The long-awaited season of love has arrived. Many relationships — whether they are platonic or romantic — have made many center their lives around one idea of love. The way society pushes people to constantly care and love others has put a blockage on one of the most necessary loves of all…the love of one’s self.
Recently, the exposure of self-love on social media platforms has been not only deemed courageous but inspiring by those who are on the same journey. The self-love revolution that is being experienced by both the younger and older generations has allowed people to reevaluate how they view themselves.
Chloe Bailey, actress and member of musical duo Chloe x Halle, is currently one of the pioneers in finding love within one’s self and has discussed her sentiments on the struggle that this has placed on her life. In one of her recent Instagram Live videos, Bailey went into depth about how she views herself and how she channels loving herself.
“There’s been so many times when I felt I wasn’t pretty enough, where I have a lot of issues with my weight, so it’s really a pivotal time for me,” Bailey said. “It’s taken a lot for me to show the world for who I really am inside… I’ve been really insecure for a long time, and I’m finally at that place where I have self-confidence. I’m just now learning at like 22, almost 23, that it’s okay to be all that you are and to stand in that power.”
Some college students have discovered this same revelation within themselves and learned how lifelong societal pressures have shaped their self image.
Sherlanda Telusmond, a biology pre-medicine student, expressed how her view of body image has changed over time and how she has learned to accept the skin she’s in.
“I had to come to the terms that I have amazing features and although my body may not be on trend right now, it does not take away from my beauty,” Telusmond said. “As long as my beauty was validated in my eyes, that’s all that matters. ‘Cause at the end of the day, beauty is ultimately a popularized opinion and my opinion should matter above all others.”
A lesson that many are taking away from the journey of self-love is simply learning to love themselves from within. Being able to find what makes one ultimately happy is a necessity in navigating loving yourself.
Donovan Staples, 21, dug deep on what prohibited him from loving himself in totality and what has allowed him to reach his true potential.
“When I was a kid I couldn’t really express myself artistically and I had to be a manly man,” Staples said. “Now that I’m older, I can be artistic as I want and still be seen as a “manly man”. I think that’s what made me love myself more.”
The process of self-love can be a rough and transparent expedition into breaking down the walls that have been placed by society or even the trials of life. Several students, as well as people all across the world, have been unlearning and relearning how to properly care about themselves. The good, the bad, and the ugly are all parts of every single being and the only thing left to do is to accept and love them.