Being good to yourself ideas

[Outcast]

I've read a book on being good to yourself once. I was thinking maybe you guys have some more ideas on how to practice it. If any of you do, please share them here. Thanks.

[Sweet Pea]

Jun 13, 2008 23:48:20 GMT -5 Outcast said:

I've read a book on being good to yourself once. I was thinking maybe you guys have some more ideas on how to practice it. If any of you do, please share them here. Thanks.

the first thing that comes to mind is treating yourself the way you would treat a friend. say nice things to yourself as you would a friend, be encouraging and supportive to yourself as you would be to a friend.

[gaia]

I agree with Pea.
Treat yourself as though you are another person.
That principle is what helped me get over my self-harming (I was doing it for 5 years). I mean I would never dream of hurting another person the way I used to hurt myself. And if I did treat another person that way, i'd expect some serious consequences. So why was I treating myself like that? It was madness.

I'm sorry to get a bit serious, but treating yourself as though you would a friend is a very good thing to go by. I owe a lot to it.

[strawberrysweetie]

hmm....well, I recently read something about imagining your 5-year-old self and the way you would treat that child.

Sounds kind of weird....hope you get what I'm saying, lol.

I put up a picture of my younger self on the fridge to remind myself of that. I find my eyes seem to completely avoid that spot on the fridge, though. I guess a part of me is resisting using that method.


*sorry, I'm really not the person to give advice on this.

[bleaknunhappy]

I got some ideas actually I'm in the process of acting them out right now. What I am doing is cooking up some ribs for dinner, watching a movie and smoking a spliff...

[nigella]

Or sitting and chilling out on a nice warm day in the garden finishing with a barbecue for the evening and a few beers.

[bleaknunhappy]

May 7, 2009 5:30:23 GMT -5 @nigella said:

Or sitting and chilling out on a nice warm day in the garden finishing with a barbecue for the evening and a few beers.

true say

[collegeshy]

Read/watch something that makes you laugh.

[peekaboo]

I dont know Im still working on this one

[timarends]

Don't smoke. My uncle died this year and now my next-door neighbor is on oxygen. Both smoked.

Don't do drugs (the illegal kind, I mean)

Don't overindulge and alcohol. A lot of shy people think that alcohol is going to magically make them outgoing. It rarely works.

Don't put yourself down. A lot of shy people tend to say things to themselves on a daily basis that they would never say to someone else. (This is some of the hardest advice to follow)

Always pursue your goals. Dr. Maxwell Maltz in Psycho Cybernetics said that we are goal seeking mechanisms, kind of like a guided missile, and we are happiest when we are actively pursuing our goals, whatever they may be.

Read books by Dr. David B. Burns and Dr. Albert Ellis. They both deal with how to stop putting yourself down.

[emptybutstrong]

Great recommendations timarends, now I have to check out those books too.

[gals]

I treat myself to a pampering at the spa, or try eating in a newly opened restaurant with close friends as a reward after a hard day's work. Feels good right after.

[therockobama]

I always have a tendency to mutter and think to myself. Normally this involves me castigating myself and work situations and maybe being biased and not seeing the other point of view. IMO, fundamentally, I can't see myself praising myself. But when I see it from the point of view of imagining me giving advice to a friend then that could work. I'll give it a shot!

[gals]

Yep, we should be good to ourselves coz at the end of the day, we always have ourselves. Try positive reinforcement like saying good things about yourself, staring at the mirror, and saying, I look lovely today!

Affirmations really help. Or treat yourself at some pampering and relaxation like a makeover or a spa session. eat to your heart's delight, wacth fave movie, etc

[1229]

I'm always treating myself to something. Why not? Because as gals said:

at the end of the day, we always have ourselves