Self Esteem is an individual's value of their own worth. Without treating this, it can have a huge impact on your daily life. With CBT, DBT, ACT, TFCBT, and solution focused therapy, I can provide the treatment you need to receive the care you need.
Are you done living a life of comparison, constantly checking off external measures of success, or regularly seeking external validation?
Self-esteem is often a central component in therapy and is frequently correlated with other mental health symptoms such as anxiety, depression, and relationship issues. Here at Denver Wellness Counseling we see the goal of building a sense of intrinsic value as a key component to contentment and wellness. The treatment for building (or rebuilding) self-esteem begins with a deep exploration of the key life events and experiences that hindered the development of a connected CORE self, or began to chip away or destroy our core sense of worth. Some frequent ways that our self-esteem is negatively impacted are the following: early experiences of inadequate parenting, bullying, negative cultural messages, experiences of rejection/abandonment, the impact of social media, trauma, abuse, neglect, or lacking the tools of self-compassion or self-soothing. Here at Denver Wellness Counseling, our therapist often address these experiences with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to decrease the power of these memories and install a more positive self-concept. Treatment gains are then integrated within the present and future context.
Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Professional Counselors
What is Self-esteem?
Your self-esteem is how much you respect yourself, how desirable or worthy you feel, and how confident you are that you can face life’s challenges. When you have strong self-esteem, you feel that you can accomplish your goals, and you expect others to treat you with the dignity and respect that everyone deserves.
When you have weak or low self-esteem, rather than respecting yourself you talk down to yourself. Instead of feeling desirable, you feel ashamed; instead of believing you can accomplish your desires, you feel powerless. This feeling of worthlessness and lack of control grows into feelings of vulnerability, loneliness, and guilt.
Most self-esteem issues go back to early attachment problems. I have taught courses on the development of the 'healthy self'.
I'd happily work with you to identify and work through problems of self-esteem or the sense of defectiveness and shame.
One of the most fulfilling aspects of helping people in my practice is restoring a positive self image, self worth, and discovering inherent strengths. I like to use cognitive restructuring but also mindfulness visualization to build up an ideal version of oneself.
If your self-esteem depends on the number of achievements you have accomplished so far in your life, how many 'exceeds expectations' you have on your performance reviews, or how many likes you get on an IG post, your self-esteem is being fueled by external factors instead of internal ones. If you're ready to put in the work and figure out how to create a more positive view of yourself, reach out and I'll show you how!
Do you doubt yourself more than you would like? Do you feel like an imposter at work? Are you afraid to be yourself in relationships or wonder what that even means? Do you feel you need to do things for others to be loved or valued rather than simply being loved and accepted for who you are? It's time to look inward and begin to give yourself the love and attention you likely have not received enough of in your life. I've been through it and I can help you do it too.
We can work together to explore, process, and resolve the origins of your self-esteem. I can also teach you techniques to assist with negative thought patterns and painful emotions that arise as a result of those thought patterns.
Self-esteem is hard, we are our work critics. I work with clients to notice thoughts, feelings, and emotions and how those affect their belief about self. We will work on integrating reframing negative self-talk, positive affirmations, and finding the root of the belief to process and heal. I will integrate trauma processing as well if needed depending on where the root of the belief is.