Your self-worth is inherently linked to your mental health. When you feel bad about yourself, your mental health goes down. When you feel good about yourself, your mental health improves. Self-esteem and self-acceptance are two big parts of your self-worth, but they are not the same.
Your self-esteem can fluctuate because how you feel about yourself is influenced by social interaction, external validation, hormones, and even stress. On the other hand, self-acceptance is a general permission you give yourself no Be excellent.
What is self esteem?
Self-esteem is your sense of self-worth that ebbs and flows based on how you feel about yourself and your accomplishments. In difficult times, your self-esteem may drop. When you are excited about an accomplishment, your self-esteem may be higher than usual.
Studies have linked low self-esteem to anxiety and depression, especially in adolescents. Feeling bad about yourself can turn into more negativity. It’s normal to have days of self-doubt, but when they drag on, it can be damaging to your mental health.
You may have suffered from low self-esteem if someone criticized you or for not achieving something you set out to do. Maybe you messed up something at work, or a friend said something hurtful. Either of these two things can hurt your self-esteem, making your day — or week or month — bad. This means that your general mental health may not be in good shape temporarily, but identifying what’s going on can help you change it.
Strategies for improving low self-esteem
While you may not always suffer from low self-esteem, there are techniques you can use to boost your mental health when you’re not feeling your best.
Focus on positive self-talk
According to Walden University, positive self-talk can improve mood and productivity. When you use positive self-talk in your daily routine, you can Elevate your mental healthAnd when your mental health is in order, so are you Less likely to feel anxious. When your head is clear, you can get more done. In the same way that negative self-talk can spiral downward, positive self-talk can spiral upward. If you celebrate yourself, you will continue to feel good about yourself.
To engage in positive self-talk, start each day by looking in the mirror and telling yourself what you’re proud of. Or you can simply look in the mirror and tell yourself that you deserve good things and that you are successful. You can customize these phrases for whatever you want to target, be it work or your personal life.
Identify your strengths and capabilities
Along the same lines of engaging in positive self-talk, you should also identify your strengths and abilities. If you have started Positive self-talk, you should have defined these two things. Examine the things you know you’re good at, and then celebrate. And don’t be shy about standing up for yourself, even if you feel like it’s something insignificant. No achievement is too small to celebrate.
When you don’t feel good about your self-esteem, seeing your strengths can be difficult, but it’s essential to recognize and respond to them in these low moments. Identify your strengths, abilities, and accomplishments now and keep them handy for when you need something to celebrate.
Communicate with others
Being open can help when you’re struggling to work through it. Low self-esteem can get out of hand quickly, so if you feel like you’re slipping down, ask for help. This could be from family, friends, a therapist, or even Targeted therapy applications that provide resources. Opening up when you’re vulnerable can actually be life-saving, and it’s important to realize that there’s nothing to be ashamed of in asking for help.
Learn when to say no
“No” is a complete sentence and should be part of your vocabulary. There are several instances in which you can assert your power by saying no. One of those times when you know something is going to hurt your mental health. If you are asked for something and you know it has the potential to bring you down, don’t hesitate to prioritize yourself and say no. While there are some situations where saying no can be difficult, especially if you are at work and feel cornered, you can still say no. Hopefully, you won’t be in any situations where it reacts, but if you are, reach out to someone for help.
What is self acceptance?
Self-acceptance is accepting yourself for who you are – the pros and cons. Self-acceptance can improve mental health because it is a state of acceptance without judgment. Once you reach this point, you have less chance of negativity affecting you.
Self-acceptance is slightly different from self-esteem, with self-acceptance being more stable. On the other hand, self-esteem can rise and fall based on what is happening around you. Your self-esteem directly affects your mood, while self-acceptance is a neutral state of being satisfied with yourself.
Characteristics of self-acceptance:
- See your mistakes and deal with them
- The ability to respect yourself as you are
- Advocate for yourself without needing someone else’s approval
- Embrace your negative traits and understand that they are a part of you
- Seeing your total value without focusing on one aspect, whether positive or negative
Practical tips for learning self-acceptance
Self-acceptance is something you will not achieve overnight. It’s a journey of coming to terms with yourself as a whole human being, with both flaws and successes. Using these tips can help you get to the point of truly loving yourself.
forgive yourself
A big part of self-acceptance is understanding your mistakes. There will be things you don’t excel at or that you’ve been wrong in the past, and that’s okay. Learning to forgive yourself for not being perfect can bring you closer to self-acceptance. Accepting yourself as you are – the pros and cons – is not easy and requires seeing those negative aspects and dealing with them.
Use mindfulness to connect with yourself
Sitting alone with your thoughts can be really hard for some people, especially if you have negativity running through your head. If meditation and mindfulness are difficult for you, try using a guided meditation app to find your Zen. Quieting your mind can help clear negativity and allow more room for acceptance. In this practice, you can focus on your successes and love yourself. Your presence is a blessing, and practicing meditation can help you see that.
Don’t forget self-compassion
In the same way that you can forgive yourself for your mistakes, you should, too Show compassion for yourself. This empathy is essential to overcoming negativity about your mistakes or the things you’re not good at, but it’s also an essential component of the journey of self-acceptance. You will stumble along this path to self-acceptance, but just understand where it feels to get off the wagon and back. Allow yourself the grace to reach a point of self-acceptance and know that it will not be easy to achieve.
Learn to move beyond past disappointments
When things go wrong, it’s easy to get frustrated about them. This is where your self-esteem comes in. Disappointments can affect your self-esteem and make you feel vulnerable. But when you get to a place of self-acceptance, those disappointments don’t hurt as much. The path towards self-acceptance will be paved with disappointments that will try to push you off the path, and you know what? Sometimes they will. It is the process of getting over them that is most important. Your self-esteem will plummet when that happens, but every time you get over it, you’ll be one step closer to strengthening yourself and not having much success in the future.
Challenge negative thoughts about yourself
Negative thoughts are difficult and can happen when you least expect it. When your self-esteem is low, negative thoughts can run rampant. You are already vulnerable, and if you are not careful, these negative thoughts can become scary. But when you bring yourself to a place of self-acceptance, you want it Challenge those negative thoughts. When you feel them coming, stop them in their tracks and bring back positive thinking. Even if you don’t really believe in positive thinking, it can help you focus on an end goal, and having an affirmation can help you reach that milestone.
Very long; Didn’t you read?
Your self-esteem will naturally fluctuate until you reach a point of self-acceptance. It’s hard to reach a state of self-acceptance, where you truly love yourself for all that you are (and what you’re not), but rewarding when you do. Once you get there, your self-esteem will stay in positive territory, and your overall mental health should feel better. It takes work to get it done, but it’s worth it in the end.