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Do You Like Yourself? Your Thoughts are Welcome!

blondguy
Champion Alumni
Champion Alumni

Hello Everybody and new posters especially:-)

I have had anxiety since 1983 and depression from 1997. There is always someone that says 'You have to Love Yourself' before recovery. When people are suffering from anxiety/depression this may be the last 'advice' they really need. This is only my experience when I am 'advised to love myself' to rebuild my life. I have heard the following from people that cant 'love themselves' which is fair enough as I am a person that cant either. Your thoughts will help me and others learn from your point of view. I can only be 'gentle' to myself to heal...not love.

  • Why should I love myself if I dont in the first place?
  • I am in a dark place, how can I love myself?
  • I dont deserve to love myself
  • I am depressed...How can I love myself?
  • I have mega anxiety attacks..what is there to love about myself?
  • I hate myself and what I stand for...why should I?
  • I love my partner more...I will care about myself 'later'

When people have depression/anxiety/denial they dont need to be counseled with ' love yourself'. Thats a huge ask.

I dont need to climb Mt Everest by trying to love myself when I cant. It can be an unrealistic and even silly target to achieve having depression

I just prefer to be 'gentle' to myself. Same results and way less stress 🙂 Your thoughts/opinions are more than welcome

Thankyou so much

Paul

4,021 Replies 4,021

Hi Everyone! New members are always Welcome to post too 🙂

Just a note of appreciation to TonyWK...smallwolf....Quirky...EM and RX for your TLC for CMF

TonyWK mentioned (to CMF) 'You're a veteran here, as admired and appreciated as the best contributors'

Paul

TheBigBlue
Community Member

Tonight I hate myself. Yesterday I hated myself. The day before that I hated myself.

I’m not in a good place right now

Hi TheBigBlue

Im sorry you hate yourself as it takes a lot of courage to post on the forums

Can I help?

Im Paul....a volunteer

Hey TheBigBlue,

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us here. We're sorry to hear you're not in a good place. We understand how draining and spiraling thoughts and feelings of self-loathing can be. Please know we are here to listen if you'd like to share more. 

If you feel it would be beneficial, we'd urge you to get in contact with our Support Service. The counselors at our Support Service can be reached 24/7 on 1300 22 4636 or online via webchat here: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/get-immediate-support

Ggrand
Community Champion
Community Champion

Hello TheBigBlue,

Im really sorry your in hard times right now and hate yourself....

Is their something small you can do for yourself today?...maybe a little time outside away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and thinking?

I think our lives are so tied up with everyday life of working, cleaning, studying, whatever it is we do every day..that we don’t take time away from this and we get so overwhelmed...Maybe a nice cuppa tea/coffe/chocolate just sitting outside quietly and soaking up some of Mother nature’s healing vibes....

We all need some time to ourselves to just be ourselves...

My kindest thoughts dear TheBigBlue...with a warm caring hug...

Grandy.l

Jstar49
Community Member

Hi all,

I love to read others posts, like Em, who have struggled and triumphed and persist in liking themselves, no matter what. It encourages me heaps, and I know that I can choose to follow her example.

At times when I'm feeling down on myself, it's because I'm listening to ppls voices in my head who I think must know what they're talking about. But just because they've known me a long time, or they gave birth to me, or are closely related/linked to me, doesn't mean they really know me.

I know that I'm a different person with some ppl than I am with others. It's the ppl who I feel relaxed with and at ease being myself with, that I like myself with. And with some others, I feel like nothing I do will ever be good enough. So yeah, I can take your point Em, and vow to live my life more for the 3%, and worry less about the 97%!!! Because the more time I feel comfortable in my own skin, the more I like myself. And that has a lot to do with the ppl I hang out with, or talk to.

I like myself here on the BB forums because evryone here is supportive, and helpful and kind.

Cheers,

J*

Hi Jstar49

Thankyou for the super supportive post about EM...and yes she has been through a lot and done so well

Your positive feedback re the Beyond Blue forums is greatly appreciated ✔✔

I hope you have a great week Jstar49

Paul

mmMekitty
Valued Contributor
Valued Contributor

Hello Paul, and everyone,

I think this must be a good thread, because I have been avoiding it.

I don't like to think of how I feel about myself.

Regardless of whether I am having fun, with someone I enjoy being with, doing things I enjoy, whatever, I know, deep down, at my core, independent of every other consideration, I do not like myself, I don't know if I actually hate myself, just I do not like myself.

This feeling goes back so far I can't see when it started, how it arose, or anything. It feels there, like it is in my DNA - although, I do not think that is literally true.

I think whether or not we like ourselves comes from our environment, culture, upbringing, experiences, input from all sources around us that tell us who and what we are.

When we are little kids, we do not examine and assess what we see and hear, how we are regarded by others and how in general, society regards us. We take it all in, unfiltered.

I can identify what some of the stuff I was fed, but not yet how to undo the harm it has done. A lot of it is effing poison. How do we neutralise that?

Then how do we build a healthy self-regard?

When I think I am being perceived as better than I am, I feel I have been 'fooling' people, They don't really know me. They would not want to. But if I don't 'fool' people, I would not be talking to anyone about anything, anywhere.

I still rely on others, such as my PDr, who seems to think I am worth his effort, who says everyone has an innate intrinsic value, and I carry on as if this is true. I'm not actually convinced, but I value his opinion more than my own. I do wonder if I didn't pay (what Medicare won't), would he still see me?

I continue to hold to the memories that a few people did think I was okay, worth-while, tolerable to have around, & so I know I wasn’t all that bad. There was something there. I don’t know what it was though...something.

It’s a grain of sand to build a pearl around.

It's hard sometimes, but thank you, Paul, for this thread that makes me think.

mmMekitty

I agree that the variety of posts help me.

mmMekitty I like the way you have written a detailed and thoughtful response to Do you like yourself.?
It is a great thread because we can all discuss matters that are important to us in a supportive environment.

I wonder when I like myself but feel ow I tend to blame others. Does anyone relate to that?

ecomama
Valued Contributor
Valued Contributor

Hey everyone, I hope you can all find moments to like yourself today, or all day if possible!

Hey mmMeKitty, so nice of you to come into this thread and a very warm WELCOME! Share away, your input is very much valued.

Thanks J*, my sister in truth and light lol. Have you given much thought to just BEING YOURSELF pretty much all the time? (within reason of course lol).
Then, possibly, the people who don't like 'a person like you' scrams outta the picture quickly, which in my books is AWESOME.
Then the people who hang around are those kindred spirits that you've attracted into your life and you can relax more and continue being yourself?

Sure I have a 'professional persona' but it's pretty much me without the swearing lol. And in a dress suit more or less.

I'm not in 'wild abandon' mode in all of my friendships, all of the time BUT I hold strong to my authentic mode.
For me, to be any other way is deceiving them. I won't subscribe to pretense.

Hey quirky, not sure what you're asking?

Do you mean that when you like yourself, you blame others? Or when you're not liking yourself, you blame others?

We can blame others till the cows come home and usually I find there is responsibility to be laid at others' feet, sure! We can blame others and all sorts of circumstances always.

Then we've exhausted that, where do we stand? I think going through the blame could be an important part of our healing. Putting it all down on paper to get it all out of our system could help alot!

Then we are left with ourselves.
Having a growth mindset helps. We NEED to pour so much into ourselves to progress our MH. The more damage, the more work to be done.

To respond to the question do I like myself?
Sure.
I do. I'm not perfect and don't need to be. I am more than enough. I do my best and that's all I can ask of myself.

Love to you all
EMxxxx