Self-Worth

Ashley Hatch shares how she overcome the sharp disappointment of not being included on the US Women’s National Soccer Team World Cup roster.

Experiencing worldly fame helped Brandon Pak realize how much sweeter the joy of the gospel is.

“Truly knowing who we are, and the purpose of our existence can help us overcome feeling like an imposter when a blessing comes to us.” —Sister Reyna Aburto

We try to follow the Savior’s admonition to love and serve another so much that we sometimes forget that, in the commandment to “love thy neighbor as thyself,” there is an overlooked commandment to love ourselves!

Clinical social worker Aliah Hall discusses about how true self-love comes through claiming your divine identity.

“God’s commandment to love and serve His children includes loving and serving ourselves—not only because self-love fills us with more love to give others, but also because He wants us to love ourselves the way He loves us.”

Growing up, I often asked myself the question “Why am I here?” My life was hard, and despite my best efforts to fit in, I felt alone and without hope or purpose. But in my early thirties, I was led by God to two important discoveries: an Autism diagnosis and the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

A yoga teacher shared an idea that changed how I approach New Year’s: she suggested we make a list of things we are not going to change about ourselves.

“We get an opportunity to recognize that children can be a part of the Church by being disciples of Jesus Christ in their family life and as they look around and serve others.”

“In a world where the adversary wants the youth distracted, discouraged, and discontent it is more crucial than ever for our youth to understand their divine identity and their purpose in Heavenly Father’s plan.”

An adorable new animated video produced by the Church begins by asking a powerful question: “Why is it that taking time to care for oneself is so often considered to be a selfish act?”

“Yes, mothers are honored, revered, and made to be saints—perfect even. But are moms perfect? Is that what is expected of us, needed from us? Will we fail in our role if we are anything less? These are questions many mothers, myself included, have struggled with.”

Self-compassion helps us be more caring, loving, and intimate—and less controlling. So why can it be so hard to be kind to ourselves?

Have you ever listened to a talk and wanted to chant, “Yes! Yes!” all the way through? That was me when I listened to Bishop Gerald Caussé’s message.

In this week's episode of This Is the Gospel, Wendy shares that she was always painfully aware that she looked different. At just 2 months old, she developed a blood tumor, or hemangioma, on her forehead. After enduring constant bullying her entire childhood, Wendy was able to have the tumor removed when she was 10 years old. But the damage done by others' cruel words and actions had Wendy questioning her worth until she began a lifelong process that helped her understand how God saw her.

In a new video published by the Church, a woman named Rebekah shares how her world was turned upside down when she discovered that she had been abandoned by her birth father before she was born. Already facing an identity crisis from this news, things took an even worse turn after she was sexually assaulted by someone she trusted deeply. It was then that she began feeling like the world—and God—were against her.

A new animated Church video released on Tuesday, August 4, explores the important and timely topic of practicing self-compassion. The playful animation style makes the video especially approachable for children, but the message is meaningful for all ages.

It’s tempting to think that any compliment to a woman is a good one. But many compliments carry undertones or emotional baggage that we may not even be aware of.

It has been quite a year so far! We know that many of us are experiencing high levels of stress and anxiety during this time of uncertainty and isolation. Because of that, the staff at LDS Living shared some favorite Deseret Book picks that have brought them peace and inspiration lately. We hope that they can do the same for you.

This story was originally published by LDS Living in November 2016.

I stood outside of Buckingham Palace in April 2017, and it was spectacular. The day was filled with pageantry and spectacle as thousands gathered to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s ninety-first birthday.

Joseph Fielding Smith changed John Bytheway's life in five words when he said, "We read scriptures too fast." Check out these five "sermons in a sentence" from the scriptures that could change your life, too!

If there's one group of people the Savior had a problem with, it would probably be the Pharisees. Christ calls the Pharisees fools, serpents, and vipers, and at one point even says that they are "full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanliness" (Matthew 23:27). At every point in the Savior’s earthly ministry, there always seemed to be a Pharisee lurking about, trying to trip Him up or make Him look foolish. Is it any wonder that they frustrated Him so much?

Our culture tends to objectify both women’s and men’s bodies. It teaches us to see people as bodies (or objects) first and people second, which leads us to judge and value people by how they look. This leads to negative body image because we are taught that our bodies are the most important things about us and that we need to “fix our flaws” in order to be happy.

As Disney fans around the world prepare for The Lion King to hit theaters, we wanted to share some of the gospel lessons that make this story great.

Mother and artist Kate Lee is one of the newest faces at Deseret Book. Her unique watercolor artwork is a beautiful display of her testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and her love of family. We recently asked Lee about the inspiration behind her work and why she loves it.

It’s a phrase I’ve said to myself many times before: “With God, you are enough.”

