This year’s National Red Ribbon theme is “Love Yourself. Be Drug Free.”

When I first heard it, I thought it was brilliant. But, then it led me to thinking about how we can truly inspire our children to love themselves and how we can more fully love ourselves. What does it mean to “love yourself?” What can we all do to love ourselves?

Here are 7 ideas to help demonstrate, nurture and grow self-love:

1. Use affirmations. Sometimes we don’t realize that we are using negative self-talk. Often, this is something that originates in childhood from the messages we heard, whether from our parents or other influencers in our lives. Critical thinking is good overall, but critical self-talk is destructive and limiting. The good news is our brains are rewiring all the time. By challenging negative thinking and replacing it with positive, affirming thoughts, we can actually change the way we see the world and ourselves. It may sound overwhelming, but just by telling yourself, “I am lovable,” once a day can make a tremendous impact.

2. Forgive yourself.The hardest thing many of us have to do is to forgive ourselves for mistakes we’ve made in the past. What we will likely recognize is that many of our worst decisions were made in a state of fear and/or ignorance. As we grow, we gain insight and learn how to make decisions out of love. The past cannot be erased, but by learning from our mistakes and forgiving ourselves for not knowing and subsequently doing better in the past, our present and our future will be dramatically improved.

3. Your body is a temple. You were born with this body and it is perfect. Treating your body with care is one of the most important keys to a successful and healthy life. Not only that, but it feels good.

4. Get active. While it is good to be dedicated to our studies and our work, for good mental health we need a release. Try photography or scuba diving, join a book club, train for a marathon or simply ride your bike around town. Stay active and explore your interests. If you try something and don’t like it, give it another shot or try something else. We have a whole lifetime to discover our passions and it starts with today.

5. Follow the golden rule. Treat others as you’d like to be treated. That being said, if someone is demonstrating a pattern of mistreating you, walk away.

6. Variety is your friend. We tend to spend time with the same people and while I encourage loyalty to our friends, I think we can always learn something from hanging out with people who are different from ourselves. Reach out and try to connect with someone who is doing something you admire.

7. Be open to change. You are constantly evolving and that’s ok. We are all figuring out “who we are.” The most important thing is to focus on positive changes and eliminating negative behaviors and habits. It doesn’t happen overnight. By making a good choice today, you are opening doors for an even better tomorrow.

Share your own ideas for ways to “Love Yourself” using hashtags #loveyourselfbedrugfree #informedfamilies #redribbonweek and #redribbonweek2014. Also, enter the National Red Ribbon Photo Contest for a chance to win an iPad for your family and $1,000 for a local K-12 school.

Dr. Thurston is an Informed Families board member, a devoted husband, a father of three girls and a Clinical Psychologist. He is the Chief Operating Officer at Jessie Trice Community Health Center, Inc. in Miami, Florida.