Nowadays we keep hearing this word called “selflove”, that we all should practice selflove but what exactly is selflove? Is it just some fancy word used by millennials or does it hold a much deeper meaning? Let’s figure it out as we go ahead but first let’s understand the meaning of selflove. Well, the first step towards selflove is self-acceptance, rather than sitting and judging yourself, criticising yourself, when you start accepting yourself as you are that’s when you create a room for unconditional love. When you start removing the conditions from yourself that “if I lose those 3kgs then I will like myself more, “if I get an A+ then I will be proud of myself”, and the list of if’s goes on and on and creates conditions for yourself to love yourself unconditionally. Think it this way, will you ever say anything bad to your loved one about their appearance? No right? Will you ever judge your loved one for making a mistake or will you try to understand them and comfort them? I think you will choose the latter one. So, why do you keep putting conditions while loving yourself? Embrace the things you can’t change about yourself and change the things you can. On days when you feel low about yourself, hug yourself a little tighter and remind yourself how worthy of being loved you are without any conditions. Another thing that studies have shown is due to constant comparison about looks, followers and likes on social media, a certain lifestyle, number of friends, etc people fall into depression and anxiety because they constantly feel that they are not good enough or they are not doing good enough and in this race of comparison they forget that they are one in a million. Well, you can compare a Rose with another Rose but how can you compare a Rose with a Sunflower or a Sunflower with a Lilly? Although they all are flowers, similarly we all are humans yet we all are unique, with unique skin tones, eyes, hair, body types, skills, and talents. No matter what a person looks like or what position they are in, they all have flaws, they just know how to accept their flaws and flaunt their strengths. So, I want to encourage you to stop comparing yourself, your followers, likes, lifestyle, grades, popularity, talents, or friends with others. Always remember that where you focus is where your energy flows, so focus on yourself and your growth. You are unique and that’s your superpower so don’t compare a rose with a sunflower because both are beautiful and special in their own ways.

By Srushti Pednekar