Self-esteem is the value that each human being has about ourselves, what we are, what we become, as a result of a mixture of physical, emotional and sentimental factors that we face throughout life and that were shaping our personality, this, in terms of the most formal definition that we can give and destroying ourselves a little we can say that self-esteem is the love we give to ourselves.
An assessment that evolves through the various stages of life, and the way in which one faces the obstacles that arise
This process begins to occur after approximately 5 or 6 years of life, when we begin to form an idea in ourselves of how our peers and the elders around us (parents, teachers) see us. However, like any process, by definition it is not a static phenomenon that is learned or fixed and there is no way to modify it; On the contrary, it can be changed and improved thanks to returns, which include constructive criticism, which come to us from those who are part of our closest environment and from whom we spoke above precisely, as well as fundamental parts in the construction of our esteem.
Indeed, although around 90% of the complementary series finish defining the personality during the first five years of life, according to current theories, many of the life experiences that occur in the later years of childhood and even during adolescence they are decisive in the genesis of the self-esteem process. This fact is attributed to the fact that personality, beyond its defined and stable components, includes adaptable and "plastic" elements, among which the contributions of the environment in which we operate stand out.
The challenge of controlling feelings and adapting to events that impact our lives
Meanwhile, the low selfsteem It can be him trigger of many psychological problems, such as depression, neurosis, shyness, shame, among others and one of the main topics to be discussed, if it is assumed and accepted or to be elucidated in therapy with a psychology professional. For example, the lack of self-confidence, the devaluation promoted by the hateful comparison with someone are some of the factors that trigger low or sometimes even zero self-esteem. This reality causes a marked reduction in the quality of life, which can be expressed in physical, psychological and, fundamentally, social health problems.
The role of family and friends in the fight against self-esteem problems
Although for the cure of low self-esteem, once it is established, consultation with a therapist who can treat the problem professionally can only be recommended, the role of guidance and counselor that parents and the school play at that time will also be decisive. important, as a critic, in which the child is acquiring his personality and his esteem. There is a growing trend towards pharmacological help among mental health professionals in pediatric patients, encouraged by numerous American and European scientific associations. However, as we stated previously, the family component is not replaceable at all, since it is the great gravitating component of the development of the personality in the first phases of life.
In adolescents and adults, likewise, psychological therapies, especially the tools of the cognitive-behavioral spectrum, are considered very useful resources for the approach to the fall of the self-esteem. It is worth recognizing that the arts, especially music and theater, are very interesting ways of approaching people with attenuation of their self-esteem, since both allow the emergence to the conscious plane of numerous unconscious processes that can be deleterious; their mere expression, under the sublimation represented by the arts, are a remarkable way of optimizing the fall in self-esteem, while generating the possibility of growth for the affected people themselves and for third parties who enjoy art.
