self-love journey is that you start. Even if it’s just one sticky note on the edge of your mirror, you have to start somewhere in order to see growth. If you find yourself still unconvinced as to why you should add daily affirmations to your regular routine, let me ask you this. Would you give it a second thought taking a shower, or brushing your teeth? Similar to taking care of the outside of our bodies, it is important that we take time to care for the inside too.
1. Bero, T. (2018, November 02). "Growing Up, I'd Hear 'Depression Is For White People'". Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://www.chatelaine.com/health/wellness/black-canadian-women-on-self-care-and-tackling-mental-health-taboos/