Do you know what you need?
The physical ones are easy… sleep, food, physical health, water…
But, how about our emotional needs?
Emotional literacy is key to looking after ourselves. And a big part of that is identifying what we need.
The late American psychiatrist, Dr William Glasser, identified 5 basic emotional needs. Let’s review…
- The need to feel love and belonging
- The need to feel secure and safe
- The need to feel challenged and competent
- The need to feel free
- The need to have fun
How comfortable are you at admitting you have needs?
If I weren’t trained in mental health… I’d say that could be scary. Maybe awkward. Sounds like you could be misunderstood.
And that’s why we need to realise something powerful first…
You are the most important person in your life.
Without an internal sense of how much you matter, it’s hard to have needs.
But you are valuable.
At an intrinsic level.
Because when you know you matter — that, inside your skin, you have worth — looking out for your needs, that just makes sense! (Even if they can be a little tricky to identify or express sometimes.)
After all, you have to live with yourself!
So this month. Here’s the challenge:
Be kind to yourself.
Is the inner voice of your mind critical? Do you sometimes lack self-worth?
Say this out loud: “This month, I am going to practice being kind to myself.”
How? Read this month’s practice below. |
