The opinion we have of ourselves is of great importance and gives us the confidence we need daily not only to have a better chance of success in what we set out to do, but also to be happy in general.
This perception we have of ourselves is never limited to being purely rational, since it is linked to a series of emotions and feelings that we experience on a daily basis; It is very difficult to make a totally objective analysis about how we are and how we behave. Therefore, self-esteem always has an intellectual part, which we can express with words, and an emotional part. And also for this reason, low self-esteem gives rise to many different problems, since it generates a “snowball” effect that leads us to constantly self-sabotage.
To give you an idea of how important it is to take care of this aspect of mental health, in this article we will give a review of the main psychological effects of lack of self-esteem.
People with a good level of self-esteem are more likely to live the life they want; On the contrary, people with low self-esteem are more predisposed to developing alterations in their mental health and a lifestyle that harms them in the medium and long term.
Going into more detail, below you will find a summary of the main effects caused by a lack of self-esteem on a daily basis.
Generalized insecurity is one of the most characteristic effects in people who develop low self-esteem, and in the long run it becomes a trait that affects the entire person as a whole, in any daily activity. It has to do with the feeling of always having to overcompensate for everything we could be doing wrong, dedicating a lot of effort to reviewing what we do, not allowing ourselves to “disconnect” from work, and in general, feeling bad if we stop paying attention to signs that we have made a mistake in something.
Low self-esteem in a person ends up undermining their security each time to the point of convincing them that they are not capable of doing anything good in life and that they are of no use.
The lack of security is also linked to a lack of self-confidence and both deficits generate great discomfort and suffering in the affected person, to the point of preventing them from achieving any goal or objective they propose.
2. Fear
Fear is also generalized to any area of life of people with low self-esteem, a constant that is increasingly becoming part of their lives and personality.
This fear can manifest itself in many ways, generally consisting of a fear of failure or a fear of accepting challenges that test the individual’s personal or intellectual abilities.
In conclusion, low self-esteem is characterized by an essential fear of leaving the comfort zone own and to embark on new paths unknown to people, we do not know where they will take us.
3. Overthinking things
Recurrent thoughts about past or future events are common in people with low levels of self-esteem, who analyze in detail everything they do during the day with high levels of self-demand.
This tendency to overthink everything is also due to the person’s tendency to believe that you never do anything right which is why excessive perfectionism also ends up being generated.
This perfectionism also ends up developing in the person with low self-esteem an urgent need to demonstrate that they are good workers, staying working late into the night at their workplace.
4. Negative view of reality
A negative view of life in general and a difficulty in seeing the positive side of all things is the daily bread of many people with low self-esteem, which often makes it difficult for them to find joy and happiness in anything they do. do. It is, ultimately, a pessimistic bias that leads us to omit the good things we do and that happen to us.
This negative vision causes them to see everything black and never be happy about anything good that may occur or happen in their daily life, which is also related to high perfectionism.
Likewise, a negative attitude caused by a negative view of oneself or by considering that others have a negative perception of oneself is also common.
5. Relationship difficulties
The inability to communicate well and to establish normal relationships with people in one’s environment also characterizes those who have low levels of self-esteem. By having low self-esteem, We expect others to see us as a nuisance or as someone who can’t be counted on for what’s important.
Communication under normal circumstances requires a certain self-confidence and a series of social and communication skills that people with low self-esteem lack.
In the long term, low self-esteem can lead to states of demotivation regarding daily life, as well as exhaustion and apathy.
This phenomenon affects the person both in their personal life and in their work life and prevents you from getting the most out of it both at work and in their interpersonal relationships.
7. Dependency
The lack of confidence in people with low self-esteem ends up causing them to end up depending on another person in their daily lives, considering that they are incapable of doing anything well and cannot function on a daily basis without external support.
This psychological phenomenon is truly problematic, since in the long run it ends up even further undermining the person’s confidence and self-esteem and can promote emotionally dependent relationships.
8. Unfair self-criticism
An extremely self-critical attitude and very severe with one’s own abilities and performance They are also classic effects of low self-esteem.
That is why people tend to generate obsessive relationships with their work or with the tasks they are carrying out, never being satisfied with the result of their work.
Are you looking for psychological assistance services?
If you are interested in having psychotherapeutic support, contact me.
My name is Carolina Marin and I am a General Health Psychologist, as well as a psychotherapist federated by the FEAP. I attend to cases in my office located in Seville and online by video call.
