Online Self Esteem therapists in Erskine, Scotland Scotland, United Kingdom UK

How we value ourselves can affect our self esteem. If we feel negative and critical about ourselves and our abilities then we will experience low self esteem. Low self esteem can affect how we fit in the world, how we feel with family, friends and relationships and how this impacts on us. It could spring from our childhood or adult experiences, school and friendship influences or our partners. We can sometimes feel inadequate or be made to feel inadequate by those around us and even by social media and current socio-environmental expectations. Working with a counsellor enables you to explore where some of these influences have stemmed from. Acknowledging, accepting and moving through these feelings and looking at changing the negative inner voice, can help build your confidence and self esteem.  

When things go wrong, it’s easy to blame yourself. With compassionate guidance, we’ll explore self-acceptance and honesty, helping you rebuild confidence and self-worth at your own pace.  

Confidence and self esteem are areas we work with all the time. I run a Self Confidence seminar which helps people understand and to learn how to deal with their issues in this area.  

I specialize in pediatric medicine and trauma-focused therapy using EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). My work centers on supporting children, adolescents, and adults through grief, anxiety, behavioral challenges, and the lingering effects of difficult experiences. As a pediatrician, I've seen how unprocessed trauma shows up in young lives- through sleep troubles, feeding issues, social withdrawal, and emotional struggles. EMDR offers a gentle, research-backed path to healing that goes beyond words. With EMDRIA-approved training and my pediatric experience, I help families navigate some of their most challenging moments. Whether it's a child struggling with grief, an adolescent facing anxiety, or an adult working through long-held wounds, my approach blends medical expertise with compassionate, evidence-based care. I'm passionate about making mental health support accessible- offering teletherapy across India and internationally, with subsidized sessions available for those who need them. Let's connect if you're looking for trauma-informed support, professional collaboration, or referrals for children and families in need.  

Struggling with self-esteem can feel completely overwhelming, like there's no way out. As your therapist I am here to be with you, reminding you that you are not alone. We can explore your self-perception, when it is at its worst, and help you to gain more of a sense of control over this. You are not a problem to be fixed, my aim as your therapist is to try to provide the right conditions to allow you to explore whatever you want to bring to therapy to support your growth. This isn't a therapeutic approach wherein I will set a treatment plan or tell you what to do. We will work together as a partnership rather than me taking away your autonomy. I absolutely love the work I do, it is the biggest privilege being let into people’s personal worlds and seeing the immense growth of my clients. I hope to hear from you soon!  

Paul Shepard wrote; “The grief and sense of loss that we often attribute to a failure in our personality, is actually a feeling of emptiness where a beautiful and strange otherness should have been encountered.” Ecotherapy and contact with nature aims to fill the void.  

Self esteem is a measure of your relationship with yourself. I can help you redefine that relationship by reviewing your core values, personal expectations and influences on you and your current state, and by providing guidance on how to be kinder to yourself. If confidence levels are low, I can help with very simple but effective ways to help you regain previous levels of self-belief, particularly if underpinned by excessive dependence on negative perceptions  

People's relationship towards themselves is central to my approach to therapy. I am highly specialised in working with experiences of low self esteem, low self worth, self-hatred, and a struggle to value and love yourself.  

Low self esteem can be paralysing and can lead to other issues. however it does not need to be this way. I use both my personal and professional experience to help clients find rediscover themselves and thrive in life. I use both counselling and coaching skills to support clients on their journey.  

Low self-esteem can quietly shape every area of life—how you see yourself, the choices you make, and the relationships you keep. Together, we’ll explore and gently release the old beliefs, patterns, or experiences that have held you back. Using neuroscience-based coaching, BWRT®, and therapeutic tools, I help you rewire the inner story you tell yourself and build a stronger, kinder sense of self. Alongside this, mindfulness and energy practices can support you in feeling more grounded, resilient, and confident. The aim is not just to “feel better,” but to truly step into your worth and create a life that reflects who you really are.  

