Sunny Side Up: We need to be kinder to ourselves

Learning to love all the parts of ourselves is the key to stopping negative self-judgement. — 123rf.com

One of the more enduring messages over 2020 has been the need to be kinder to ourselves and invest more time in self-care. But why do we need to be told to do this, to have to be convinced of the benefits – why can being kind to ourselves be so difficult?

From a young age, we’re conditioned by messages that are intended to help us but instead damage our self-image and sense of worth. A young boy who cries might be told, “Toughen up! Do you want people to think you’re a girl?” A girl might be compelled to change how she looks, or else people will think she’s “ugly”. Any child who appears different to others is likely to be neglected in several ways.