101 Self-Love Affirmations To Help You Feel Your Best + Tips On How To Use Them

Whether you're dealing with low self-esteem, need a confidence boost, or simply want to give yourself a pep talk, affirmations for self-love are a powerful tool for tapping into your subconscious and rewiring your thoughts.

And since you can choose any affirmation(s) you want, they're a great option for everyone—even kids!

Affirmations are positive phrases that are meant to inspire, uplift, and bolster feelings of self-love within. Research has shown positive affirmations help people cope with difficult emotions1 and can be particularly helpful if you deal with insecurities and self-criticism, according to therapist Megan Bruneau, M.A.

As Bruneau tells mindbodygreen, when self-love affirmations are done correctly, "they can help reprogram the subconscious mind, where we house our unhelpful core beliefs—such as, 'I'm unlovable,' or, 'When people see the real me, they'll abandon me.'"

It is worth noting, however, that affirmations need to be paired with action in order to experience the most benefit.

As psychiatrist Anna Yusim, M.D., explains, affirmations operate primarily at the conscious level of the mind, whereas many of our deeper issues with ourselves are within our subconscious mind.

"[Affirmations] work even better when accompanied by some honest internal reflection and some deeper internal work that gets to the subconscious or unconscious level," she says, adding that it's also important to "take concrete steps to create the changes you're affirming."

Ultimately, think of self-love affirmations like training your brain to come back to positive thoughts instead of the same old negative mental loops. As you build the habit, it will get easier, and you'll truly believe what you're affirming. As your belief in yourself grows, so, too, will your self-love.

There's something about writing affirmations down that makes them feel that much more tangible, hence why Bruneau and licensed marriage and family therapist Tiana Leeds, M.A., LMFT, both recommend doing so. Leeds also advises making your affirmations your own by writing them in your own words.

Bruneau and Leeds both stress the importance of actually believing the affirmations you use, which might mean starting off with softer affirmations that you can really get behind. Otherwise, Bruneau explains, the affirmations will just feel inauthentic and frustrating.

"For example," Leeds says, "if you're working on no longer being a workaholic but the affirmation I am worthy of rest doesn't yet feel true, start with, It's OK to take a break when I'm feeling depleted, and work your way up." Or for another example, Bruneau adds, if you're struggling to love your body, try I accept my body.

Go ahead and open up your phone's voice memo app, Leed suggests. Not only is speaking affirmations powerful in itself, but listening to them back makes them even more powerful. "We are highly influenced by our own voice and can choose whether to use it for self-criticism or self-affirmation," Leeds says.

And last but not least, get into the habit of using affirmations by incorporating them into your day in various ways. Bruneau recommends writing them down and placing them in places you'll see them often, as well as practicing them when you're doing something embodied like yoga, walking, bathing, etc.

Reciting affirmations can be a powerful and helpful tool on your self-love journey, but it's not necessarily a cure-all—so it's important to have some other resources and healthy coping mechanisms if you're not getting the results you'd hoped for.

Working with a therapist or other mental health professional, for instance, is almost never a bad idea. With the help of a professional, you can not only learn more healthy coping mechanisms but even get to the root of what's holding you back from loving yourself in the first place.

And when you're struggling to look at yourself with compassion, that's when our most trusted relationships come in. Friends, family, romantic partners, and even colleagues can help remind us how great we are when we can't see it for ourselves. Don't be afraid to lean on your support system!

Lastly, this widely circulated Tumblr post might resonate with you if you've always struggled with the idea of loving yourself. To paraphrase, it essentially says that rather than trying to love yourself, try loving being yourself.