As a child, you were most likely told, “You are what you eat.” Meaning, a healthy diet and lifestyle makes you a healthier person. But where you ever told, “You are what think”? If you are optimistic, you’ll naturally see the best in every situation. Contrarily, if you are pessimistic, you will find it difficult to see anything good come from a tough situation.

FIND THE GOOD

It’s difficult to find something good in a bad situation. We’ve all been there, when it seemed like things couldn’t get much worse than they already were. And yet, just when you think you’re about to see the light of day again, something else bad happens.

What do you do when you faith and hope are tested by “life”? How can you keep holding on to hope and the faith that something good can come out of something bad?

First, you must find something good. No matter how bad things get, there is always someone who is much worse off than you. Start by looking deliberately for the little things that are positive in your life. Concentrate on those only.

SHAKE IT OFF

When something bad happens, do you tend to take the weight of the world on your shoulders and bottle it up inside? The more you do this, the greater your risk is of health issues and/or bodily and emotional harm.

You have to decide to shake it off and keep moving forward. Because if you don’t, if you choose to hold all that negative energy inside yourself, it will build up until you literally explode. Find a way to release the negative thoughts and feelings and make room for the positive ones.

Remember…you are what you think. If you think negative thoughts, you’ll attract more negative energy. If you maintain a positive mindset, you’ll be more likely to attract positivity.

Of all adults dealing with low self-esteem, women seem to be the ones who suffer the most. Even women who seem to have it all together and know who they are and want they want tend to be among those who suffer from low self-esteem.

The media has exploded so much in the last few decades that it has lent itself to an increasing demand for women to look perfect: a perfect body, perfect hair, perfect smile… The media has exploited the female population by displaying this false illusion of a perfect woman. It tells women that they will be liked if they wear the right clothes, smell just right, latch onto the perfect mate, etc.

The thing that most women do not realize or understand is that this confidence comes from within. It’s not something that can be handed to you. It’s not something that you will experience after you’ve reached a certain level of perfection. Self-esteem is something that you must cultivate from the inside. Then and only then will you be truly happy and confident in yourself.

If you are a woman struggling with self-esteem issues, here are some tips to help you:

• Stop seeking approval from your peers.
• Discover everything you like about yourself and build upon those positive attributes.
• Be honest about why you don’t feel good about yourself. Then work on changing that.
• Walk away from negative situations or people who make you feel bad about yourself.

Remember…only you can control your own self-esteem. Never rely on someone else to make you feel better because those feelings are fleeting and won’t last very long.

Are you suffering from low self-esteem? Do you feel inadequate in nearly every situation? There is help for you today. If you suffer from low self-esteem, there are steps you can take to help raise it. Don’t rely on anyone else to make you feel better. You have to do it for yourself. Start raising your self-esteem now with these ten simple tips:

1. Practice smiling. Do you find it difficult to smile? Most people with low self-esteem usually do. Make yourself smile, even when you don’t feel like it. It will make you feel a lot better!

2. Stop talking negative to yourself about yourself. Low self-esteem causes you to continue to berate yourself in your mind. Once you’re finally out of the situation that has caused your self-esteem to be shattered, you have to make a conscious effort to stop that negative cycle of mental abuse.

3. Think positive. People with low self-esteem usually have a negative thought process. Do you think negative all the time? Start thinking positive and throw out all that negative thinking.

4. Give something to someone for free. One of the easiest ways to make yourself feel better is to do something nice for someone else. Become someone’s “secret pal” for a few weeks and see how it affects your self-esteem.

5. Help someone else who has low self-esteem. In addition to giving freely of yourself to others, you can greatly boost your own self-esteem by helping someone else who has low self-esteem.

6. Use positive affirmations every day. Positive affirmations are essential to changing your thought process. Practice positive thinking by reading and reciting positive affirmations on a daily basis.

7. Do something you want to do. If you’ve been denying yourself something special because you don’t think you’re worth it, go right now and do it, or get it, for yourself. You DO deserve it! You are worth it!

8. Don’t pass on your low self-esteem to someone you love. If you’re not careful, you will inadvertently pass on those traits to your loved ones through your words and actions. Remember to be kind to yourself and to others.

9. Say NO. One of the most exhilarating feelings, when you’re rebuilding your self-esteem, is to say NO. This can be difficult to do at first, but keep trying and you’ll soon get the hang of it.

10. Practice makes perfect. This is a day-by-day process. Low self-esteem can’t be changed overnight. Remember to take it one step at a time.

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Domestic violence is an issue that has plagued America for years on end. Statistics have shown that about 90% of partner violence involves women being abused by their counterpart. Even more saddening than this, between 3.3 million and 10 million children are exposed to domestic violence every year.

These statistics only further prove that domestic violence is not only a frequently occurring incident, but it contributes to negative patterns for children. It is easy to see then, how domestic violence can have a huge negative impact on self-esteem, of both the abused victim as well as children who are a part of the setting.

There are countless negative side effects on an abused victim’s self-esteem. Such negative effects include:

• Aggressive behavior
• Conduct problems at home and school
• Poor school performance and learning disabilities
• Inability to concentrate
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Inability to sleep
• Changes in appetite
• Social incompetence
• Emotional numbing
• Continual focus on the violent events

As you can see from this limited list of negative side effects, the psychological impact surrounding domestic violence is immense. Every one of these things leads to a greater decrease in self-esteem.

The destructive impact that domestic violence has on a person’s self-esteem is enormous. If you know someone who is suffering under domestic violence, offer to help them get protection and help they need. You can never force someone to get out of a violent situation, but you can offer assistance to them and provide the help they need when they’re ready for it.