YOU Are WORTHY

What a relief it has been to realize, through daily practice, that I am worthy of so much more than I ever thought. So are you. We all are.

By the always effervescent Nina Endrst.

For much of my 20s, I watched and cheered on many of my friends as they found loving partners, traveled the world chasing their dreams, and began to grow into elevated versions of themselves. I remember visiting them in what felt like faraway lands. I sat on trains and planes – staring off into space, wondering if I was worthy of that happiness and, if so, when/where would I find it?

Often I came back to the same limiting, B.S. belief that maybe I was just “different.” My life was more complicated, exciting, dramatic! I felt incredibly free and deeply lonely at the same time. I lived in Manhattan, worked insane hours in the fashion industry and spent most of my free time treating myself like sh**. Somewhat typical 20-something behavior, I thought. And sure, I had some great times and don’t regret any of it – that’s just not my style. But when I look back, the truth is I was a shell of myself. I had so much inside of me but most days, felt hollow and empty. I was exhausted, trying to be everything to everyone else, sending my energy outward in a thousand different directions.

I knew my way around sickness, drama, heartache, and sadness – that territory felt familiar and somewhat easy to exist in. But at a certain point I’d had enough and decided to start exploring a new place, where I was worthy of all the good stuff. Harder to navigate at first but a much softer place to root myself in. I can’t fully express in words what a relief it has been to realize, through daily practice, that I am worthy of so much more than I ever thought. So are you. We all are. Yes, we all have troubles and worries… yes, bad stuff happens, and hard times will come in life. But so will good times — happy, peace-filled, fulfilling, beautiful and blissful times.

I hope these practices remind you to open yourself to the latter. May you be soft in your heart and fierce in your belief that you are worthy of all that you dream of.

Practice daily affirmations.

All day, every day — practice these. Write ‘em, speak ‘em, live ‘em.

I am worthy of love

I am worthy of respect

I am worthy of true friendship

I am worthy of peace

I am worthy of health

I am worthy of abundance

Spend quality time with yourself.

It is so important that we learn to enjoy our own company. Take a break from everything else. All of it. No distractions. If you only have 5 minutes to be present with yourself, even if in the shower, make those minutes count. If you are lucky enough to have ample free time, take full advantage and do something that reminds you how amazing, strong and capable you are. Meditate, practice yoga, exercise, write, dance, sing! Be present with yourself.

Live and let live!

What a boring world it would be if we were all the same, right? And we all know there is no real “normal.” You are unlike anyone else on the planet and that is something to be celebrated! The coolest humans are the authentic ones, in my humble opinion. It’s hard not to compare ourselves to others, especially considering all the filters out there, but it is such a waste of energy. If we commit to using even a fraction of that time building ourselves up instead of tearing ourselves down, we will all be better off. So let’s encourage each other to live our best lives, however different they may be.

Lead image by Ashley Randall. Photo of Nina by Emily Pearl.