Unconditional Self-acceptance: What It Is And Why It Improves Our Mental Health
We would talk about self-acceptance when referring to that attitude that people have with themselves when it comes to showing recognition and approval of their own abilities, qualities and also their limitations.
On the other hand, unconditional self-acceptance is an attitude someone can develop towards themselves that consists of accepting categorically, loyally or without any type of limitations each and every one of their various facets; That is to say, he would unconditionally accept both its positive and negative facets.
In this article you will find a summary of what unconditional self-acceptance consists of also seeing its influence within the field of psychotherapies, but first we are going to explain the importance of self-acceptance and its influence on maintaining good mental health.
As we have seen, self-acceptance would be the attitude that a person has towards himself when accepting his own defects, but also the virtues he has, all in a coherent way, without blaming himself, or passing judgment and avoiding any type of cognitive bias in the way possible. After all, The fundamental objective of self-acceptance is for one to become aware of oneself in a global and at the same time optimistic way something very important to maintain good mental health.
In addition, self-acceptance allows us to combat those limiting beliefs that could block us from pursuing our goals. And it is that when we do an exercise of introspection, looking inside ourselves, without judging ourselves, or carrying out any negative evaluation that could weigh us down and without setting limits for ourselves, that is when we could face all the challenges that we set for ourselves in a more positive way, so we will be more motivated.
On the other hand, self-acceptance is closely related to self-esteem, so that when a person has optimal levels of self-acceptance they also usually have good self-esteem, which is very beneficial for maintaining good mental health since healthy self-esteem consists of maintain a positive attitude towards oneself, which would include that tendency to think, act and also feel in the healthiest, most positive and satisfying way possible.
On the contrary, When a person does not have healthy self-esteem, it is more likely that they will end up developing a problem related to their mental health or that she could carry out a series of behaviors that are harmful to herself.
That is why developing unconditional self-acceptance through thoughts and actions in a healthy and satisfactory way will improve self-esteem, making it possible for us to accept ourselves, especially in difficult moments and regardless of our failures and mistakes since our value as people does not depend on it.
What is unconditional self-acceptance?
The psychological construct known as unconditional self-acceptance is closely linked to various psychotherapy models, among which it is worth highlighting the person-centered humanistic approach of Carl Rogers and the rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT) of Albert Ellis, among others.
Unconditional self-acceptance is an attitude anyone could develop towards themselves that consists of accept categorically, loyally or without any type of limitations, each and every one of its various facets In other words, it consists of unconditionally accepting both its positive and negative facets. All of this entails accepting oneself as a human being who can make mistakes on various occasions and as someone who will fight for his goals and achieve things that are very important to him despite the difficulties and mistakes made.
Furthermore, unconditional self-acceptance means that we assume that we are not defined by our mistakes or missteps that we have made, nor by our defects, so it is necessary to free ourselves from any label or qualification.
Therapies that seek the development of unconditional self-acceptance
In the field of psychotherapy and psychological treatments we can find several therapies that are focused on helping patients develop unconditional self-acceptance. Below, we will briefly explain some of these psychotherapies.
1. Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT) by Albert Ellis
A fairly common thinking error that could indirectly influence a person’s self-esteem is overgeneralization and an example of this is when someone makes an evaluation or undervaluation of themselves based on only a few qualities or personal characteristics when in They do not really define your person in all its facets.
REBT encourages the development of unconditional self-acceptance, with one’s own virtues and also defects To do this, acceptance of oneself as a human being is promoted, with its imperfections and mistakes, all inherent to its nature. In that sense, when someone accepts himself unconditionally, he thinks more clearly and openly, avoiding generalization and other cognitive errors.
Furthermore, unconditional self-acceptance is closely linked to a series of flexible thoughts towards oneself, thus facilitating one’s own emotions to be more adaptive and behaviors to be more adaptive and constructive.
It should be noted that since the TREC emphasis is placed on unconditional self-acceptance through an “existential position” that promotes a series of positive thoughts towards oneself (for example, “I am a person with intentions, like anyone else and I will try to accept myself unconditionally, regardless of whether I have done things better or worse. Nor should it influence my assessment of myself whether or not I receive the approval of other people.
Another way to promote the development of unconditional self-acceptance from REBT is through the “elegant position or solution” that encourages self-acceptance of oneself through focusing on some objectives or purposes and on the way to achieving them one must evaluate the thoughts and then classify them within two large categories: on the one hand, there would be those good and positive thoughts that help us on the path to our goals; On the other hand, there would be those negative or counterproductive thoughts that could keep us away.
Once identified, it would be necessary to resort to good, positive and optimistic thoughts in order that they serve to promote one’s motivation and improve one’s state of mind on the path to achieving one’s goals and purposes.
2. Person-based cognitive therapy focused on the treatment of psychosis
Another therapy that seeks to develop unconditional self-acceptance is person-based cognitive therapy, which is usually used for the treatment of psychosis through a perspective focused on symptom reduction through the integration and acceptance of experiences related to psychosis and the recovery of the sense of Self
This therapy shares with ACT the goal of changing the patient’s relationship with stressful experiences through acceptance and mindfulness, rather than trying to fight the symptoms. Therefore, self-acceptance is very important in this type of therapy, since it is organized within a therapeutic context that is based on the patient’s unconditional self-acceptance and also on collaboration.
On the other hand, Mindfulness is one of the central axes of this psychological treatment, this being understood as that integration of the processes of understanding and consciousness. In this way, resorting to full consciousness, the reduction of discomfort is sought by changing the habitual relationship with the experience and also by generating a series of introspections that are liberating in relation to those psychotic sensations, the self and the origin of well-being and discomfort.
Therefore, unconditional self-acceptance in this therapy would mean accepting those psychotic sensations that the patient suffers without actually facing them or defining oneself in terms of those types of experiences.
3. Therapy focused on the present
Finally, it is worth mentioning the therapy focused on the present with another of the psychotherapies or psychological treatments whose objective, among others, is to help the patient in the development of unconditional self-acceptance, a therapy that is usually used in order to help the patient establish healthy and positive interpersonal relationships
To achieve this, there are some very important resources that can help in fostering these relationships: the naturalization of symptoms, the therapeutic relationship, an increase in the sense of mastery, the development of self-confidence and the validation of the experience.
In this case, we are talking about a therapy that focuses on the here and now, making it essential for the patient to reflect deeply on their cognitive and affective states, as well as to develop a series of introspection skills in order to identify these states. The patient should then try to develop greater tolerance to these states through contact with the experience, rather than fleeing from it.
On the other hand, through therapy focused on the present, it seeks to enable the patient to be able to give meaning to their internal experiences, so that feelings of alienation decrease and all of this facilitates the development of unconditional self-acceptance.
