Boost Your Self-Esteem For Improved Mental Health

Self-esteem influences decisions throughout your life and plays a crucial role in setting goals, building healthy habits, managing relationships, and your mental health. Self-esteem has a large role in determining your quality of life and has a direct impact on mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety. In honor of Boost Self-Esteem Month, we’re covering the different kinds of self-esteem and how self-esteem develops, as well as the effects of both low and high levels of self-esteem, and ways you can boost your self-esteem.
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How self-esteem develops

Self-esteem is how you perceive your self-worth and it dramatically shapes the way you think, the way you feel, and the way your internal dialogue speaks to you. Self-esteem begins to form at a young age, usually just beyond infancy, and continues to build and reshape itself throughout your life. It is influenced somewhat by genetics and personality traits, but largely by life experiences, thoughts, life stage, health, relationships, your social environment, and by the reactions of those around you. In general, the self-esteem that is built in childhood and adolescence is the self-esteem your adult self will have as a foundation. This isn’t as bad as it sounds if you struggled with low self-esteem when you were young - it only means you have to have a little more intention when it comes to how you internalize and react to the world around you.

There are three main types of self-esteem:

• Low self-esteem - With low self-esteem, a person will feel that they are below average, unwanted, or insignificant. They struggle with confidence and don’t trust their ability to accomplish goals or tasks. Having low self-esteem is linked with having poor relationships, and struggling with addiction and poor mental health.

• Inflated self-esteem - With inflated self-esteem, people tend to think that they are better than other people and often undermine or insult others by placing themselves ahead or above everyone else. People with inflated self-esteem often exhibit other behavior patterns related to narcissism.

• High self-esteem - People with high self-esteem have a strong belief in themselves and their ability to accomplish what they set out to do. They have confidence in themselves and have little fear of being judged by others. They are able to accept corrective criticism and use it as an opportunity to grow. People with high self-esteem are usually very positive and uplifting to others, and overall very pleasant to be around.
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Boosting your self-esteem

You can boost your self-esteem by adjusting the negative aspects in your mind towards positivity. Start by forgiving yourself for things you perceive as shortcomings in your past, and pledging to show yourself more grace going forward. Take a mental inventory of your successes that you can list to yourself in moments when you feel down.

• Abolish “All-or-nothing” thinking - People with low self-esteem will often feel like a failure if they don’t succeed completely or succeed on the first try. Remember that you can implement positivity by not seeing failure as failure, but as an opportunity for growth and improvement.

• Don’t jump to conclusions - Avoid negative conclusions that are not justified, such as "they haven’t replied, so I must have made them angry”, or “they didn’t invite me, so they must not like me”. Instead of jumping to conclusions, challenge yourself to ask for clarification.

• Replace negative self-talk - Put a stop to undervaluing yourself or putting yourself down with thoughts like "I don't deserve anything better", or “I’ll never make it”. Whenever you catch yourself having negative thoughts, immediately change course and replace it with something positive like, “I really did an amazing job last time”, or “I deserve to be happy”. Encourage yourself to challenge every negative thought with a positive one, until it becomes a habit to recognize your successes rather than your perceived shortcomings.

• Understand your self-worth - Identify your accomplishments and learn how to speak kindly to yourself. If you’re one who has trouble with this, try using positive affirmations at the start of your day, to set a positive tone for the rest of the day. Another important step in acknowledging your self-worth is to accept compliments. People who struggle with self-esteem often deflect compliments because they feel undeserving of them, which couldn’t be farther from the truth. Next time someone compliments you, receive it and internalize it.

• Self-love - Learning to love yourself takes time and effort. Give yourself grace, and prioritize taking care of your physical needs. Make self-care part of your daily or weekly routine, and consider the necessary steps you need to take to support your mental health. Part of supporting your mental health will be assessing your environment and relationships for anything that is not fostering a healthy environment for you.
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Take an honest assessment of your environment and relationships

Are your relationships fulfilling and positive? Is your living space welcoming and relaxing? Healthy relationships are ones that keep you feeling secure and loved, even in times of struggle. If instead, you feel stressed, unworthy, unwanted, or afraid - consider evaluating if you are in an abusive relationship. Our recent blog posts on attachment styles and narcissism could help you. Our living environments reflect a lot about who we are, including our moods, personalities, and how we perceive ourselves. People with low self-esteem will typically have a more cluttered and unkempt environment, whereas people with higher self-esteem will tend to have a brighter, cleaner, and more organized living space. Brightening up and organizing your living space can have a positive impact on your self-esteem for a couple of reasons. You’ll have a sense of accomplishment when you’re finished and you’ll feel more relaxed and happy when you’re in your space. You’ll also be more comfortable inviting others into your space.
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Getting support boosts self esteem

Supporting your mental health and managing depression and anxiety that is stemming from low self-esteem play a key role in boosting your mental health. Working with a licensed therapist or counselor will help you get to the roots of your self-esteem problem and navigate a personalized plan for improving. If you or someone you know is struggling with self-esteem, Medens Health can help. If you are in the California or Nevada, reach out to us via our online portal or by calling/texting (833) 624-5400.

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^Disclaimer:

^{‍The information provided in this blog is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Reliance on any information provided in this blog is solely at your own risk. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified mental health provider with any questions you may have regarding your medical or mental health. If you don’t currently have a therapist, we can connect you with one who is qualified to give you safe, professional, and ethical advice regarding your mental health.}

^{If you or someone you are responsible for is experiencing a medical emergency, is considering harming themselves or others, or is otherwise in imminent danger, you should call 9-1-1 and/or take them to the nearest emergency room.}