Is it possible to love someone without loving yourself?

[Neha Panikar]

In healthy mature relationships there is a good balance between self-love and loving others. Each one prioritizes the other and its a win-win. However, this is ideal. If one party keeps giving or boundaries are not respected, it could lead to trouble. Also, when a person offers love from a place of insecurity, that too can be short lived and/or toxic.
But another perspective where love can be entirely lopsided yet healthy, are parent-child relationships. A parent would happily put forth everything and more even if it's to his disadvantage, just to make things better for his child, which doesn't necessarily mean the parent doesn't love himself, but rather that this relationship will have no reciprocity.

[Bettny Andrade]

Yes, of course it is possible. Although it is possible that what the general case poses is that the true sense of love will be complete and with complete meaning if you love yourself, the feelings would be from the Being. Which would correspond to people sharing and seeing things from their own experience.

[Gabriela Contreras Gonzalez]

You cannot understand love, nor love others if you do not love yourself. Loving yourself means accepting who you are, respecting and protecting yourself, not letting others push you around, loving others is accepting who they are, respecting, and doing acts of service. Love is more than just saying "I love you".

[Keturah Larai Gana]

Serving others at the expense of your own well-being and excessive sacrifice is not a sign of love. If we believe that sorrow and anguish are the results of sin, do they accompany love? Does love motivate you, or are you driven by fear, the need to impress, or something else entirely? What's inside of you, the emotion and the drive driving your behavior, is what matters most. 

[Samina Moiyadi]

I think loving someone else is not possible unless you love yourself, not even your own kids. Also, it is only human to expect love in return when you love someone. If not love, then at least the acknowledgment. But if you don't love yourself, how can you expect love from others?

[Magdalyne chebet]

As the Bible says, "Love your neighbor as yourself," the love we show others reflects how we view ourselves. In my opinion, it's impossible to truly love others if we don't first love ourselves. The way we treat others reveals our own sense of self-worth and humanity.

[Lene Lena]

Leviticus emphasizes a balance between self-love and love for others. This directive suggests that one must care for oneself to effectively care for others. When I was in the Philippines volunteering with the Missionaries of the Poor, I met Catholic brothers who have chosen not to marry and live in a community serving the poor, who have no one to care for them, like disabled children. While some people may show extreme selflessness, dedicating their lives to serving others, this does not necessarily contradict the principle outlined in Leviticus. True selflessness can stem from a profound understanding of one's own worth and the interconnectedness of humanity. I often asked those brothers why they chose such a path, and I realized that when individuals prioritize the well-being of others, they often do so because they recognize that helping others contributes to their own fulfillment and happiness.

[Olga Markova]

when individuals prioritize the well-being of others, they often do so because they recognize that helping others contributes to their own fulfillment and happiness.

I fully agree with this stance. I have the same feeling when I rescue dogs—shortly before Christmas I noticed a young dog kept in the village holding cage. I took him home and left a note for whoever might wonder who took the dog, with my name and contact number. Eventually, the lady who wanted him but was not ready to take him home surrendered him to me. Now, as I can see this busy pup bouncing happily with my pack around the gardens, enjoying his meals, and snuggling next to me at night, it makes me feel immensely happy. If I loved myself more, I would not have taken him - he was the ninth dog in my current pack! But...!

[Tukuna Sahu]

No, I don't think so. Because if someone doesn't love themselves, how can they relate to someone? According to me, without loving yourself, you can't love someone. because it is related to yourself, like my father, my mother, my brother, my friend, my neighbor, and my country. Everything is related to yourself. So, if you want to love someone then first love yourself.

[Stephanie Runyon]

If you think of the scriptures Matthew 7:12 and Luke 6:31, Jesus states that you should treat others as you would treat yourself. If you treat yourself poorly, wouldn't that subject you to treat others in poorly. If you love yourself then you could love others as well; therefore, if you don't love yourself then you can't love others sincerely.

[Priya Murugesan]

Self-love is very important for our sanity and well-being. If one can't love their own self, then it is not possible to love others. But loving oneself shouldn't make oneself self-centered. I think one should have a balance between loving oneself and loving others.

[Chinazo Anozie]

I really don't believe you can love someone when you don't love yourself. There's a popular Latin maxim that says "nemo dat quod non habet" meaning "you can't give what you don't have". If someone doesn't know love, how can they give/have it for someone else?

[Leslie coccia]

Absolutely, especially when considering non romantic love. In the context of romantic love, I think that it is possible to learn how to love another even when a person is still working on loving themselves. If a person has that intention to love someone else, they can learn.

[Harmen Aerts]

I've always believed in the saying you can't pour out of an empty cup. The meaning is clear, if you don't have a love of self, it is nigh impossible to love others. Another meaning that can be derived from it would be that if you don't receive love, you won't be able to give love to others either. In my opinion both of these understandings are correct.

[Frank Edwards]

Love should come from abundance, not sacrifice. True love heals, while suffering for others depletes. The real question is: do you act from love or fear?