52 Self Love Journal Prompts to Help Students Thrive

Sweet Self Love Prompts and Journaling Ideas— Newly updated post includes three lists with 31 self-love prompts, another with 12 self love journal prompts, and a third with 9 bonus ideas. Enjoy!

One of the best ways to help students flourish is to help them establish a healthy sense of self love, and our wonderful lists of self love journal prompts can help! (It can actually help students and people of all ages.)

You see…

A self love practice can affect one’s life in positive ways and is a powerful daily routine anyone can undertake starting today.

Plus…

For those who may be struggling with anxiety or mild depression or for those who could simply use a confidence boost, self love can have a significant impact on mental health.

What is Self Love?

There are four main components of self love:

1. Self-awareness is the ability to understand and analyze our thoughts, actions, and emotions.
   
2. Self-worth: the beliefs and ideas we hold about ourselves—and the sense that we have value regardless of our flaws.
   
3. Self-esteem: our own interpretations and assessments of our actions and traits—and the value judgments we place on them.
   
4. Self-care: actions and rituals we undertake to keep ourselves healthy and to care for ourselves.

Now that you have a good understanding of the components of self-love…

Let’s get to those excellent self love prompts to help you gain greater insight on your self-discovery adventures. Enjoy!

31 Self Love Prompts for Writing Inspiration

1. Write about one thing you are especially good at—and one area that you could improve in.
2. What are some of your favorite innate qualities about yourself?
3. Name one physical feature that you particularly love in yourself and explain why it is special to you.
4. What are some things that make you feel sad or anxious? How can you recognize triggers for these feelings before they become too bad?
5. Write about a time when you made the right decision, even though you weren’t sure at first what you should do.
6. What kinds of things do you do to care for yourself each day? Which of these practices are simply habits—and which of them are conscious forms of self-care?
7. Make a list of things that bring you joy. Include people, places, and things…and remember that no item is too small if it brings you happiness!
8. Write about a time when you did something that hurt another person. What happened? Were your actions intentional? How did you respond when you realized you had caused the other person pain?
9. Do you have any regrets? Why or why not?
10. Write about a time when you were proud of yourself. What did you do? Was it a hard decision to make? How do you feel when you look back on this moment today?
11. What does it mean to have a positive sense of self-worth? Do you feel as though you have one? Why or why not?
12. What is your greatest flaw? Is it something you could work to improve? Why or why not?
13. How do you feel when you look in the mirror? Describe what you see—and how that makes you feel.
14. Do you ever struggle to share your emotions and feelings with other people? Why or why not?
15. Write about something that always relaxes you or puts you at ease.
16. Can eating healthily be considered a form of self-care? Why or why not?

    

17. Do you ever struggle with negative self-talk? What are some good ways to avoid this detrimental behavior?
18. What is the most effective strategy you have for making yourself feel better when you’ve had a bad day? How well does it work?
19. Do you think other people your age are good at practicing self-care? Why or why not?
20. Write about a way that you have grown positively in the last few years.
21. Do you believe you are an effective communicator? Why or why not?
22. Write about something that makes you angry. Why do you think it triggers such a strong negative response in you?
23. Are you good at admitting when you are wrong about something? Do you think your friends and family members would agree with your assessment? Why or why not?
24. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rank your personal self-esteem levels? Why? Is there anything you could do to improve your self-esteem?
25. Write about something you can do that is unique to you.
26. What would a positive self-care routine for you look like? Is this something you can implement into your life more regularly?
27. What are some of the greatest pressures you face? Are these internal or external pressures? What can you do to address them?
28. Do you ever struggle to set boundaries in your life? Why or why not?
29. Do you believe your life is valuable on its own, or do you sometimes feel as though you need to justify your existence? Why or why not?
30. How can having a positive self-image improve your overall health and wellness?
31. What are some things that other people do that make you feel good about yourself (such as giving you compliments or inviting you to hang out)? Why do you think these things have a positive impact on your self-esteem?

I hope you enjoyed this list of self love prompts. Read on to discover some more wonderful self-love journal prompts…

Self Love Journal Prompts Support Health and Wellness

Self love is a journey, and it can greatly impact your overall health and wellness. When you have a positive self-image, you can experience improved mental and emotional well-being.

It’s important to recognize the things that others do to make you feel good about yourself, such as giving compliments or inviting you to hang out.

These actions can have a positive impact on your self-esteem, reinforcing a sense of worth and acceptance.

Below are 12 sweet self love journal prompts to further support your journey towards greater self love.

