Hello you, Self care

The Embodiment of Self Love

Hello you,

My name is Amanda Garrett and I have been on the self love and personal development journey for 14 years. I am constantly expanding my awareness and growing.

Here you will find tips, habits, rituals and all things about the self to truly embody and embrace love for you so you can be the light you're meant to be.

I hope this serves you.

With love,

Amanda

Xo

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Hello you, self care

All the love in your life begins with you

Hello you, 

Welcome to this wonderful community full of love and light. Did you know that loving yourself completely can change your entire life? Loving you right here right now in this moment "flaws" and all, can shift your perspective of how you look at yourself at any time. We are the "mean girl" and the biggest critics in our heads. The first time you allowed yourself to speak poorly about you, caused a rippled effect and then looking for the evidence outside of you, well that's when the comparison started. On and on it goes for years until you find a person, a group, a community that changes your life and allows you to see how wonderful you really are. You deserve your own love more than anyone else and if that activates you in any way, my friend you're in the right place. 

So let's get started! Here you will find tips and rituals, habits and ways to embody self love. Follow along, take what serves you and leave the rest. 

You will be able to say "Hello, you!" in the mirror every day when you decide to love yourself first.

I hope this serves you.

With love, 

Amanda 

Xo

Hello you, self care

I AM ENOUGH

When I was 6 years old I decided no one liked me. What a thing to think and make as a life statement so young, but it's true. I wasn't invited to a girls birthday party, being one of the only kids not invited. I was so upset, I lied. Yep, I was 6 so what do you do. I told my very best friend that I lost my invitation and needed the address and time. She gave it to me, I wrote it down and went home and told my mom I needed to get a gift for a girl in my class. 

We bought a dress and some pretty sweet lip smackers, I was actually so excited! But, we got there, and I was looked at like a fool. By the kids and her mother. I didn't get to go to the party and I never told my Mom what I did to get there. I was 6 years old and I decided no one liked me and I wasn't good enough. 

This thought led through my whole life, I can see how it followed me in every relationship, family, friend and romantic. So many situations kept confirming that I was not enough and I was constantly comparing myself. Then, body image began to be a big part of the "I'm not good enough" mind. I started to diet at a young age and wanted to be skinny like my friends. I gained a lot of weight or "baby chub" when I was 11 and was made fun of for it. I didn't always eat the best, there was a convenience store right down the street. So yeah I ate a lot of junk, that didn't help. I was made fun of one too many times and decided to stop eating and start working out ALL the time, after a boy, with a chocolate bar in hand said, "I know you want this Amanda." 

I was 12 when I became anorexic and 14 when I thought I'd give bulimia a try (that didn't last long, thank goodness). But 4 years later I still wasn't eating much, before high school. I was 100 pounds, skin and bones. I never felt more less, and not enough. In high school I had several wonderful people in my life who helped me eat and gave me some hope. BUT, I wasn't happy and it showed in so many ways. Becoming an over eater I gained weight and felt lost once again. I compared myself to everyone who I thought was prettier, thinner and well, better than me. I wasn't enough for anyone, especially not myself. 

I tried so hard in every single relationship, friend, family and romantic to be the one person they would love, and be there for. Except I didn't try with my own, the relationship with me. Self love is such an important relationship to have. When you have a strong sense of self worth and love for yourself, things begin to shift. Friends who were your "Besties", fall away and men who you thought loved you, do too. Relationships that no longer serve you basically disappear.

And what are you left with?  YOU. To love and be kind to, to be your best friend, the light that lifts you up and the heart that holds you close no matter what. Because, well, you are enough. You begin to see that the relationships you now have are the ideal relationships for you. They love and cherish you as you now do yourself. Taking care of yourself, mind, body and soul, is the most wonderful, generous thing you can do in your WHOLE life. 

Self love should be taught to our children and every person on the planet, period. Give yourself the opportunity to shift, love YOU more than anything else, and every one you love will feel it!

This shoot was to show that you can get to happy after an eating disorder. I recovered from Anorexia, I am a recovering over eater and very proud. I no longer put myself down because of my body and if do I say "No no get out of here mean girl, you're beautiful", or the decision that little 6 year old girl made so many years ago. I love her and ME every day. It's not always easy, but like in any relationship if it's worth the fight, then FIGHT. I am enough for me and I know I am enough for everyone else too. 

Thank you so much to Michelle Liane for being apart of the beginning of something wonderful. 

