So many of us spend the majority of our waking hours taking care of others and worrying about what others think of us. We hardly ever take the time to care for ourself or get in touch with our own feelings. We're often told that it's selfish to focus on self-care and self-love, but in reality, it's absolutely vital to our ability to care for and love others.
If you’re looking for guidance on the path toward self-reflection while gaining helpful methods of self-care, you’ll find it—and more—in this collection of listens. The following audiobooks will provide both the inspiration you need to embrace feelings of appreciation, care, and pure love for yourself and actionable ways to make practicing them a part of your daily routine.
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Body-shaming has become such a pervasive part of our culture that the act of loving your own body has become an act of resistance. In The Body Is Not an Apology, poet and activist Sonya Renee Taylor invites listeners to examine the oppressive systems that have taught us to be ashamed of our bodies and ourselves. According to Taylor, self-love has more than just the power to transform ourself—it has the power to transform the world.
If you're looking for an audiobook about what author Tara Schuster calls learning to love yourself in a non-throw-up-in-your-mouth-it’s-so-cheesy way,
then Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies might be just the listen for you. By the time Schuster reached her late 20s, she was already a rising television executive with credits to her name such as The Daily Show and Key & Peele. But there was so much the author still needed to learn about being an adult. This is Schuster's personal journey out of anxiety and self-medication and into a more self-assured adult version of herself. Schuster's story and her advice for listeners are brutally honest and unflinching. Fittingly, the author narrates her story with a humorous, no-nonsense attitude.
A lot of us have been spending more time alone lately. But not all of us enjoy our own company, and as a result, we waste so much of our lives looking for someone else to make us feel more complete. In What a Time to Be Alone, Chidera Eggerue explains how being alone is one of the absolute best things in the world. Each and every one of us is enough, and Egguere is here to demonstrate the path to feeling more whole when wholly alone. The author's narration of her own work feels like a dear friend sitting with you, offering the warmest and most validating advice.
For women who struggle to find self-worth, Glennon Doyle has a message for you in Untamed. Women feel so much pressure to be good at everything—good mothers, daughters, employees, friends, partners. Consequently, so much of a woman's self-worth gets tangled up in her relationships with other people, which can lead to feeling discontent and depressed. Doyle believes there's a voice inside every woman who craves something more, but most women have gotten really good at silencing that voice. In this memoir, Doyle shares how she learned to listen to her inner voice and offers advice on how to listen to your own. The author narrates her story and its lessons in a warm and encouraging tone.
Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston, is widely known and praised for her thought-provoking TED Talks and encouraging books. If you're looking for an introduction to Brown's work that also has a strong message of self-love, The Gifts of Imperfection is a wonderful listen. The author encourages listeners to embrace their own authenticity and worthiness through practical and effective daily practices. The 10th Anniversary Edition features a new foreword, and Brené Brown narrates the entire audiobook with the approachable perspective that's made her such a favorite in the self-dev genre.
Shannon Kaiser has been through a lot: eating disorders, drug addiction, depression, and more. Yet she was able to pull herself through all of these hardships to find self-love and acceptance. Through her story, Kaiser will give you a roadmap to finding your own way to self-love. It all begins, Kaiser argues, with putting yourself first, which isn't about being selfish but about self-care. The author’s narration of her own words has been described as soothing by Audible listeners, which is just the tone you’ll need when you're tackling some of the difficult topics in The Self-Love Experiment.
We live in a culture where finding a significant other and being in a relationship is so wrapped up in our sense of self-worth. If you're single, you are often made to feel lacking, and you may even question if you're deserving of love at all. In How to Love Yourself (and Sometimes Other People), Lodro Rinzler and Meggan Watterson aim to change that narrative. Drawing on their backgrounds as scholars of Christian mysticism and Buddhism, and sharing deeply personal anecdotes, the authors offer a well-rounded perspective on the experience and value of self-love. Narrating their audiobook together, Rinzler and Watterson guide listeners through navigating relationships, including deep friendships and romance, and coming to understand true love and fulfillment.
In The 21-Day Self-Love Challenge, you will learn how to love and accept yourself and turn off all the negative self-talk that keeps you from living your best, most fulfilled life. You'll come to realize that self-love isn't arrogance: it's about setting aside the self-doubt and self-hatred that keeps holding us back. Most importantly, this listen provides an easy-to-follow 21-day-guide to becoming more accepting of yourself, imperfections and all. Narrator Amy Johnson is an encouraging guide throughout the process.
Jen Sincero is a world-famous life coach, and in You Are a Badass, she offers a how-to guide to changing the self-sabotaging behaviors and beliefs that keep you from getting what you really want. This audiobook is divided into easy-to-digest chapters featuring funny and inspiring stories, practical exercises, and helpful advice to guide you on a path to self-love. And once you believe in yourself, the life you want is completely possible. Released in 2020, this awesome audio edition of the self-dev best seller is read by Sincero with her signature candor and includes an exclusive interview with the author.
Melissa Ambrosini has a name for that little voice in your head that's always telling you that you're not good enough or worthy enough—it’s called your inner mean girl.
In Mastering Your Mean Girl, Ambrosini shows listeners how to push through fears and harsh self-criticism. Ambrosini narrates her guide in an honest, fun, and upbeat tone as she enthusiastically pulls you out of feeling stuck and pushes you towards understanding your own self-worth Audible listeners have said that Ambrosini's words and narration are akin to listening to a kind and encouraging friend who truly wants to see you at your best and happiest.
Common is a Grammy, Academy, and Golden Globe Award-winning musician, actor, and activist. In Let Love Have the Last Word, this multi-talented author looks at his own journey to self-love through spirituality and mindfulness. This is a story of Common's own path towards learning how to give and to receive love. But it's also a helpful guide to how to find that same powerful love in your own life. The audiobook offers a unique and rewarding listening experience: not only is it narrated by Common himself in his powerful and reassuring voice, but the author also includes exclusive music written just for this audiobook recording.
Actress and comedian Issa Rae has always felt like the awkward Black girl, and she's made a career out of playing that role in her hit television series Insecure. In her real life, however, Rae has learned to fight through the insecurities and awkwardness to find self-acceptance. In this collection of humorous essays, Rae embraces her awkward, introverted personality and offers hope to others who have felt insecure when forced to leave the house and interact with others. If you love Issa Rae's comedy routines, you'll love her narration of her own stories, which are both funny and inspiring. The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl will have you laughing and leave you basking in your own quirky and quiet amazingness.
Emily Martin has a PhD from the University of Southern Mississippi and is a writer for Book Riot.
