Optimizing Self-Esteem

There are many troubling events that are happening in the Pearland area. The troubling events span from behavior issues of children to Domestic violence to homicide. There are many problems that affect and influence the expression of behavior that impacts the community negatively. Preventive methods supporting healthy mental development are available but often out of mind to many parents and community leaders. There is a societal benefit to promoting prosocial or healthy adaptive behavior and a cost savings to health care and educational costs. The Pearland, Texas community schools as well as the county government could reduce costs through investment in the youth who will become adults and citizens of this county; constructive or destructive citizen. Delinquent behavior and criminal behavior, inclusive of domestic violence, has a negative impact on community resources and the distribution of dwindling funds. However, having control of one’s maintenance and attainment of positive self-esteem will benefit the regular Pearland resident.

Most people feel bad about themselves from time to time. Feelings of low self-esteem may be triggered by being treated poorly by someone else recently or in the past, or by a person’s own judgments of him or herself. This is normal. However, low self-esteem is a constant companion for too many people, especially those who experience depression, anxiety, phobias, psychosis, delusional thinking, or who have an illness or a disability. If you are one of these people, you may go through life feeling bad about yourself needlessly. Low self-esteem keeps you from enjoying life, doing the things you want to do, and working toward personal goals.

You have a right to feel good about yourself. However, it can be very difficult to feel good about yourself when you are under the stress of having symptoms that are hard to manage, when you are dealing with a disability, when you are having a difficult time, or when others are treating you badly. At these times, it is easy to be drawn into a downward spiral of lower and lower self-esteem. For instance, you may begin feeling bad about yourself when someone insults you, you are under a lot of pressure at work, or you are having a difficult time getting along with someone in your family. Then you begin to give yourself negative self-talk, like "I'm no good." That may make you feel so bad about yourself that you do something to hurt yourself or someone else, such as getting drunk or yelling at your children.

There are helpful services available for self-help as well as counseling services. There is a self-help booklet that is available through SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center by visiting their website. By using the ideas and activities in the booklet, you can avoid doing things that make you feel even worse and do those things that will make you feel better about yourself.

Locally, the helpful counselors at the Pearland Counseling Center located at 1506 Broadway Street #101 may provide professional assistance and guide you to developing a healthy daily routine for optimizes mental health wellness.