12 Sweet Self Love Journal Prompts for Greater Personal Awareness and Insight

Enjoy this fabulous list of journal prompts for self love.

Personal Growth

• List 5 opportunities you’ve been given. Then list 5 opportunities you hope to get in the upcoming weeks.
• Name one thing you learned today. How will this help you view the world differently tomorrow?

Body Positivity

• What are the 3 most memorable experiences you’ve had in your body?
• Identify others who you have let define your worth. How can you change your thinking to stop this negative habit?

Anxiety

• Describe an instance where you’ve overcome a challenge.
• List 3 times you’ve asked for help. What did you learn from these experiences?

Self Esteem

• What is an action you judged yourself for this past week? How did this influence how you moved forward?
• Describe an instance where you let go of something that wasn’t serving you. How did it make you feel?

Love

• List ten things you love about yourself. How will these help you show love towards others?
• Take a love language quiz. Write down your love language and examples of how you show and accept love.

Happiness

• List 3 negative thoughts throughout the day. Write down alternate versions that are more positive.
• Set a timer for 10 minutes. During this time, write down everything you’re grateful for today.

I hope you found inspiration and love with these self love journal prompts.

Oh yeah. Now check out this list of…

87 More Free Prompts and Resources for You

• 40 Confidence and Self Esteem Writing Prompts
• 35 Gratitude Journal Prompts You’ll Love
• Journaling for self-care (includes free printables)

A Few More Thoughts on Self Love Journaling

The journey of self love can be especially challenging if you have a habit of negative self-talk, brushing off compliments, or belittling how great you are. To help, consider implementing daily affirmations and self love journal prompts into your self-care routine as you embark on your self love journey.

You see…

Daily affirmations are designed to be read out loud throughout the day. By saying them, you are willing them into existence. If you say them enough, you may start to believe them and shift your mindset towards one of self love.

Plus…

Pairing these affirmations with self love journal prompts can help you explore what it is that’s getting in the way of loving yourself. There are many aspects of self love, from learning body positivity and embracing your flaws to focusing on self-acceptance and self-esteem.

And now…

Exploring each topic through journaling can help you release negative thoughts and refocus on positive ones. Once you’ve chosen daily affirmations, you can get started journaling.

Okay, now if you still need more ideas, take a look at this…

List of 9 More Bonus Self Love Prompts and Ideas

1. Write 5 self-love-themed positive affirmations in your journal today.
2. Write a letter to your future self about how loving yourself has changed your life. (Perhaps you could even write a love letter to yourself!)
3. Incorporate creativity into your self-love journal through painting, the use of markers, collages, or other artistic expressions you love. 
4. Make journaling a part of your morning routine for 21 days in order to create a new habit to support your personal self love.
5. How can setting healthy boundaries be an expression of self-love?
6. Make a list of any negative thoughts today that you are aware of and then counter them with self-love affirmations. 
7. What are your biggest dreams and how is love involved in them? 
8. What are your core values and how do they support loving yourself? 
9. Identify your most living personal trait and explore how you can grow and strengthen it.

Alrighty, that’s all for the bonus list of self love prompts. Now it’s time to explore more about…

Free Self Love Affirmation Printables

Coming up with affirmations and journal prompts can be difficult so Redbubble created 68 printable affirmations and a free printable positive affirmations journal to help you get started.

It may be out of your comfort zone but just go for it! Read through their affirmations to find one that resonates the most with you. Then find a journal prompt that will help you explore the topic. There are endless ways to use these topics to guide your journey of self love. 

Sometimes our biggest obstacle is our own negative beliefs. Keeping a self love journal can be one piece of the actionable steps you can take toward breaking free from your self-imposed limitations. Below are a few bonus ideas to try out in your journal!

• Biggest Dreams
• Favorite Hobbies
• Dream Life
• What you admire about your best friend
• The best compliment you’ve ever received (or given)

Be sure to check out this excellent resource: 5 Journaling Ideas for self-reflection and discovery

Hopefully, you found these self love journal prompts and resources helpful, and we wish you all the best on your journey of self love. It’s well worth it!

Self Love Journaling Challenge

School can be a scary and challenging time for kids as they struggle to carve out their identities, deal with changing brains, and face mounting pressures from both their peers and adults in their lives.

That’s why we’ve developed a self love challenge to use with students that partners wonderfully with our lists of self love prompts found here in this blog post.

Now…

As you know, the internet is full of tips on improving kids’ self-esteem and tips on practicing self-care, overcoming limiting beliefs, and healing oneself, but our approach is unique in that it takes a holistic path to improvement. Naturally, our self love challenge focuses primarily on journaling.

