 If there's one thing I'm willing to bet on, it's myself. Beyonce. As we've been told time and time again, having the most fulfilling life starts with yourself. Loving yourself means getting to the place where you'll bet on yourself every single day. What is it truly important to love oneself? Can't you live your life without all the touchy-feely fuzzy self-love stuff? According to a study written by psychology professor Dr. Hans Krishnar and colleagues, loving oneself turns off the threat response and places the body in a feeling of safety and relaxation, which is necessary for regeneration and healing. Research conducted Dr. Kristin Neff and colleagues also showed that people who love themselves experience fewer depressive symptoms. Wondering what signs indicate that you love yourself? Let's delve into some of those signs together. Be gentle. How can you be so dumb? You're such a loser. When was the last time you said those words to a friend or even to a stranger for that matter? According to psychology researcher Dr. Kristin Neff, kindness is something we naturally give to those we care for. When you love yourself, instead of verbally abusing yourself when you screw up, you take on the role of a compassionate friend. You extend the same kindness to yourself that you extend to others. You give yourself compliments and pat yourself on the back. Those negative thoughts in your mind will be replaced with positive affirmations. You believe you are brilliant and you're not a loser. Approval. Psychotherapist Eileen S. Cohen explains that when you love yourself, you'll no longer feel the need to seek approval from others. Your self-awareness increases. You notice what makes you happy and you begin to care less about what people think of you. Instead of living up to other people's expectations, you take ownership of your life and create your own path based on your own values, morals and needs. You realize that no one knows better than you know yourself. Other people's opinions of you won't always reflect the whole picture and that's okay. So if anybody builds a picture of you based on superficial things, it's up to them to change their minds, not you. Emotions. According to psychotherapist John Amadeo, self-loving people are gentle towards the emotions that develop inside them. When you love yourself, you understand that it's natural to feel sad, upset and scared sometimes. Instead of seeing emotions as a sign of weakness, you view it as a symbol of strength. Getting in touch with your emotions allows them to become friendly allies rather than enemies of your life journey. You might begin to discover the messages your emotions are trying to convey as you approach your emotions with self-awareness and curiosity. Love yourself. Love isn't always a feeling, it's a verb. To love someone is an active experience. It is to do and to become. Researcher Chicky Davis emphasizes that loving yourself means taking action. The situation is exactly the same as if you were in a relationship with your significant other. You may not believe them if they don't show you love. Therefore, loving yourself means you demonstrate to yourself that you love you. You can do this by treating yourself to your favorite meal, spending time doing your hobbies or standing up for yourself against bullies. Basically, any actions that make you feel good about yourself. Gratitude. How often have you heard someone say, you should be grateful for, and then mention a job, a significant other, or belongings? Sure, having specific possessions and supportive people in your life is wonderful. But according to researcher Chicky Davis, when you turn your gratitude inward, that's when you have a more loving relationship with yourself. There are numerous things about yourself to be grateful for, including your appearance, your personal attributes, your strengths, your preferences, your skills and talents, psychology researchers, Matt Baldwin and Samantha Zaw conducted a research where they divided the participants into three groups. The first group wrote brief gratitude letters to someone else. The second, to themselves. And the third, a control group where they wrote about a positive experience that they'd gone through. Based on a preliminary analysis, the self-focused gratitude group experienced more sense of redemption and felt that they were morally good people. Forgiveness. Forgiveness is simply about understanding that every one of us is both inherently good and inherently flawed. Desmond Tutu. Have you ever realized that you made a huge mistake and the next thing you know, you're greeted with painful negative emotions like shame and guilt? When you love yourself, you realize that you're just human. There will be times you say things you didn't mean to say, make bad judgment and do things that fall short of your moral standards. Psychology researchers Lydia Wood yet and colleagues explained that self-forgiveness rids the self of negative emotions and cultivates self-compassion, love and kindness towards the self. It's important that you forgive yourself to move on, learn from your mistakes and lead a more fulfilling life. Sometimes loving yourself does not occur immediately. It's a journey. Nevertheless, it is something worth fighting for and it begins with becoming mindful of your relationship with yourself. Can you relate to any of the signs? Let us know in the comment section below and remember, you matter. Until next time.