Do you wonder if you have a negative self-perception? Have you ever wished you had a more compassionate or realistic view of yourself? A TPG therapist can help.
Self-esteem is what you think of yourself. It is informed by your internal evaluation of your qualities, including your strengths, weaknesses, skills, and abilities. When your self-evaluation is reasonable and relatively accurate, you are likely to have healthy self-esteem. However, many people have a hard time assessing themselves accurately.
Low self-esteem means you tend to view yourself negatively. You may feel inadequate, incompetent, or impatient with yourself. This perspective can make you feel like an impostor—the so-called “imposter syndrome”—and rob you of feeling satisfied with your accomplishments. Low self-esteem can affect decision-making and can present in many ways, including symptoms of anxiety, depression and addiction.
Experiences of oppression and devaluation also impact our sense of self-worth. We are born and raised within a social structure that assigns meaning or value to race, gender identity, disability, class, sexual orientation, body size, and other characteristics. Low self-esteem may reflect how systemically devalued your identity and worth have been.
A therapist will help you to come to a fuller and more realistic sense of yourself. This means understanding yourself in a holistic way. We thrive on appreciation our strengths, which fuels our effort to work on what needs to be addressed in our lives. Seeing a therapist to deal with a lack of confidence and impaired self-esteem can involve:
For further reading on self-esteem, social oppression, and decolonizing mental health.
For general self-esteem, see the Wikipedia summary.
Ready to take the next step?
When you’re ready, we’re here to listen and help you move forward. Your journey toward feeling like yourself again starts with a single step.
Have a question first? Visit our FAQ page or email info@torontopsychotherapygroup.com.