What Would You Tell Your Younger Self?

What Are The 10 Things You Would Tell Your Younger Self?

There have always been certain things that, if given the chance to tell my younger self, I would definitely share some well-earned knowledge. However, it was more difficult than I originally thought to come up with ten things. I've experienced a lot in my life and I wouldn't necessarily want to change those events because it's made me who I am today. However, if given that miraculous chance - I would definitely whisper quite a few things into my ear. The tricky part actually is, would I actually listen to my older self? I'm so darn stubborn that in itself would be the crux in the entire situation. I also wonder how my life could possibly be different if I did follow my own advice... provided by bullet-points, here are the ten things I would definitely tell my younger self.

MY YOUNGER SELF

• FAT DOESN'T DISAPPEAR - I actually just read recently how the fat in our bodies contracts and expands. It is why when we lose weight it is more easily re-gained. I would want to tell myself when I was in my early twenties to continue to care for my body. I had worked so hard to lose the weight I had carried before. After I had my son and my life drastically changed, I was dealing with daily chronic pain (I still do) and I totally dropped the ball with physical therapy (I didn't make time fore myself). I should have fought for that more, I would tell myself that I need to fight for my health, go to physical therapy and have a plan to continue to care for my body with what works for me. Whether it be a modified plan for exercises, yoga, whatever! At least I would have that knowledge and would have a plan that I could utilize and have some comfort in. But, I would definitely tell myself to INVEST that time and effort!
• FAIRY TALES ARE FICTION - There's no such thing as "Happily Ever After". I grew up watching Disney movies and have always dreamed of that one man that is my soul mate that would save me. I would tell my younger self that the only person that can save me is myself. If you put stock in others to save you then you'll be disappointed - every time. I keep wondering if I should tell my younger self how disappointing that department has actually been? But, I wold definitely tell myself that kind of love is fiction, it's not necessarily not real but, I should focus more on myself. I guess I would tell my younger self how my past relationships have ended. It would definitely change my outcome now! I know if I told my younger self that the man I married would end up cheating on me and everything else, I wouldn't even have gone down that road. So it would totally change everything! It makes me wonder how different my life would be now.  
• BE SELFISH - Make choices in your life for yourself, not what other people want. If you want a wedding, have a wedding, don't accept anything less. I am stubborn, so to a degree I do what I want but, there is a side of me that if I love someone I would do whatever they wanted. Because I loved them I wanted to appease them, even if it went against what I truly wanted. Don't fear what other's will think of you or that they'll think any less or love you less - if they do that's their fault - if they don't like it, don't let the door hit them on the way out.This could have saved me so much stress and anxiety and would definitely change everything. Never compromise yourself or what you want out of life. I do believe in compromise in relationships but, don't sacrifice yourself or who you are. It's been my experience the other person won't make those changes for you... so, why change for them?
• STAND UP FOR YOURSELF - I never really spoke up for myself until I had my son and had no other choice but to be an advocate for him. Just brush it away too when people think you are being a bitch for speaking your mind, if they think that then you need to reevaluate that relationship too! I would tell my younger self to stop thinking that the world will end if you upset others - it won't! You have to have respect for yourself or others won't respect you either. Your needs should be more important to you than what other's think of you.
• SAVE MONEY - Things will inevitably happen, if you aren't able to save money then you need to look at your career. I would tell my younger self to go for a career where you could make more money. Although, I believe I worked with special needs students to prepare me to care for my special needs son, however if events changed and my life altered because of those changes, I would definitely want to be more financially secure. I would definitely tell my younger self to take more care with my credit and to make more of an effort in that area. This will be important to have the security that I wish I had now.
• WRITE - My mom always use to tell me that I should write, even when I was younger. So, I would tell my younger self to listen to our mother's advice and write. Get involved in the writing field and pursue that career, go to college for writing, and really invest yourself. I'm just getting started in the Self-Publishing and Indie field, I often wonder where I would be if I had jumped in much earlier when I should have. I remember when I first went to Community College after I graduated from High School and ended up dropping out because I didn't want to waste my parent's money, because I didn't know what I wanted to do. I would tell that younger self to take those classes and pursue writing, it's where you will flourish.
• COMFORT EATING - Don't do it! Along with telling myself to respect my body and continue to take care of it, when I was in my early twenties I read every food label and was much better about caring what I put in my body. I would tell myself to continue that, while it may taste good and send those chemicals in my brain the sensation of feeling better, that in reality I will feel much worse when I'm feeling depressed about gaining weight and not being able to fit in those clothes that I love so much. Respect yourself and your body! I would also whisper in my ear to pay more attention to the chemicals on the labels - to care more about the poison going in and what possible long-term effects that it can have.
• INVEST IN FRIENDSHIPS - Make more time for the people in your life that make time for you. If people can't make time for you, then it should tell you that they don't want to be with you. When I was married this happened with my own husband, he couldn't make time for me, that should have been a huge red flag. I would tell my younger self, before you sacrifice your friendships for your relationships, why? You should not sacrifice them! Go out with your friends and do you. If the person you're with is jealous or is manipulative, then that's another huge red flag - of their own guilty conscious. Don't ruin your friendships with other people to appease your partner - NEVER!
• DON'T STOP COORDINATING - You have this insane ability to pull-it-together - don't ever stop! I would tell my younger self to continue to coordinate Cousin's Night, it's very important! It saddens me now that we don't get together as much as we should, so I would definitely tell my younger self to keep up that tradition at all costs. You know your persistence pays off *wink*
• YOU ARE WORTH IT!! If you think you are not, then it's toxic and leave - immediately! Most importantly - LOVE YOURSELF!!

