7 Tips to Lasting Love

Please share your experience and thoughts with me below. Thanks!Please share your experience and thoughts with me below. Thanks!

Did you know I was engaged to be married to someone else when I met my beloved Larry?

It’s true.

You see, at the time I was looking for love and was happy to find someone who “made me feel loved and complete”.

Fortunately, he was fulfilling a commitment to the Peace Corps for two years, which gave me time to be alone. And in that alone time, I began doing loving things for myself.

Things like creating sacred and loving space, buying myself flowers, preparing and eating healthy meals, spending time in nature, buying and writing in a journal, playing music I loved, meditating and spending quiet time alone.

I was getting to know and love myself.

And in that sweet spot of loving myself, I met Larry and true love. I wasn’t looking for love. I wasn’t looking for Larry. True love found me.

Breaking up with my fiancé was one of the most difficult things I have ever done. Yet, I knew in my heart it was the right choice and so I followed that.

The right choice is not always the easiest choice.

And, almost 40 years later, our love and relationship continue to be healthy and stronger than ever.

Do you find yourself wishing for more love in your life? Do you ever think, “Once I find my partner, then I’ll be happy”?

Maybe you’re already in a relationship, but inside you know there could be a better connection, more romance, and deeper love.

Or, maybe you find yourself doing things for other people, hoping to be loved in return.

Just as money, an expensive car or a big title cannot create lasting happiness, no one outside you has the power to make you happy either.

Yes, you may feel loved for a little while, but this kind of love doesn’t last. This is a ‘honeymoon phase’ and before you know it, you’ll be restless yet again.

True and lasting love comes from within.

When was the last time you looked in the mirror and told yourself how beautiful, intelligent or wonderful you are?

How often do you do something special for yourself, for no reason other than it brings you joy?

What you see in your life is a direct reflection of your beliefs, fears, thoughts, and emotions within.

For example, if you have a subconscious belief you are not lovable, you will continue to subconsciously sabotage all loving relationships.

On the other hand, when you fully love yourself, the world loves you back. When you resonate in the energy of love, you attract more love to you.

Love is not something you get.

Love is something you give.

When you have love inside for yourself, you have love to share with others. Only then can you give and receive love in a healthy way… from an abundant heart.

How well do you love yourself?

Self-love begins with self-realization and self-acceptance.

Below are a few ways you can begin to honor your individuality and love yourself and in turn, begin to attract and receive a greater love.

• Stop comparing yourself to others. Just as each snowflake is different, nobody else is like you. You are not the other person. Embrace and be proud of your uniqueness.
• Rediscover your values and begin honoring them. Remember what brings you joy and make choices to honor that. Think of a peak experience in your life, when things were grand. What values were you honoring that made that experience so delightful? When you are honoring your values you our honoring the essence of you and that feels good.
• Spend time with yourself. Slow things down enough to notice what feels good and what doesn’t feel good. Notice what robs you of your energy and leaves you feeling frustrated and stuck. Make choices that will inspire, feed and fulfill you instead. Notice what’s fun and begin to do more of that.
• Pamper yourself. Set a nice table and make nice meals for yourself. Keep a tidy house. Buy yourself flowers. Get a massage. Take yourself on a vacation. Treat yourself like the special person you are.
• Respect and honor your body. Know that everything you do to yourself has an impact on how you feel. Treat yourself with love. Eat nutritious foods, drink lots of clean water, sleep 8 hours and get some daily exercise, even if it’s only 10 minutes.
• Spend time in solitude, feeling and honoring your emotions. This takes practice and courage, but I promise there is such freedom in this. Honor yourself and let go of the old stories of victimhood and self-pity you have been holding onto and numbing out in. Be fully present to your authentic emotions such as anger, fear and sadness. Feel them and release them, making room for lighter emotions such as love, joy and gratitude.
• Do small things with great love. Make the ordinary divine. When making a cup of tea, washing your hands or the dishes or preparing your food for example, slow down and be present… with gratitude and grace.

My passion and purpose is helping others find lasting happiness and love.

Please share your experience and thoughts with me below. Thanks!