Self-love is something super important yet also super hard to achieve, especially as black girls, since we feel and carry so much weight on our shoulders, whether it’s our own expectations, parents’ expectations, views of strangers, or opinions of family members. There is always something weighing on us.
Journaling can be an amazing outlet to express our feelings, reflect on who we are and who we want to become and gives us a place to grow.
This blog is a safe space for all black women, a space to celebrate who we are as individuals and as a collective. These 7 journaling prompts are designed to help you embrace who you are.
What does self-love mean to me?
A very simple question, yet I believe it to be the most important. It forces you to look inwards at what you need to do for yourself to feel loved. So we start by defining what it looks like in your day-to-day life, however specific it may be, just jot down the first things that come to mind.
Five things I love about being a black girl
Reflect on yourself from within, without the expectations, without the criticism from others, without the self-doubt, just what you love about being a black girl. What are our unique strengths you love? What is it you love about our community, our hair, our music, our lifestyle and many more? Celebrate yourself!
How do I practice self-love?
Using what you discovered in prompt number 1, how will you put that into practice? It could be a night out with friends, a slow evening inside, doing your skincare, it’s whatever makes you feel loved. List them, make it seem possible to achieve.
What negative beliefs about myself do I want to release?
It’s time to look deeper within figure out what thoughts you hold about yourself that are negative, why do you have them, and whether they are holding you back. Where do they stem from, and do they take place in your life?
How will I become more positive?
Turn those negative feelings into positive thoughts. Start small with one thing you can change to stop you feeling this way. Look for things you can celebrate to drown out the negative, and eventually it will become meaningless and not have a hold on you
Where do I feel most like myself?
Finding spaces and people that make you feel comfortable and bring down the guard that you have up to feel like yourself is super important. Once you have these spaces and a community, you will feel at ease and peaceful knowing you have the support system to help you through your self-love journey.
What is one way I can show up for myself this week?
Using what you’ve discovered about yourself, start small and write one way you can show up for yourself. Going through these questions can really be overwhelming, with nowhere to start. So step back and start small.
Self-love isn’t about perfection its about learning and constantly changing. We are always growing as people, so journaling keeps track of that growth. The first time you journal is like sewing a seed; once it’s planted, it can only grow with time and patience, so have that with yourself and revisit these prompts when you feel change happening.
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