11 Ways to Say I Love You, Self (+ Bonus Love Letters)

In honor of Valentine's Day, I created a list of 11 ways to say I love you to yourself. 1. Give yourself a hug. You have to admit, those feel pretty damn good. And if you've never given yourself a hug, do it. Right now. You'll smile.

2. Stretch (or in some cases, do yoga). It feels just as good as an orgasm. Your body will say I love you back.

3. Eat your guilty pleasure food without feeling guilty. Sometimes it's just so perfect.

4. Buy yourself flowers. Or anything else you really wish someone else would buy for you. Don't wait for anyone else to do this. Spoil yourself. (Thanks, Molly Roberts, for the inspiration from your blog post. I always buy myself flowers, so don't know why I didn't think of this. <3)

5. Drink water. It may be cliche, but it's no lie. Water will make you feel a MILLION times better body, mind, and spirit. Don't believe me? Chug a huge glass of room temperature water and see how fast you perk up. It's an instant way to love yourself.

6. Own your thoughts and feelings. Too many people apologize for the way they feel or think. Let it out. Accept it. Let it go. And be stronger because of it. Life is too short to be afraid to feel or think the way you need to.

7. Laugh. Don't take yourself too seriously. Laugh at the silly things you do. And hard. Seek out things that will make you laugh daily.

8. Dance. Shake. Your. Ass. In your room. With music that pumps through your veins, awakens your spirit, and makes your heart want to explode from your chest.

9. Sit still. Feel your blood move. Acknowledge those aches and pains. Let your thoughts wander, but not overtake you. Honor yourself in that moment, wherever you are in your day, your mind, your body, your life.

10. Take deep breaths. Like really deep. Through your nose. Into your gut. Make your ribs expand down to your belly button. The high is instantaneous, empowering, and re-energizing.

11. Tell yourself you love YOU. It seems silly. It isn't. Tell yourself this every day. Feel it in your bones. It will change you.

And now, love letters about The Body Project:

"Hi Katy! For some reason I keep seeing your posts in The Body Project. I just wanted to give you two thumbs up! Keep up the wonderful work. It's important."

"LOVE the teasers so far! It's amazing, and when I talk to other women (as to not talk myself out of it) they are always so amazing about the idea/concept and that I am doing it. I am really surprised how people are so encouraging."

"I just wanted to send you a note and tell you how proud I am of you and this project. I love everything about it and I am so excited to be a part of it. It has truly been helping me look at myself and my life in a more positive manner."

"Thank you so much for sharing a real life example of someone who takes the negative and makes it positive!"--in regard to the last blog post: Empowered Strength.

"Hey Katy! I just read about your Body Project & wanted to send a quick note. I think it is brilliant! I'm going to stay tuned, and also share it with my daughter. Of course, at first, I was reading with this attitude that you don't GET it. You're skinny - you've been skinny as long as I've known you! This while I've been varying degrees of plump that I generously passed on to my daughter. You don't know our struggles!! I read on anyway...and that's exactly what you're talkin' about. I quite like you, Katy! I'm excited to watch this unfold. I wanted you to know how much I think of this idea & YOU behind it!"

"I am so impressed! You are helping so many people. You are beautiful on so many levels. I'm so excited to see where the body project goes. XO"

To all of you supporting me, us, this project, I truly do, from the bottom of my heart, appreciate you. Without all of you, this would never have come to fruition. I am so thankful to have such amazing people in my life. To all the women getting photographed, you inspire me more than you'll ever know. Your bravery and determination are fuel to my fire. I am so honored to be amongst such awesome souls.

• Donate to The Body Project fundraiser.
• Join our Facebook group.
• Contact katy@katydaixon.net if you’d like to be added to our schedule of sessions.
• LIKE Capturing Photography (my second shooter) for candids of each session.
• LIKE katy daixon photography for updates on the project, new blog posts, and sneak peeks for each session.