You see…

Journaling gives students a place to evaluate themselves, their problems, and their feelings. Over time, the journal becomes a collection of the student’s past thoughts and experiences that thet can reflect upon.

Truly the power of reflection is astonishing!

Plus…

Later, the journaler can use this collection of personal information as a resource to evaluate personal growth and as an inspiration to tackle new challenges.

The Benefits — and Joys — of a Self-Love Journal

So what is a self love journal? It’s when we self-reflect on where we have been, and how we have successfully handled life events in the past, and this inspiration can help raise our self-acceptance, self love and confidence moving forward.

Furthermore, a self love journal serves as a safe space for students to externalize their problems and questions in a constructive way.

Though many kids feel uncomfortable talking about their emotions and their lives for fear of judgment or punishment, journaling allows students to sort through their feelings privately.

In a journal, a writer can say anything he or she wishes—and know that no one else will ever see it.

Self Love Journal Challenge for Students (Simple Guide!)

To get started, we recommend first taking some time to teach your students about self love and the ways in which having a positive self image contributes to overall health and happiness.

For example, you could ask students about their own self-care routines and help them understand the differences between self-worth and self-esteem.

Once they are equipped with the basic language of self love, it’s time to begin journaling!

Help students set aside some time each day (we recommend around 30 minutes) to write and reflect on the above list of self love prompts. Journalers could name their journal their 30 days self love journal.

Next…

To participate in the self love challenge, ask your students to tackle a different prompt each day for a month.

At the end of the month/challenge, each student should write a final journal entry reflecting on their experiences and growth in self-awareness—and then participate in a class discussion on what they learned about self love.

This self-love challenge is simple to use yet powerful and profound. So use it with your students today!

Final Thoughts on Self Love Journaling

Okay, that’s all for now.

I hope your teens will benefit and grow from this exercise and from our excellent self love prompts. May your writers enjoy it so much that they keep journaling and practicing their own self love challenges for years to come!

If you enjoyed these Self Love Prompts, tips, and information, please share them on social media via TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and/or Pinterest.
I appreciate it!

Until next time, write on…

Sincerely,
Jill
journalbuddies.com
creator and curator

Check out this 7 Day Self Love Challenge and this powerful resource from Psychology Today,

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Below is an article that was first published on our blog in July of 2011. There’s some good information here and it relates to self love but from a different perspective… this time through the lens of self-confidence. Take a read and enjoy!

Self Confidence is a form of Self Love

Why self confidence is an Important Trait to Possess

Self-confidence is one of the most important traits a person can have as it reflects a belief in one’s abilities, talents, gifts, and strengths. When one has this trait she holds herself in high regard and, more often than not, self-confidence is something that is found in successful, happy individuals who love themselves very much.

Having low self-confidence can become a hindrance to one’s happiness and negative behavior towards self can be something that will cause problems for a person in the future. (Usually, people who have a problem interacting positively with others are the ones who are not able to excel in school or thrive in their careers.)

Self Confidence Benefits

People with self-confidence trust themselves and their abilities. They can expand their repertoire of skills and knowledge because they trust that they can accomplish the tasks that they are given. They are focused and determined to succeed, are usually people who can learn from past mistakes, and are able to use these experiences to their advantage.

People with self-confidence and -love know that making a mistake is part of growing, and failing does not really make them a failure as a person. They are capable of analyzing the cause of a failure and are able to avoid these traps and pitfalls in the future.

Self-confidence is a good trait to have simply because people who have this trait know that they can survive any problem that they are facing at the moment.

For people with low self-esteem, fear usually takes over them and it stops them from growing and accomplishing the tasks that they need to do in order to become successful. Guilt is also a common trait for people who have low self esteem. One of the biggest problems with guilt is that it inhibits a person’s ability to move on from failures and mistakes that they have committed. Finally, self-loathing can develop if one isn’t careful to improve their sense of self-confidence, love, and approval.

People who wish to boost their confidence levels often look for ways to get help. Some choose to see therapists for advice and or to attend counseling sessions to improve their confidence over time.

In fact, there are actually plenty of counseling theories that are being used by therapists and one of the most common ones is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).   With CBT, you aim to notice your negative thoughts so that you can replace them with more helpful ones. The bottom line with CBT is that self-talk matters.

For those whose lack of self-confidence is mild or temporary, journal keeping is a fabulous tool to improve self-esteem, -confidence, and -love easily and effectively.  It’s easy, simple, and accessible to people of any age, any income level, or any writing skill level.

Until next time, be kind and write on…