Self love is all you need to be happy.    

You are beautiful just the way you are..

I hope this serves you.

With love,

Amanda

Xo

Hello you, self care

SELF TALK

Hello you,

DO any of these sound familiar? 

I always screw things up.

Who am I do this?

I am stupid.

I am ugly.

I hate my thighs.

I am not enough.

I am useless.

I am so fat.

I hate my hair.

I'm not good at anything.

I can never win.

My nose is huge.

No don't take my picture, I look awful.

I've been having a lot of conversations with people in my life about negative self talk. I hear it all the time, and hey I'm totally guilty of it in some cases too. I work on this every day. Some days are harder than others. WE talk so poorly about ourselves at times, we do not realize how much it hurts.

I asked a friend who said she hated her legs, how she would feel if someone walked up to her and said that. HER face said it all, pretty friggen horrible! So why do we say these things to ourselves? They become unconscious after a while. Even with all the work I have done I still have that, I am not enough thought show up. Depending on the situation I can either easily shift and choose that I am enough or I get stuck. Creating problems that may not even exist. 

When this happens changing your words towards yourself is incredibly important. If I look in the mirror and say "ugh I've gained so much weight." I now say towards my body, "Thank you for the ability to choose my health." At first it is really hard,but know that eventually it gets easier. When you show up for yourself and witness your thoughts, your life will change. HOW you treat yourself and others will get better and even how they treat you will change.

Mantras are very useful especially with negative self talk. Any time I'm fearful (anxious, panicking, frustrated etc), finding words that feel good like, "I choose to feel better now", "I choose peace over this" or just simply "I love you/Thank you" as well as "I am safe" or "This is only temporary". Repeat the words that help you feel a little better over and over, until you know you're shifting. Breath. Step back. And really feel what's going on, this is all part of the self-love process.

If you're willing to heal, grow and learn, you will be able to continue to move forward in the best possible way. Yes, there will be great resistance at times but, just remember you're human, you are a magnificent being with extraordinary potential. Big Love my friends.

I hope this serves you.

With love,

Amanda

Xo

Hello you, self care

RESISTANCE

Hello you,

Have you ever found yourself avoiding something, a conversation, a decision or a feeling? Resistance is definitely part of being a human, but when do you finally let it go? Did you know that when you do, it can feel like a huge weight is lifted? Like all of a sudden you can see clearly now. Any time I release resistance to something, that song 'I can see clearly now', pops into my head. Honestly, because once I released a relationship that was holding me back, while I was driving to work I finally said okay I'm done. The song came on the radio and a truck drove past that said FINALLY.. serious the universe is amazing at providing guidance and signs we just have to let it flow.

When we're stuck, we put up a wall that block our connected-ness. This may sound heady or woo-woo to some but when you believe in a power greater than yourself and you allow it to come in, to take the burden, something incredible happens. You experience a miracle. Miracles don't have to be these massive changes, it can just be a small shift that gets you from feeling stuck to feeling clear.

Lately, I have been resisting my own stuff a lot, something that has followed me for so long. Relationships for me have been very hard at times. My ego trips a lot, and I find it hard to breath at times. I have lived in the projections my mind created about relationships(family, friend or romantic), and I believe them. "I'm not enough", "I'm going to be left all alone", "Who am I to be happy?", "What's wrong with me?" etc, etc. Then the blame shows up, something doesn't happen, they don't call or text me and I get upset and all of the above happens. Disappointment can be a dark place if you let it, and you get mad at the other person, projecting your shit onto them.

SO I believe that every person in your life is like an "assignment", for us to learn, grow, and heal. It will keep showing up, in different relationships or circumstances until it is healed. When I take a step back and say, "how can I grow here?", it allows my inner guide to take the lead a little bit. A mantra or prayer like, "Thank you, inner guide(god, universe, spirit, source etc), for helping me see this with love". Then a meditation to get still and allow any guidance to come in. Just by doing this, I feel light and more grounded. CHOOSING not to stay in my mind and rather let the fear sit in the back seat, no driving allowed, it can't even touch the radio. This allows me to react in a calm way instead of allowing my frustration to take control of any conversation. I am able to shift, even a little bit out of what I had been resisting, and oh what a feeling. When the anxiety drops, there's just relief.

