Learning to Receive Affirmation Is the Next Step in My Healing

Receiving affirmation does not come naturally to me. My instinctive reflex is to feel uncomfortable whenever someone compliments me—even if the person doling out this kindness is a family member, close friend, or my partner. I automatically want to minimize the compliment so as to deflect attention as far from myself as possible.

As it turns out, I am not alone in that discomfort either. Only 19 percent of Americans choose words of affirmation as their preferred way to communicate and experience love.¹ But as I continue to live out the process of eating disorder recovery, learning to receive affirmation feels like the next step in my healing. I will discuss why in the video below. 

Why Receiving Affirmation Is Part of My Continued Healing 

Do you find it unnatural or uncomfortable to receive words of affirmation from another person? Is your instinctive response to deflect or minimize any compliments that someone else might offer you? Does learning to receive affirmation feel like an integral next step in your own healing process? I would love to hear your thoughts, so please share in the comments.

Source

1. Orth, T. et al., "What Are Americans' Love Languages?" YouGov America, February 11, 2022.