When you enter a spiritual program of recovery (ie sobriety, therapy, etc) it becomes increasingly easier to discern who hates themselves just by observing the way in which they interact with others, how they navigate conflict or how they speak. Recent statistics show that loneliness, depression and anxiety among the upcoming generation is at an all time and I can’t help but blame the unhealthy expectations society has surrounding relationships and what “self love” is.

Self love is more than physical acts of self care. Self love CAN be treating yourself to a pedicure, because it’s an act that feels good and is taking care of your body (in a way), but what about your mental and emotional health? Loving yourself entails so much more than spa days. It’s recognising your mental and emotional capacity to engage in certain things, it’s listening to your body and taking breaks when needed. It’s setting boundaries and asserting them if crossed. It’s giving yourself grace in moments you can’t remain grounded and understanding you’re a work in progress.

Social media has created the misconception that if you’re not spending stupendous amounts of money on physical acts of self care then it’s not self love, which is WRONG. Self love looks different for everyone but I know the general concept is to pour back into yourself.

For myself personally, self love is just that. Loving my mind, body, heart and soul. It’s keeping myself hydrated and getting 8hrs of rest every night. It’s walking away from anything that doesn’t have my best interest and being protective of my energy. It’s being kind to myself and others as I navigate life’s challenges. Acts of self care contribute to the love I have for myself, and they’re done through frugal means because I don’t feel the need to live outside my means.

A lot of this generation is obsessed with the idea of LOOKING rich in wealth when the REAL wealth is being mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually prosperous. By NO means is it easy to achieve when living in a materialistic world, but every day is a good day to start unlearning a lot of the misinformation we had instilled in us.

Everyone wants to experience a healthy relationship but refuse to do the work to achieve it. It’s challenging, it’s uncomfortable, and everything in between, but if you want better then you have to work toward becoming better. Resources are available and should be utilised if made accessible.

With me being a year almost 2 into therapy and support workshops, I’ve made notable exponential progress and I’m proud of myself for it. I understand everyone’s circumstances are differences and mine can’t account for theirs, but it’s about willpower and discipline. The support groups and other professional resources I’m receiving have helped make navigating tribulations easier, and developing better discernment, it’s protected me from universe knows what.

Being a knowledge-seeker and actively taking the time to unlearn a lot of the toxic things I was either taught, have done, or spewed puts me a step closer to being the version of myself I strive to become and I love it, but I hate how society continues to feed the upcoming generation bullshit that’s negatively impacting them.

i am 26yo, and ive been going through depression for almost 1 year, im blaming myself for anything bad is happening in my life, i couldnt achieve my goals yet and regret many things i did and didnt do, and i hate myself for this, i am mentally consumed, i cutt off my friends everyone and just isolated my self from the world, i want to do alot of things in my life but my inner self just keep telling me that its too late and i cant do this or anything! Instead i just stay at my room everyday not sleeping well or eating well not motivated to do anything, and tired, i been having delusions, and get panic attacks and anxiaty, whenever i think about my future i lost hope and meaning/purpose of life, i didnt seek help from anyone, i used to live alone, but when i graduated i moved back to my parents house, i thought that my family are the ones suppose to help me through anything, the only person i rely on and consider as my safe place is my mom, i dont have a good relation with my dad and i dont rely on him, but my mom is narcissist and kinda toxic, at my lowest i felt abandoned by her she made my mental health even worst since i moved in, i have a hateful sister that she always feel threatend by me for some reason, she always fake her attitude and her treatment so she can appear as the favorite daughter, and to do so she always have to bring me down and cause me problems with my parents and humiliate me infront of people and her friends, so they would hate me and love her more!! Cuz of my depression i became less tolerating and more violant, so she knows how to get on my nerves everytime she is home, and my parents alwyas on her side they just dont care about my mental health or what i am going through they always blame me for anything and i am always the bad person, i grew up in a toxic enviorenement where there is verbal violance and even physical, now i came to the degree that when i am furious i cant control myself what i say or do i just hurt myself to feel relieved and say mean things, iam scared that i would kill myself one day, i even left the house once, and my mom faint and went to hospital cuz she was scared i would do something harmful to myself then i came back home hoping that things will change no matter how much i communicate about everything with her she just keeps bring me down and as long as my sister in my life, she will always make my life miserable, i cant even focus on myself while living in a toxic house, and i cant live alone rn cuz iam currently unemployed, i love my family no matter how they are or how they treat me but iam so tired they ruining my life as it is already falling apart, idk what to do or where to start,i feel alone without any support, Pls praay for me to get my life on track, i really dont want to live the rest of life like this or do something i will regret!!

I know I’m depressed I’m younger than 16 but I know I am. I hate my life I hate my face I try to impress people but every time I enter school I cry. I cry and cry and cry it’s the only thing I do. People use me. Someone I know committed suicife yesterday I feel like crap I could have helped them. I feel like I’m a bad person and this world would be better if I was gone. I can’t leave my family can I? I also don’t want to go to hell as killing yoirself is a sin. But I don’t want to be here anymore? That’s why I want to die. My anxiety my stress is too much. I laugh all the time but no one knows what’s going on? I don’t really have friends people I know like me but I struggle to talk and find that I ruin peoples moods because I’m always angry or sad. I’m probably that girl people make fun of. Some guys in my school I’ve thought about wanting to hurt them so bad. The way they hurt me I want to destroy them. But no. I’m good to the one who is bad to me. Thank you for reading

My mother uses it to control me even more. I'm in my senior year of high school, and mom doesn’t want me to go to college.

She has changed so much since she became religious. it used to be sad before, after dad left us... Now it’s horrible. She cried a lot, now all she does is praying and fasting. Most nights she confiscates my phone and if she imagines that I’ve smoked or if i come home two minutes later, she cuts my internet too. I often have to finish my homework in the bathroom at school before classes. I never expected I would have a life like this when we moved here... I wish we could go somewhere else, to a larger city where there are more normal people. I have to sneak food into my room cause apparently religion is against snacks or something (I’m not allowed to eat at Mcdonalds cause unhealthy)... every day I’m shamed for eating too much, my own mother calls me fat and says no woman will like me like that. She forbids me to talk to father and reads all my messages on the phone. I had to hide a Christmas present he sent me, but she suspected and grounded me for a week. My friends at school think I’m a crank cause I never go to parties with them, and I haven’t watched half of the movies they talk about. Mom bans me from watching “gory” things. I feel like being sheltered from life! it’s insane, my friend said my mom is being brainwashed... She calls me a sinner whenever I try to argue with her. I want to go to a normal college, not a religious one. How does one stay strong through this?