It took me a long time to learn this, but when I sat down to think about what I’ve learned in my 30 years on this planet, this was the first that came to mind.
We are repeatedly told by our culture that we are not enough – not thin enough, rich enough, beautiful enough, smart enough, funny enough, flawless enough, sophisticated enough, and so on. We are told we don’t do enough, we don’t achieve enough, we don’t help enough, have enough, etc. I could write so many many more examples.
But I realised something, which I noted in my journal:
It doesn’t matter how much I am overweight, how bad my skin is, how many dimples are on my thighs. It doesn’t matter that I’m ‘overly sensitive’ or ‘cry too easily’, that I’m terrible at geography, that I make mistakes, that I get irrationally angry at other drivers and am not doing enough to save the planet. I AM STILL ENOUGH.
You are too. Just as you are, right now. You don’t need to do more, change, improve, acquire more, shrink down or expand. You are enough as you are now.
Accepting yourself as you are now doesn’t mean you aren’t able to change. It doesn’t mean you must stay the way you are. But it means that you can see your inherent value right now, and any changes you do make will come from a place of love.
>>> Prompt:
I found it incredibly liberating to list all the things I tend to judge myself for and then write in bold letters, I AM STILL ENOUGH. Try this in your journal. In what ways do you sometimes thing you aren’t enough? Write them all out, then declare, I AM STILL ENOUGH!
If you realised you were enough, as you are, right now, how would your life be different? What would you do differently?
What are some things you could do each day, to show yourself that you love and accept yourself just as you are, right now?
Note: this post was originally part of a series of 30 life lessons and journal prompts for my 30th birthday. You can access the rest of the lessons and prompts here.
Hi Jen, thank you for this prompt on a Monday where I am having a lot of doubts and bad thoughts about myself. And simply just started a journal page…we’ll see where it ends…at least I have written down my thoughts…
I will stop by more often this month! – Irma
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Hi Irma, I’m glad you’ve found it helpful. Sometimes the things we need can find us when we need them most! Keep exploring your self doubts in your journal, I promise it will be worthwhile! X
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