This article recently appeared in the September/October 2018 issue of LDS Living magazine.

Losing 140 pounds is no easy feat. Just ask Trent Heppler. Never in a million years did he believe that he would one day shed the weight, let alone run a marathon. But Heppler learned that the power to overcome his physical weaknesses—whatever they may be—comes from a spiritual strength gained through the Savior, Jesus Christ. Growing up overweight and self-conscious, Latter-day Saint Trent Heppler always felt that exercise was just another form of torture invented to make him feel inadequate.

I love the invigorating, clean-slate feeling that comes with a new year. The impossible suddenly feels possible. I no longer fixate on past mistakes but instead on the endless possibilities before me.

The Word of Wisdom is one of the first things you learn about in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whether you’re a sunbeam or an investigator. It is a key part of our religion, and it brings incredible blessings and promises when taken seriously and practiced correctly.

Anger is a very powerful emotion and can be a very destructive one. If we let it, it can completely take control of our judgment, leading us down a path we should not follow. Is there such a thing as righteous anger or does anger altogether cause our downfall? Take a moment and think about times that you felt anger. Can you pinpoint what became of that moment? It is easy to feel defensive, insulted, betrayed, or disrespected, which in turn triggers our fight, flight, or freeze reactions and often leads to anger. Reacting in anger can cause us to make poor choices, yet we need to remember that we always have two options: Choosing the natural man, or choosing a God-like response. Here is the difference and a few things you can do to better manage angry responses:

When I was a kid, I always wanted red hair.

Latter-day Saint singer and songwriter Jennifer Manges recently released her new music video for her upcoming single, “I Am a Woman.” The inspiring lyrics testify of the beauty and importance of women in the world today.

My wife and I recently ran a half marathon.

The winds of life can be tumultuous and hard to weather a lot of the time. Here are some inspiring and helpful books to help you organize your life and in doing so draw closer to the Lord.

Many years ago, a young man (he was only 23 years old) was called to be the new stake president in Tooele, Utah. In those days, stake conferences had two sessions, and at lunch between the sessions, Joseph F. Smith, one of the General Authorities attending, said to the new stake president, “You said you believe the gospel with all your heart, and propose to live it, but you did not bear your testimony that you know it is true. Don’t you know absolutely that this gospel is true?”

Some years ago, while renewing my temple recommend (with a member of my stake presidency), I was asked the last of the recommend questions, which at that time read: “Do you consider yourself worthy in every way to enter the temple?” I responded, with enthusiasm, “Absolutely!”—to which the good brother interviewing me appeared genuinely shocked. I felt as though I had actually made him uncomfortable, perhaps more so than if I had confessed some serious transgression.

As a psychologist, I have had experience and training regarding the concept of self-esteem. Self-esteem is commonly defined as having respect for one’s capacities and for oneself, including a feeling of confidence. Low self-esteem is a very common occurrence among individuals. How can we increase the amount of respect we have for ourselves?

Although Latter-day Saints are among the best people I know, they are also among the most self-critical. Too often we work hard to improve and repent and then fail to fully claim the “amazing grace” of Jesus Christ. As a psychologist and as a Church member, I’ve struggled to help clients, missionaries, friends, and colleagues let go of excessive self-blame and like themselves again.

“You may have times when you wonder if your call is beyond you,” President Henry B. Eyring told recently called mission leaders. “You may even ask, ‘Is this too much for me?’ I have had such moments often in my service in the Lord’s kingdom. And I have learned how important it is to banish those moments quickly. If you let them linger, they grow, and then your power to serve diminishes."

Maybe you feel your prayers aren’t being answered—or even heard. Perhaps you feel you have strayed beyond the Father’s ability to forgive. Maybe you’re struggling to trust that the Atonement of Jesus Christ really works in your life. Perhaps you are awash in fear, grappling to stay on top of adversity. Maybe you have been betrayed in the deepest way by one who should have treasured you. Or maybe you’re just trying to be patient, waiting for promised blessings and starting to lose faith that they will come.

Feeling good about yourself and realizing your worth is always important and, in fact, plays an important role in relationships. It’s very hard to connect with people who are constantly putting themselves down or dismissing the kind things others have to say. Some don’t say anything out loud, but you can get the sense from their behavior or posture that they feel they have nothing good to offer. It’s as though they are determined to prove that there is not a single good thing about them.

As women, we are bombarded with impossible expectations about our bodies through social media, movies, television, the internet, and almost everywhere else you can imagine. It seems everywhere we turn we are told that our worth comes from our appearance and we will never be enough.

Everyone wants to be happy—and for good reason. Happy people earn more money and are more likely to get married and stay married. They also attract more friends, are more productive at work, and even outlive their gloomier counterparts by about nine years.