The hardest relationship I navigate is the one with myself.
January 11, 2026
The hardest relationship I navigate is the one with myself.
All the parts of me I don’t always like:
The judgmental one
The lazy one
The critical one
The lonely one
The scared one
The bossy one
The shy one
I don’t always accept myself.
I don’t always like myself.
I don’t always have compassion for myself.
I’m not always kind to myself.
I can be very hard on myself.
And that has a huge impact on my relationships. Because when I can’t love and accept myself, there is NO WAY I am available to love and accept anyone else.
I’ve always said that if I don’t know how to tie my shoes, I certainly can’t teach my kids how to. (Thank you, Velcro.)
So when I became a parent, it became clear that I had some work to do.
I needed to learn how to love myself unconditionally so that I could learn how to love others.
This has been my journey.
What I learned is — the only way out is through.
So I went on a journey into the darker parts of myself. I faced the shadows. I reckoned with the truths I didn’t want to see.
Some battles were harder than others. Some took longer than I wanted.
And all of them led me back to the same place.
Love.
Not the flowery kind of love.
But the kind that can hold it all.
The kind of love that kept my heart open —
to the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Which meant:
Sometimes my heart broke.
Sometimes I had to hold a strong boundary that felt unfair or unfriendly.
Sometimes I had to surrender to a truth I didn’t prefer.
And through it all, I keep reminding myself:
This is a journey back to love.
This week, I invite you to consider how the way you relate to yourself may be shaping every other relationship in your life.
in trust and gratitude,
Annmarie Chereso
Author, Speaker, Coach, & Meditation Teacher
P.S. If you’re feeling called to be more intentional and upgrade your relationships this year, I’m hosting my annual Relationship Visioning Workshop on January 29th to help you create a roadmap for true connection this year.