How low self-worth can silently shape your life

Struggling to feel good enough is both a lifelong struggle and something we often forget on a day-to-day conscious level. So instead of being conscious of how low it is, self-esteem You may have a tendency to move from one self-esteem crisis to the next as it affects your life. This can be exhausting and all-consuming, so much so that you may lose sight of how your self-esteem is perpetuating your unhappiness.

Feeling like you’re not good enough, feeling like you’re not worthy, or feeling like you need to trick people into thinking you’re good enough all define low self-esteem. For most people, this kind of thinking begins with: childhood And you end up with a default state of mind. You may not even be aware of these thoughts as they unfold, but they still have great power and contribute to your suffering.

Often times, people with low self-esteem may appear to be doing well on the outside, but on the inside they quietly feel that the ground is shifting. They may persistently try to suppress themselves and their lives as a way to gain stability. It is inevitable that this strategy will eventually fail, reinforcing the feeling that we are not good enough and must be extremely careful to avoid the next failure.

When you’re struggling with low self-esteem, you’re probably more focused on how to keep trying and keeping tight control than the costs of this strategy. The first step to increasing your self-worth is evaluating how it influences your decisions.

4 ways low self-esteem silently shapes your life

1. Friendship: If your goal is to keep everyone from thinking anything is wrong or bad about you, they go down the drain. When it is almost impossible to live up to the expectations we have for ourselves, we see only the shortcomings in ourselves. When social interactions end, there is a gaping hole. That hole may be comparing yourself to others, feeling judged by others, or questioning your own words and actions. All of this prevents you from being excited about your friends and reaping the psychological rewards of having someone close to you in your life. Rewards such as the benefits of health and longevity, connection, shared joy, and meaning.
2. romantic relationship: When you’re in a close romantic relationship, it’s almost natural for you to project your insecurities onto your partner. If you suffer from low self-esteem, you may doubt your self-esteem and criticize it. You may feel like your partner will never be able to meet your wants and needs. Or you may find yourself so insecure that your partner has to constantly reassure you, or resentful that the relationship revolves around your needs. Or you may hide your true self even from that person, leaving the relationship feeling empty, one-sided, and unmet your needs.
3. Professional life: Having low self-worth in your professional field can mean that you are suffering from self-doubt. You may be reluctant to take on challenges and feel like you’re not living up to your potential, or conversely, you may have a kind of frenetic energy to prove yourself and accomplish more until there’s little left for you. You may be successful, but much of it is built on anxiety and hypervigilance, which makes it difficult to feel safe or secure in one’s success.
4. Your sense of pleasure: If you think of evaluating your worth based on your output, you will end up leaving behind the process of living. As a result, all the wonders and gems and little moments of meaning and joy and peace in your life may pass you by. You are aware that there are “good things” in an intellectual sense, so to speak, but for you nervous system Relaxation and joy are needed to deeply encode the good.