How Therapy Can Help with Self-Esteem - The way you see yourself shapes everything—your relationships, your career choices, how you handle challenges, and even your overall happiness. If you struggle with low self-esteem, you're likely your own harshest critic, and that internal voice can be exhausting and limiting. The good news is that self-esteem isn't fixed—it can grow and strengthen with the right support, and therapy offers a powerful path toward seeing yourself more clearly and compassionately. What Low Self-Esteem Looks Like Low self-esteem goes beyond occasional self-doubt. It's a persistent negative view of yourself that might show up as: Constant self-criticism or negative self-talk Feeling like you're not good enough, no matter what you achieve Difficulty accepting compliments or believing positive feedback Comparing yourself unfavorably to others Perfectionism and fear of failure People-pleasing and difficulty saying no Avoiding challenges because you assume you'll fail Staying in unhealthy relationships because you don't think you deserve better Feeling like an imposter in your own life Apologizing excessively or taking blame for things that aren't your fault Difficulty making decisions because you don't trust yourself These patterns can hold you back from pursuing opportunities, building healthy relationships, and living authentically. How Therapy Helps Uncovering the Roots Low self-esteem doesn't appear out of nowhere—it's usually built over time through experiences like childhood criticism, emotional neglect, bullying, trauma, failed relationships, or repeated disappointments. Therapy helps you understand where your negative self-view originated. This isn't about blaming others; it's about recognizing that your inner critic was learned, which means it can be unlearned. Challenging the Inner Critic That harsh voice in your head isn't telling you the truth—it's repeating old messages that may have never been accurate in the first place. Therapy, particularly Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), helps you identify these negative thought patterns and challenge them with evidence and compassion. You learn to question thoughts like "I'm worthless" or "I always mess things up" and replace them with more balanced, realistic perspectives. Separating Your Worth from Your Performance Many people tie their self-esteem to achievements, appearance, or others' approval. Therapy helps you recognize that your worth is inherent—it doesn't depend on what you do, how you look, or what others think of you. This shift from conditional to unconditional self-worth is transformative and freeing. Processing Past Wounds If your low self-esteem stems from trauma, abuse, or painful experiences, therapies like EMDR can help process these memories so they have less emotional power over you. When you heal the wounds that taught you to see yourself negatively, your self-esteem naturally begins to improve. Developing Self-Compassion Self-compassion is treating yourself with the same kindness you'd offer a good friend. Therapy helps you cultivate this gentler internal voice, recognizing that everyone makes mistakes, has flaws, and struggles sometimes—and that doesn't make you less worthy. You learn to comfort yourself rather than attack yourself when things go wrong. Identifying Your Strengths and Values Low self-esteem often creates tunnel vision where you only see your perceived flaws and failures. Therapy helps you take a more balanced inventory—recognizing your strengths, accomplishments, positive qualities, and the values that guide you. Many people are genuinely surprised to discover how much they've been discounting about themselves. Setting Healthy Boundaries When you don't value yourself, you're more likely to let others mistreat you, overextend yourself, or stay in situations that diminish you. Therapy helps you recognize that you deserve respect and teaches you how to set boundaries that protect your wellbeing. Each time you honor a boundary, you reinforce your own worth. Building Assertiveness Learning to express your needs, opinions, and feelings without excessive fear or guilt is crucial for healthy self-esteem. Therapy provides a safe space to practice assertiveness and develop confidence in your right to take up space, have needs, and be heard. Breaking People-Pleasing Patterns If you've learned to derive worth from making others happy or avoiding conflict, therapy helps you examine this pattern and gradually shift toward living more authentically. You learn that disappointing someone occasionally doesn't make you a bad person, and that your needs matter just as much as anyone else's. Celebrating Progress, Not Just Perfection Therapy helps you recognize and celebrate small wins and efforts, not just major achievements. You learn to acknowledge growth, courage, and trying—even when things don't turn out perfectly. This builds a more sustainable, realistic foundation for self-esteem. Experiencing Unconditional Acceptance Perhaps one of the most healing aspects of therapy is experiencing genuine acceptance from your therapist. In person-centred therapy especially, you're met with unconditional positive regard—you're valued simply for being you, not for what you accomplish or how you perform. This experience can begin to rewire your belief about your own worthiness. Types of Therapy That Help Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Directly targets negative thought patterns and helps you develop more balanced thinking about yourself. Person-Centred Therapy: Offers unconditional acceptance that helps you internalize a more positive self-view. EMDR: Processes traumatic experiences that damaged your self-esteem. Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT): Specifically designed to build self-compassion and counter self-criticism. Psychodynamic Therapy: Explores how early relationships and experiences shaped your self-concept. Group Therapy: Provides connection with others who struggle similarly and offers opportunities to receive positive feedback and support. What Growth Looks Like As therapy progresses and your self-esteem strengthens, you might notice: Quieter, kinder internal dialogue More willingness to try new things or take healthy risks Ability to accept compliments and believe them Setting and maintaining boundaries without excessive guilt Making decisions with more confidence Less comparison to others Greater resilience when things go wrong Choosing relationships and situations that honor your worth Feeling more comfortable being yourself.  

Having good self-esteem is essential to having a good relationship with yourself and setting healthy boundaries in your relationships with others. I can help you exprience better self-esteem by going to core of the issue which usually lies within our family of origin/early attachments.  

The techniques I use and my personal experience of low self-esteem are essential to help you.  

Self-esteem, and confidence, can be so fragile and we can allow it to be taken from us without knowing we have a choice. If you hear a version of yourself often enough, eventually you believe it. Positive attention throughout our childhood can carry us a long way, just as unhealthy attention can be just as far reaching. We live in a society that thrusts expectation in front of us nearly constantly, and trying to live up to it can be painful and demoralising. How would you like to be able to know who you are and start living your life how you want it? Through questioning your self-beliefs, and where they come from, you can begin to feel better with who you are. By not trying to live up to standards and expectations set by others, you can find strength in doing it your way. Is low self-esteem about not being good enough, or about you trying to be somebody or something that you are not?  

"my self-esteem and confidence has improved" (Clare)  

Low self-esteem is linked in most cases to neglect, abuse and bullying which must be explored to in order to find a better balance in oneself.  

Our sense of ourselves greatly impacts how we interact in the world and the type of experiences we have. Our views on ourselves does not have to be set in stone though and is something that can be continually improved and worked upon allowing us to begin to engage in the world in a much more satisfying and enjoyable way  

Self-Esteem or self worth is one of the most targeted issues for humans beings, unless they live in truly natural communities. We are all growing up in neurotic and untrue conditioning on how we should be, rather than supporting each other in how we are. The uniqueness of each person get sacrificed for silly idealism and children are being hindered to develop naturally. So far so bad. The good news is: your true worthiness, your self-esteem was never really destroyed. IT IS INSIDE. It simply takes taking away the lies and illusions on 'how I should be' and become how you are. I can help with that! it is much simpler than it sounds but it may not be always easy.  

Self-esteem is a problematic concept, because self-esteem is tenuous for all of us, however confident or secure we might be. But if this is a particular issue for you, it means that you are not feeling good about yourself. I will help you to identify the ways in which you are not comfortable, find out where this comes from in your biography, and help you to resolve the experience, so that you can feel good about yourself again.  

At ComposurePsychology we have Clinical Psychologists with many years experience working with people to understand and overcome low self esteem concerns, to learn and practice new strategies for raising their confidence. We draw from evidence based therapies including; CBT, ACT, CFT, SFT, DBT, EMDR, systemic, narrative, psychodynamic and others.