Ниската самооценка и увереност е цялостно мнение за себе си. Нивото на самочувствие, което притежаваме, може да повлияе на всички аспекти на живота, включително вида на хората, които привличаме, кариерата, която изграждаме, отношенията и т.н. Противно на това, което хората могат да вярват, самочувствието не е същото като самочувствието. Самоувереността се гради върху постиженията, докато самочувствието се гради върху мнението. По дефиниция ниската самооценка е термин, използван в Психологията, за да отразява цялостната оценка на човек или оценка на неговата собствена стойност. Самочувствието обхваща вярвания и емоции като триумф, отчаяние, гордост и срам. Самоувереността е социално-психологическата концепция, която се свързва със самоувереността в личната преценка, способността, силата и т.н., понякога се проявява прекомерно. Дори и да има разделяне между самоуважението и самоувереността, те вървят на ръка - тъй като те трябва да се справят с възгледа на себе си. Възможно е обаче някой да има повече от един от другия. Проблемите със самочувствието и самочувствието са по-често срещани в живота на хората, отколкото това, което повечето могат да мислят. Това са много интимни въпроси, които повечето хора или пренебрегват, и не обсъждат открито, понякога са толкова силно засегнати от тях, че буквално избират да се скрият от света, за да избегнат каквото и да е външно виждане на своето саморефлексия. За по-лесно четене ще се съсредоточим главно върху самочувствието, тъй като това е по-скоро вътрешен проблем.

• Questioning your capabilities, doubting and worrying

• Social withdrawal

• Lack of social skills and self-confidence

• Eating disorders

• Accentuating the negative

• Self-neglect and worrying whether you have treated others badly

• Inability to accept compliments

• Negative self-talk

• Frequently apologising

• Avoiding risks

• Avoiding eye contact

• Constantly seeking approval from others

• Pessimism

Research has found that people with genuine low self-esteem tend to treat themselves badly, although such treatment is not extended to other people. Surprisingly, it is now clear that too high self-esteem or 'High Self Esteem Disorder' is often more of a problem, and this is not merely a disguised form of low self-esteem, as commonly thought. Reliable researching shows that bullies and many criminals are much more likely to suffer from unrealistically high self-esteem and impulse control problems rather than low self-esteem. An exaggerated sense of entitlement, expecting much from many situations, is more likely to lead to frustration and aggressive, antisocial, or even criminal behaviour. So it is imperative that a realistic balance is made with this.

Past conditioning, often from childhood or past experiences, has been the main cause of self-esteem issues. These conditions can run so deep that people with low self-esteem can be upset by disconfirming feedback. An adult who has healthy self-esteem may have been lucky to be given this gift during childhood. This could have been done in many ways. The most important is being praised for accomplishments. Children who were talked to respectfully and listened to also are likely to have had healthy self-esteem in adulthood. These children were hugged often, given attention and some may have experienced success in school or sporting activities.

On the other side of the spectrum, adults with low self-esteem may have been criticised harshly as children. They may have been abused, yelled at, beaten, or given little attention by those they were closest to. They may have been ridiculed and teased as they experienced failures in their young lives, making them see failure in those situations as a failure of their whole selves and feeling that they had to be perfect in order to be valued.

Healthy self-esteem needs to emerge gradually, not instantaneously. Contrary to popular opinion, people with low self-esteem tend to be very sure of themselves, which lies the problem. This manifests in their conviction that they are worthless or inadequate.

Creating higher self-esteem and self-confidence is a complicated area but there is hope, remember that you could be wrong about how you view yourself. Drugs are not really effective in the treatment of this particular issue, as there is no pill to help you feel better about yourself or that will take a permanent hold on your self-view.

As it is important to gradually build, or lower, your self-esteem, simply talking to someone who will listen can help tremendously. An open ear may allow you to open your mind to the real you. It is important to learn new ways to challenge your negative perceptions about yourself and unlearn unhelpful patterns of thinking. Counsellors and Psychotherapists can assist you in combating self-esteem and self-confidence issues. They can provide you with the therapeutic support that you need. Counselling Therapy can help you to Review, Retrain, Prove and Recognise.