THE ONLY LIMITS YOU SET YOURSELF

Links

E! Online - 30 Things I Wish I Could Tell My Younger Self

Huffington Post - Advice to My Younger Self

TED - What advice would you give a younger you?

What would you tell your younger self?

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CHALLENGE ACCEPTED #2

September is the second month for my NO MEN FOR A YEAR challenge. This is very personal and I'm only sharing my opinions, beliefs, and experiences so that other girls, ladies, and women can learn from my mistakes in the past and together learn to love ourselves first. Part of my contract is that I journal every day and in doing so, I use writing prompts and so forth to help me to better understand my mistakes and to learn from them instead of repeat them. Let me know what you think or if you have experienced a similar situation, sharing is caring! I'd love to hear your testimonies as well, we can all learn from each other.

~ HERE WE GO ~

September 4^th, 2014

Writing Prompt: Be Determined and Believe in Yourself

“Remember that old adage, ‘every long journey starts with a single step’. You may be depressed or unhappy being the person that you are. But if you are truly determined, you can change every single thing you hate about yourself from today itself. If you really want to know how to love yourself, be determined and focus on starting to make little positive changes every day. It could be issues related to your work, health, or even your own personal dreams. Whatever they may be, be determined and pursue them with all your heart. By doing this, you’ll respect and love yourself a lot more.” (©Lovepanky.com, 2014)

This has been an exceptionally hard year. After losing so much, break-ups and the loss of my son, I needed time to heal before I could even contemplate working on the future. It’s nearly been a year since my son has passed and I know at some point I have to emerge from under this dark rock and move forward; I’m the only one that can do this for myself. I think this is a great realization; in the past I have always done things for everyone else, not taking me into consideration. I stopped smoking for my son, I lost weight to gain a relationship, I buried my pain in order to have a job etc. Now is the time to begin a healthy change. I can only do this for myself.

After my son passed, as much as I have craved to start smoking again at times, I have been able to push past those desires. Now, I need to use this determination and focus in other aspects of my life. I think next month I will work on starting a healthy weight loss program. I have been working on my writing and setting goals for the year. I also know a crucial part of getting back on my feet is obtaining a job. I think I’ve made great progress in this aspect of my life. Previously I would have sought a job with my past employers. I think this would have been a step backward. In that field, while I do feel accomplished and utilizing gifts, you are way underpaid. This will feed the beast of negativity, by accepting this I am telling myself that I am not worth being paid more money.

So, I’m changing course (plus, my friend stated that if I went back into the special education field she would beat me, she knows I’m worth more), I am seeking a new career all together. It is taking me longer to gain employment this way, plus because of my physical restraints currently. The goal is also to gain heath insurance and benefits so that I can also take care of myself physically, which will also help mentally and overall.

September 5^th, 2014

Writing Prompt: Focus on Your Appearance and Posture

“Appearances may be shallow but, unfortunately it’s the shallow things like clothes, money and weight issues that make us feel worse and hate ourselves even though we may possess a lot of good stuff that’s hidden from the view of others. Spend time to understand your physique and pick clothes up that look good on you. Get a great haircut, buy well fitting clothes and dress like a million bucks. You won’t believe how much of a positive boost just good clothes and a great posture can give anyone. After all, when you look good and are complimented by someone else, you’d feel a lot better about yourself, would you?” (©Lovepanky.com, 2014)

I’ve never been one to take compliments well. Growing up I cringed and even today I still have a hard time accepting them; I have learned to say “thank you” and then pray that they start talking about something else. Why? I don’t want the spotlight on me because to myself I am not worth the spotlight. Ever since I was young I’ve never thought of myself as beautiful or worthy of such praises. Rather, I feared others reactions because when I was growing up if you were heavier you were considered ugly and unwanted. Now that I am 37 I look back at pictures when I was 24, when I did receive compliments on my beauty, and realize that I was beautiful. This depresses me though, because I feel that I can never reclaim that younger beauty, I’m not that same person.

