5 Unexpected Ways To Boost Your Self-Esteem

Originally published on mindbodygreen by Fern Olivia

Truly living means feeling fulfilled by the actions we take each day and how we conduct ourselves. Feeling fulfilled by the highs and gracefully navigating the lows. Yet we're already strapping our ankle to a post if we're not taking care of ourselves. Listening to our bodies needs and tuning into that frequency is a similar process to tuning the radio to a station; we cannot hear the message we need to hear if there's white noise running raucous all around us. We need a clear channel. We need quiet time.

Connect.

One of the easiest ways to do this is simply making time to connect, allowing the space for our bodies to be a clear channel. The power of ritual is the perfect way to do this, and one of the ways I like to do this is through making intuitive choices every day. Ritual doesn't have to be a set-in-stone process—something that's preprepared or clearly defined and set out. It can simply be blocking off an hour in your diary, acknowledging the need for time to dive in—dive into you. It's why I prefer to not rush out of the house in the morning, but sometimes that also feels good, too!

Listen.

Pausing is a mastery in itself in our busy multifaceted lives. Listen to any tweakings of stress in the body becomes a daily practice before they creep up on you, and before they have to screech on the brakes in a more unpleasant and abrupt way. Lie on the floor and scan your body. Stretch and move your limbs in any way you feel called to do so—be it languidly or a pumped-up dance to your favorite playlist.

Be your own alchemist.

Sit in front of the mirror and look into your eyes—I love to do this while "playing" with essential oils, reaching out for whichever ones spark my interest in that particular moment. Essential oils have powerful healing properties even via a quick sniff out of the bottle; their scent molecules travel up into the brain and balance the nervous system. I love to pick and choose whichever ones may call out to me, remembering there are no rights or wrongs; the more intuitive you are, the better…the more healing. Our bodies are magnificent, intelligent beings and most probably those essential oils you are reaching out for will have the perfect healing properties for your body's needs that you may not even be consciously aware of.

Self-massage.

Massage yourself using Grace Face & Body Oil focusing and honing in on any areas where you may feel a little tight and that need some extra TLC. Be intuitive with this process and conscious of every movement of your hands. Being present with this self-care ritual opens you up to receive the love. Take as long as you need; this is time for you to meet and greet your body, after what may have been a full day caught up in the constant distraction of our minds. Then, lie on the floor and rest on your back with your knees bent and thighs parallel to each other. Press your feet into the floor and lift your hips up, slipping a block underneath your sacrum. Place your feet onto your bed or chair to lift your hips up even higher, sliding a second block under your sacrum. Once you have found your sweet spot, extend your legs and feel the space you are creating around your digestive organs, lungs, heart, and throat. Rest your arms alongside your body rolling your upper arms to face the ceiling, palms faced up. Hold that position and feel the sweetness wash over you, breathing in the sweet, balancing scents of geranium and sandalwood in the Grace Oil.

Cultivate intuition.

I once heard someone describe intuition being a particular flavor. Its nuances make it different from the other flavors (voices) running through your mind, which may be logistical or fearful in nature. But this one is distinct, and the more you take the time to familiarize yourself with it, the more you will recognize it and be able to drown it out when the white noise and static of busy modern-day living starts to amp up. Come to trust that this is your body's most perfect medicine in that moment, the medicine you've prescribed for yourself, just for you.

Intuitively you always know what's best for you: what drains your energy or amps it up, what revives and refreshes it or sends it dwindling down the drain. Healing and sealing that energy plug, which has been drip, drip, dripping away is the key here—not waiting until the check engine light is flashing, or the tank desperately needs refilling with gas and you're running around on fumes. When I feel fully in me, and at home in my body, I also find it impossible to be cruel to myself. That is why this practice of making time for intuative ritual is so powerful. Make a habit of it. Do it every day. I always say that rituals are habits made holy.