50 affirmations to help you on your self-love journey (2024)

Self-love is a radical act of courage.

It is a celebration of your inherent worthiness in a world constantly building a case for what you’re lacking. When done in a healthy way, self-love isn't narcissistic or selfish. Instead it’s like coming home … to yourself — exactly as you are.

Self-love is important because it is the ability to treat yourself with kindness, compassion and grace, while setting and respecting your own healthy boundaries, according to Eboni Harris, MA, LPC, LMFT and co-founder of Melanin & Mental Health.

“Self-love encompasses the capacity to make choices that serve our highest well-being,” Eliza Boquin, MA, LMFT and the other half of the partnership that founded Melanin & Mental Health told TODAY.com. “It extends to nurturing our physical, mental and spiritual aspects.”

Boquin, who is also the founder of The Flow & Ease Healing Center, Inc. in Houston, says self-love requires honesty and intentionality. Thus, it takes effort, like soaking up edifying words or using positive affirmations, to keep you grounded along your journey.

“Healthy affirmations highlight a truth that is being presently displayed by a person, a truth that has been displayed in the past, or a truth that–once grasped by the individual–can come to bear positively on their lives,” Geremy Keeton, LMFT and senior director of the counseling services department of Focus on the Family, told TODAY.com.

“Affirmations, quick and meaningful statements, provide an excellent tool in the self-love journey since they don’t require a ton of time, money, or effort,” Megan Logan, LCSW, PA and author of “Be Kind to Yourself” adds. With our busy lives, self-love can feel like a luxury, right along with self-care, but affirmations are one way to make it a part of our everyday.

Our self-talk (so many “self” phrases here, we know!) is often rooted in messages from society, our families, past traumas and experiences. That said, this internal dialogue can have a powerful impact on how we feel about ourselves. The good news? “Affirmations help change this with more helpful thoughts and beliefs about ourselves,” Logan says.

Affirmations may feel awkward to say or think at first, but with repetition, a personalized focus and a neutral approach, they can create a new pathway in our brains for how we see ourselves and show up in the world.

Ready to retrain your subconscious and stop toxic thinking in its tracks? Here’s a list of self-love affirmations to help you live a healthier and happier life.

1. I am worthy of love, joy and belonging.
2. It’s OK to ask for what I need or want, even if I don’t get it.
3. I am worthy of love and kindness even when I struggle or mess up.
4. I am just as important as others.
5. My self-worth is not defined by what others think of me.
6. I am learning and growing all the time.
7. Taking care of myself allows me to be the best version of myself.
8. It’s OK to say “no.”
9. If someone is upset with me, I can handle it.
10. My mistakes, faults or shortcomings don’t have to define me or my future.
11. I matter. The fact that I exist means that I have significance.
12. Dignity and self-respect are mine to hold, simply because I am a human being.
13. Hope is real and available to me.
14. Mercy and grace are gifts I can both receive and give.
15. I can make choices that lead me to be a victor, and not a victim.
16. I can spread good in my sphere of influence.
17. Just because I make a mistake does not mean I am a failure.
18. My best doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s best.
19. It is OK to rest and take time for myself.
20. The needs of others are just as important as mine.
21. I can practice self-love without feeling guilty.
22. I can allow myself to have my feelings, even the uncomfortable ones.
23. It is OK to be a beginner.
24. I do not need to have all the answers. I’m not Google.
25. I get to decide what’s “good enough.”
26. I can do hard things.
27. I can harness calm even in a stressful situation.
28. My wholeness is worth the healing journey it takes.
29. I can change course when I’m going the wrong way.
30. It is okay to live in my current season of life with its unique limitations, liberties or loveliness.
31. I cannot control everything and that is OK.
32. My feelings are important because they are indicators of what matters to me and what has happened to me.
33. My thoughts are still valuable even if others disagree with me.
34. I am doing the best I can and that is enough for today.
35. My worth does not have to be earned.
36. I was born worthy.
37. I can observe without absorbing other people’s emotions.
38. I do not have to be sucked into the dysfunction of others.
39. I welcome peace, love, joy and abundance today.
40. I can be a good steward of my resources.
41. Their rejection or lack of kindness has nothing to do with my worth.
42. I forgive myself for the past and embrace the present with compassion.
43. I am worthy of self-care.
44. I honor my body and my mind.
45. I am deserving of rest and relaxation.
46. I release any negative self-talk and replace it with what is true, right and good.
47. I am grateful for my body and all that it does for me.
48. I am strong and resilient.
49. I am worthy of peace and calmness.
50. My story is still being written.