Self-Esteem - Strengthening Self-Esteem - Peel Public Health

Self Esteem: Strengthening Self-Esteem

Making the Healthy Mind...Healthy Body Connection

Self-esteem is the value you place on yourself. Healthy self-esteem gives you energy to cope with the many challenges you face day to day. It helps you to go after what you really need and handle difficult, risky or frightening situations. It also helps you to reach out to help others.
Your sense of worth is affected by many factors:
- Some are memories in the past.
- Some are related to stage of life - the teen years and middle age are two periods of big change, that often result in feelings of confusion and self-doubt.
- The stress and rapid change in our present times affect many aspects of personal, social and work life. Sometimes, identity and sense of worth are totally dependent on having a job, or being in a relationship. If these end, self-esteem could hit rock bottom.
Bookmark this site map now, and you can work through the process of strengthening self-esteem at your own pace. With understanding, reflection and practice, you'll experience the difference.

	Do you...	If YES, mark here
1.	Criticize yourself for mistakes?
2.	Overlook your accomplishments and doubt compliments?
3.	Worry about what others think?
4.	Find feelings difficult to express and handle?
5.	Feel anxious in social situations?
6.	Think about everyone else's needs before your own?
7.	Blame yourself when someone is unfair or hurtful?
8.	Think that anything less than perfect is not good enough?
9.	Avoid trying new things?
10.	Worry about your appearance?
If you marked to some or all of these 10 questions, it's time to recharge or strengthen your self-esteem. It's normal for self-esteem to fluctuate depending on the challenges you are facing at the time; but if you're down more than up, there are solutions.
Healthy self-esteem is not about perfection. When self-esteem is low, it doesn't mean we are failures... far from it... many very successful people experience self-doubt from time to time. Whatever the reasons for self-esteem being low, people tell us that when they learn to give themselves approval from within, and develop some new coping skills, their stress level goes way down and their energy goes up! The Process of Strengthening Self-Esteem