{"id":8114,"date":"2025-10-19T13:52:34","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T10:52:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mytherapist.gr\/?p=8114"},"modified":"2025-11-19T11:42:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T09:42:07","slug":"how-to-cope-with-low-self-esteem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mytherapist.gr\/en\/mental-health-articles\/self-awareness-and-self-esteem\/how-to-cope-with-low-self-esteem\/","title":{"rendered":"Low self-esteem and ways to cope"},"content":{"rendered":"
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How many times have you questioned yourself and your worth? Self-esteem equals worth divided by abilities. Self-esteem is not just a word. It is the foundation on which our mental health, relationships, and choices are built. Learning to see yourself with respect and acceptance can radically change your life. Self-esteem is formed from childhood. The level of our self-esteem affects how we think, feel, and act. When it is low, it often leads to inner conflict, anxiety<\/a>, insecurity, and difficulty experiencing life with fullness. Learning how to understand and strengthen self-esteem is a process of deep self-awareness and care.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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What self-esteem is, and how it differs from self-confidence<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Self-esteem is the degree to which we value and accept ourselves, with both our positive and negative sides. It is our internal sense of worth as human beings.
Self-confidence, by contrast, is the trust we have in our abilities to perform specific actions. Someone can have high self-confidence in a skill, for example professional competence, but still have low overall self-esteem. Self-esteem is the overall picture we hold of ourselves. It answers the question, \u201cHow much am I worth as a person?\u201d It is linked to a sense of value, acceptance, and self-love. It is built mainly through childhood experiences, relationships with significant others such as parents, messages we receive from our environment, and personal life events. When it is low, it can lead to insecurity, fear of rejection, and dependence on the acceptance of others<\/a>. Self-confidence is belief in our capabilities. It reflects how sure we feel that we can achieve specific goals or complete tasks and responsibilities. It answers the question, \u201cCan I do it?\u201d It focuses on skills and specific areas, for example confidence in studies, work, or social settings. It can be high in one area and low in another. It is strengthened through action, practice, and experience.<\/p>

Rosenberg notes (1965, 1979) that many people assume that if someone respects themselves in certain aspects of life, then they respect themselves overall. If they believe they are intelligent, attractive, moral, interesting, then they have a positive view of themselves as a whole. However, it is clear that a person\u2019s global self-esteem is not based on their skills in general, but on the strengths that matter to them. What determines self-esteem is not individual traits on their own, but the relationships between them, their weight, and their combination.<\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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How low self-esteem develops<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Self-esteem is shaped mainly in childhood.<\/p>