As well, growing up I was astutely aware of the dangers of some compliments. Meaning, that not all compliments were made in truth, girls can be catty, vindictive and plain mean. Someone might compliment you and then turn around and say something negative. This is why I don’t particularly light going out anymore either. To me it is something I’ve endured in the past and don’t care to suffer through anymore. Going out has always been considered a time for you to put yourself out there and hope to get some attentions from prospects. I’ve watched those around me get the attentions but, not myself. This only feeds into a depression and fuels the delusional thought patterns of not being worth the praise or attentions.

I do agree with the writing prompt that we should look our best and this will help our perception. I know I can further pursue this goal once I obtain a job. Those are some of the first things on my list: get my hair done, manicure and pedicure, get new shoes, new clothes etc. This way I can feel better about myself.

September 6^th, 2014

Writing Prompt: Don’t be too critical of yourself

“Learning to love yourself takes time and initiative. It’s a wonderful feeling to look good, be admired by everyone around you and loved by everyone including yourself. But it does take time. Never be too critical of yourself and expect immediate changes. Give yourself some time, and wait for the good times to roll in. We can assure you that just following these simple tips on how to love yourself can change your life. Just trust these tips and allow the tree of love and confidence to take root and grow into a wonderful beauty, without being critical of the progress.” (©Lovepanky.com, 2014)

As women I think we are programmed to be too critical on ourselves. We compare ourselves to models in magazines, we compare our love lives to those in movies, and we compare ourselves to what we think we should be. What I’ve learned is that comparing yourself to someone else is a ridiculous perspective. We are each unique and different, what would work for one individual, might not work for someone else. When looking through magazines don’t compare yourself to the photoshop models (who have confessed that they don’t even look that good in person) and don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Each of us have experienced an entirely different life, as each of us have completely unique features and characteristics that make us who we are.

I’ve often wondered what it would have been like to have gone through life as an attractive, thin woman. Would I have acquired the romance and love like in the movies? Even movies are fake! Do men even possess such abilities as actually caring for a woman? My delusional thoughts recently have made me ponder this. Would I still be married, would I have experienced a compatible relationship with someone who actually cared about me, if I had been physically altered?

I still battle myself when watching movies, my heart aches when I see the connection and romance between two people. It might be a defense mechanism but, I tell myself that this is not reality and it is certainly never going to happen for me because I am not that actress, I am not thin nor beautiful; so those things I could never have and will never have. Which, when I tell myself this, I am dosing myself with a lethal amount of poison; I’m terrified of trying to give myself any shred of hope just to be let down again.

September 7^th, 2014

Writing Prompt: Never be a pushover

“You can listen to someone else but, never let them dominate you or control your thoughts. Every time you let someone push you over, your confidence takes a beating and you end up hating yourself. If your friends take you for granted or treat you like you’re not important, perhaps it’s time you stopped spending so much time with them. Spend time with people who respect you and want your company, and your ego and the love for yourself will grow.” (©Lovepanky.com, 2014)

A good friend once told me that people will treat you the way that you allow them to. This took a while to sink in and really take hold. Even afterward I ended up in a manipulative relationship. However, I definitely have learned from my mistakes and if it’s one thing I detest is a person that manipulates the goodness of another person. Now, I have no tolerance for such people and hence no reason for them to be in my life.

Again, growing up I was a huge push over. I never wanted to upset anyone because I was afraid that it would affect the way that they perceived and accepted me; I wanted to be accepted. I’ve learned what my limitations are and that in order to respect myself; I can’t let others have such control over me. If they don’t like me then so be it, no sweat off my back.

Being a push over has been repetitive within each of my failed relationships. In my marriage I thought in order to keep my husband happy, I needed to give him as much freedom as he needed. This, ended up giving him too much freedom, to the point he thought he was still a bachelor and he thought he could sleep with whomever he pleased. Another relationship, I was a push over letting a man move into my home, get rid of family antique furniture so that he could replace it with “new” (rented) furniture (that he couldn’t pay for) leaving me in the end without furniture. Usually in relationships I’m too focused on making the other person happy and not taking myself into consideration. Again, I didn’t learn from my previous mistake, as a push over I let another man move into my home (with the agreement that he could help financially) and when he didn’t, instead of confronting this issue, I struggled and tried to do my best; being a complete push over has gotten me nowhere.

Understanding these crucial mistakes, I now know that IF the day comes when the prospects of a relationship are on the horizon, not to jump right into things. Not to let someone push their way into my life. To go at a pace that I am comfortable with, that he must pursue me, and that I am definitely worth it.

Challenge Accepted August Post

Link

·        11 Tips to Fall in Love with Yourself and be a Better YOU (©Lovepanky.com, 2014) - http://www.lovepanky.com/my-life/better-life/how-to-love-yourself