This then leads me to books like Gabby Bernsteins 'Spirit Junkie' or listening to something from Abraham Hicks. Whatever I need I am guided to and you will be guided to also. BUT you have to be willing to see things differently, to ask and sit in patience for what you really are needing. The universe has your back, you just have to allow yourself to lean on it.

I hope this serves you.

With love,

Amanda

Xo

Hello you, self care

WORTHY

When was the last time you thought "I am worthy"? For far too long I didn't believe, like literally until last week, that I was worthy of my really BIG seeming dreams. What the heck is up with that? Oh right, we've been conditioned to be and feel limited by our reality. When in fact when we start truly being with who we are, life shifts dramatically and so do those around us.

For years I believed that having fat on my body made me less than, which sounds pretty silly when I say it out loud now. I struggled with body-image issues for a long time. For years, I suffered from never feeling happy in the clothes I was wearing — literally feeling uncomfortable in my own skin. Everything changed on the day I picked up my scissors, cut into some fabric, and sewed my first dress. I took the pattern and adjusted it to my measurements. There was a moment, just before I tried it on, when I felt hesitant, worried my work would let me down. But the moment I pulled that dress on, well, it was magic. It fit me perfectly and, as a result, for the first time in my life, I felt fabulous!

I am not my body, I am so much more than that, strong, beautiful, a brilliant designer, loving, kind. Now I know this, now I believe this and that's what matters most. When you love who you are and get to know yourself, life will be exactly what it's meant to be. Joyful, fun and in flow! Not to say things aren't hard because this can get very real my friends but we can learn how to navigate through them so much better when witnessing who we are being.

What's something about yourself that you love so much?

With love,

Amanda

Xoxo

Hello you, self care

BREATHE

When ever I am feeling anxious or after I've allowed the feelings to be felt, I come to these practices.

Breath work, box breathing or just focusing on my breath moving in and out. This brings me back to the present moment and the calm I need to relax my nervous system.

Walking is such a great way to calm yourself as well, nature nurtures. I started the finger tip practice many years ago now, after my dog passed away. While walking I count my steps, say thank you for each step or touch my finger tips. This allows me to come back to these when my mind starts to race, calming the money mind really does wonders.

The May I be practice is from The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook by Dr. Kristin Neff. This is a great resource for working on your self-compassion in all areas of your life. You can create your own May I be statements, but here are mine as an example.

May I know my own goodness.
May I see my own beauty.
May I be kind to myself.
May I feel freedom being who I really am.

All of these tools are great resources to assist you when feeling lost, when life happens or your just feeling down.

If you use any of these let me know how you feel.

Sending so much love to you 💜,

Amanda

Xoxo

Hello you, self care

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

Stress shows up in many ways from detrimental to rushing to get to an appointment. Our nervous systems are wrecked and depleted and since until now it's only coming to light that we need to be more aware of how to manage our stress for the longevity of our lives. It's how we show up for ourselves, how we react when something that doesn't seem ideal makes a difference. Every time you get angry easily because of your kids or animal or spouse it creates a chemical reaction inside your brain that launches you into fight or flight mode. When we can witness these reactions and choose a resource or tool from what I and others who teach Stress Management, you can navigate through life in a different way. Does this mean stress no longer shows up, no because it is part of the human experience. However we do get to choose how we show up in these situations, or at least pay attention and shift from the fear that can come from them. 

In high stress situations you best tools are to;

Sleep or rest as much as possible 

Eat nourishing foods and not nutritional dense foods that will such your energy

Move your body but be easy, stretching, walking and any other movement that doesn't push 

Support and community, family, friends, coaching, therapy, whatever can help alleviate and take some of the burden from you 

Doing only what the slowest part of you can do to take care of yourself until your energy returns

Show up and being kind to yourself, listen to your body

There's more of course but these are the things that I have done when problems arise that feel too heavy to deal with. 

You are not alone, ever. Talk to someone you trust and take the stress off your shoulders.

With love,

Amanda

Xoxo

Hello you, self care

GRATEFUL

Today I am grateful for;

My bed

A good night's sleep

Taking care of myself

All the hugs

Feeling healthy

Moving my body

The love I feel

Blue skies

Sunshine on my skin

Warm lemon water

There's so much more but these all lead to big happiness and support in my life. We tend to take this life of ours for granted but the truth is we are not guaranteed tomorrow so how are you living it today. Are you in gratitude or not?

Let's shift the narrative and comment one thing or more you're grateful for, you deserve all the happiness and it starts here 💟

With love,

Amanda

Xoxox

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