Self Esteem

Self Esteem is typically defined as a person’s evaluation of his or her own worth.

A healthy self esteem is thought to develop in childhood through having consistent experiences of feeling loved, cared for, encouraged and praised by your parents and family.

Unfortunately many people miss out on some of these experiences and become prone to self-doubt, insecurity and self criticism. This in turn, can lead to problems with relationships, friendships, or work.

While important, the concept of self-esteem has been heavily critiqued in recent times and is no longer seen by many therapists as a very reliable measurement of a person’s psychological well-being.

 

 

The reason for this is some forms of self esteem can manifest as ‘grandiosity’ and are often linked to narcissism, arrogance and the bad treatment of others.

Rather than self esteem, recent psychological therapies emphasis the importance of self-compassion and self-acceptance as more worthwhile attributes and are more strongly linked to qualities such as wisdom, happiness, optimism, life satisfaction, emotional intelligence, social connectedness and overall well-being.

At Counselling Works we have treated many people with self esteem issues. So don’t keep suffering. Contact us to arrange an appointment today.

Counselling Works is an Auckland Counselling service based in Ponsonby, Central Auckland.