Self-love is the strong sense of respect for and confidence in oneself. It is different from narcissism

Narcissism

Narcissism is a term with a wide range of meanings, depending on whether it is used to describe a central concept of psychoanalytic theory, a mental illness, a social or cultural problem, or simply a personality trait...

 in that as one practices acceptance and detachment, the awareness of the individual shifts and the individual starts to see him or herself as an extension of all there is. Ultimately, the identification of “I” from a personal individual perspective, shifts to “I” from a perspective of consciousness or life being experienced from the perceptual point of view that we call by our individual names.

Self-love can be taught in childhood through honesty, acceptance and unconditional love. Since most parents have their own self-doubts and limiting beliefs, they project these onto their children and the cycles of self-rejection and self-abuse repeat themselves.

In 1956 psychologist and social philosopher Erich Fromm

Erich Fromm

Erich Seligmann Fromm was a Jewish German-American social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist. He was associated with what became known as the Frankfurt School of critical theory.-Life:Erich Fromm was born on March 23, 1900, at Frankfurt am...

 proposed that loving oneself is different from being arrogant, conceited

Conceited

"Conceited ", simply known as "Conceited", is the second single by American rapper Remy Ma from her first studio album There's Something about Remy: Based on a True Story. The song was produced by Scott Storch.-Charts:...

 or egocentric. He proposed that loving oneself means caring about oneself, taking responsibility for oneself, respecting oneself, and knowing oneself (e.g. being realistic and honest about one's strengths and weaknesses). He proposed, further, that in order to be able to truly love another person, a person needs first to love oneself in this way.

See also

• Self-awareness
  Self-awareness
  Self-awareness is the capacity for introspection and the ability to reconcile oneself as an individual separate from the environment and other individuals...
  
  
• Self-compassion
  Self-compassion
  Self-compassion is extending compassion to one's self in instances of perceived inadequacy, failure, or general suffering. Neff has defined self-compassion as being composed of three main components - self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness....
  
  
• Self-concept
  Self-concept
  Self-concept is a multi-dimensional construct that refers to an individual's perception of "self" in relation to any number of characteristics, such as academics , gender roles and sexuality, racial identity, and many others. Each of these characteristics is a research domain Self-concept (also...
  
  
• Self-esteem
  Self-esteem
  Self-esteem is a term in psychology to reflect a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs and emotions such as triumph, despair, pride and shame: some would distinguish how 'the self-concept is what we think about the self; self-esteem, the...
  
  
• Self-image