It can be hard to fully love oneself in a world that pressures us to be perfect.
Instagram and other social media sites show us snapshots of perfect lives – friends on tropical holidays, grandiose weddings, and fitness transformations, to name a few.
Social media itself is not harmful, but how we use it can be. If we compare our inherently imperfect lives to the snapshots we see on social media, it’s easy to feel bad about ourselves.
So, why not focus on self-love instead of comparing yourself to others?
When you post self-love and inspirational content on Instagram, you give others a chance to reflect on their level of self-love and inspire them to cultivate more of it.
Scrolling Instagram and other social sites can be a mindless experience, so it’s beneficial when people post uplifting and inspiring content.
In this article, we’ve included some ideas for great self-love captions for Instagram to inspire yourself and your followers.
Self-love captions for Instagram
The best self-love captions are short and sweet.
In just a few simple words, you can inspire someone to smile, and you may even inspire someone to take a new perspective on their entire life.
Below we’ve included a list of self-love Instagram captions and quotes. You’ll also find quotes and caption ideas based on happiness, confidence, and inspiration.
Happy captions for Instagram
- Today, I choose happiness.
- When I smile, I smile about smiling.
- Live life one smile at a time!
- Sing, soar, smile.
- A smile is the best style.
- Be happy because you exist.
- Belief in yourself is a prerequisite for happiness and success.
- The less I want, the more I have.
- Do what makes you happy if you want to live a life you won’t regret.
- Happiness is a journey, not a destination.
- Happiness given is happiness received.
Happiness quotes for Instagram
In addition to the caption ideas above, we’ve included some famous quotes about happiness to make your post more effective and impactful.
“If only we’d stop trying to be happy we could have a pretty good time.” – Edith Wharton
“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.” – Albert Einstein
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.” – Steve Jobs
“Sing like no one’s listening, love like you’ve never been hurt, dance like nobody’s watching, and live like its heaven on earth.” – Mark Twain
“Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you only spend it once.” – Lillian Dickson
“The best way to pay for a lovely moment is to enjoy it.” – Richard Bach
“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.” – Albert Camus
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” – Mahatma Gandhi
Confident Instagram captions
The following is a list of quotes about confidence for you to use as a caption for your next Instagram post.
Use one of these quotes or several across different posts to remind your followers to cultivate confidence in all areas of their lives.
Remember that comparison is common on social media but detrimental to one’s mental and emotional well-being. Inspire your followers with these words of wisdom.
“Confidence is the most beautiful thing you can possess.” – Sabrina Carpenter
“Confidence and intelligence will never stop being beautiful.” – Dau Voire
“Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you are right.” – Henry Ford
“Confidence is not ‘They will like me.’ Confidence is ‘I’ll be fine if they don’t.’ “- Christina Grimmie
“A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin
“If you don’t ask, the answer is always no.” – Nora Roberts
“Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” – Peter T. McIntyre
“Nothing can dim the light that shines from within.” – Maya Angelou
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
“With confidence, you have won before you have started.” – Marcus Garvey
“She remembered who she was and the game changed.”- Lalah Delia
“Be messy and complicated and afraid and show up anyways.” – Glennon Doyle Melton
“Tear off the mask, your face is glorious.” – Rumi
Self-love captions for Instagram
- Not everyone will understand you, and that’s perfectly fine; they don’t have to!
- Love yourself first.
- You can’t fill others’ cups when your own is empty.
- Take care of yourself, love yourself, and live for yourself.
- I am living the life I choose—a life of self-love, inner peace, and balance.
- I can only love others when I love myself first.
Self-love quotes for Instagram
The quotes you’ll find below highlight the importance of self-love. These quotes make for great, inspirational Insta posts, so write your content and bolster it with any of the following.
“To fall in love with yourself is the first secret to happiness.” – Robert Morley
“Self-respect, self-worth, and self-love, all start with self. Stop looking outside of yourself for your value.” – Rob Liano
“Our entire life consists ultimately in accepting ourselves as we are.” – Jean Anouilh
“Don’t sacrifice yourself too much, because if you sacrifice too much there’s nothing else you can give and nobody will care for you.” – Karl Lagerfeld
“Love is the great miracle cure. Loving ourselves works miracles in our lives.” – Luis L. Hay
“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” – Buddha
“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
“The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely.” – C. G. Jung
“The absence of self-love can never be replaced with the presence of people’s love for you.” – Edmond Mbiaka
“The feeling of love towards oneself is the greatest amount of gratitude towards creation.” – Nitin Namdeo
“People love you, the way you love yourself.” – Nitin Namdeo
“Loving you, caring you, respecting you, and appreciating you is not the duty of others, it’s all your responsibility.” – Nitin Namdeo
“Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we’ll ever do.” – Brené Brown
“You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.” – Diane Von Furstenberg
“If you can learn to love yourself and all the flaws, you can love other people so much better. And that makes you so happy.” – Kristin Chenoweth
“Plant your own gardens and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring your flowers.” – Jorge Luis Borges
“Breathe darling, this is just a chapter. It’s not your whole story.” – S.C. Laurie
“Seek to be whole, not perfect.” – Oprah Winfrey
“Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself.” – Coco Chanel
“You alone are enough, you have nothing to prove to anybody.” – Maya Angelou
“To love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance.” – Oscar Wilde
Song lyrics as Instagram captions
Song lyrics make for great Instagram captions. Bonus points if you add the song to a post or reel!
Below we’ve included some song lyrics based on self-love and living your best life.
“You should see me in a crown. I’m gonna run this nothin’ town. Watch me make ’em bow.” – Billie Eilish
“I don’t mean to brag, I don’t mean to boast. I love y’all, but I love me the most.” – Meghan Trainor
“I’m gonna love myself more than anyone else. Believe in me, even if someone can’t see the stronger woman in me.” – Jewel
“When there’s no one else, look inside yourself. Like your oldest friend, just trust the voice within. Then you’ll find the strength that will guide your way. You’ll learn to begin to trust the voice within.” – Christina Aguilera
“How can you love if you don’t love yourself? If you don’t love yourself, you can love no one else.” – The Script
“Sometimes it’s hard to follow your heart. Tears don’t mean you’re losing. Everybody’s bruising. Just be true to who you are.” – Jessie J
“The greatest love of all is easy to achieve. Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all.” – Whitney Houston
You deserve to be loved. You deserve something real. It’s time to heal, it’s time to feel… love.” – Tracy Dawn
“Why should I care what other people think of me? I am who I am. And who I wanna be.”- Avril Lavigne
What is self-love, anyway?
Self-love is understanding that you are your own best friend and that only you are responsible for how you feel. Self-love is not the same as generic self-care, such as bubble baths and expensive holidays.
Self-love is the radical act of looking within and connecting with your inner, authentic self, then choosing to express that authentic self to the world without shame or judgment.
As mentioned, self-love can be hard to come by. The truth is that it exists within you in abundance, but many of us deny our self-love because, for one of many potential reasons, we deem ourselves inherently unworthy or unlovable,
If you take anything from the quotes and caption ideas above, let it be that loving yourself is not a luxury nor a state of being reserved for people who are ‘worthy.’
Self-love is your birthright, so don’t be afraid or shy when expressing it outwardly. Put it at the top of your to-do list, do it your way, and let your happiness and peace be your utmost priority.