By Varsha Seshadri
What is self-esteem?
Self-esteem is how you view and perceive yourself. A high self-esteem implies
confidence while a low self-esteem means that one may have low self-confidence. But more than that, self-esteem can have an impact on your ability to:
Like yourself
Ability to make decisions
Believe you matter and deserve happiness
Recognize your strengths
This list is just a few of the ways self-esteem impacts your life.
Self-esteem’s link with emotional dysregulation
While low self-esteem is not a mental health problem, the two are closely linked. For
example, both low self-esteem and mental health issues share similar signs which can become problematic if held long-term. Such as:
Feeling hopeless
Blaming yourself (at an extreme level)
Hating yourself
Anxiety about being unable to do things
Ways to Boost Self-Esteem
To boost self-esteem, many things could there be tried, which are:
Recognizing something you’re good at. As we all enjoy doing things we’re good at, this can help boost your overall mood.
Building positive relationships. The best people in life will always make you feel uplifted and will give you the truth about things. Mostly, they will support you the way you are.
Be kind to yourself. It’s much easier said than done, though.
Start saying “no” when you mean to say “no”. Having autonomy over yourself can be a way to improve your self-confidence.
It’s important to note that improving your self-esteem can be a long journey with some very good days and some rough ones. It’s much easier said than done, so be patient and gentle with yourself as much as you can. You deserve to be loved and cared for and you are loved by all of us no matter how much time it takes for you to love yourself.
References
NHS UK. (n.d.). Raising low self-esteem. Mind.
Verywell Mind. (n.d.). Self-esteem.
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