How to stop low self-esteem ruining your summer

The study by vitamins, minerals and health supplements firm Healthspan, found that low levels of confidence is leaving a third of those polled feeling depressed, while another 34 per cent experienced increased anxiety.

Weight gain (27 per cent), a feeling of isolation (23 per cent) and even a loss of libido (18 per cent) also among the effects of low confidence.

Dr Meg Arroll, a chartered psychologist, specialising in health working with Healthspan, said:

“We often focus on the physical changes associated with ageing and the menopause, but the emotional and psychological impact of life transitions are just as important.

The more we discuss this openly, the more we can protect women’s mental health as nearly 30 per cent of the survey respondents said they felt the impact of the peri-menopause and the menopause was under-rated.” So how do you boost your self-esteem?

Positive affirmations – big yourself up

Affirmations are a powerful tool. They are positive and uplifting statements that we say to ourselves. These usually are more effective if said out loud and repeated for some time.

Visualise yourself as you want to be

Visualisation is the technique of seeing an image of yourself that you are proud of, in your own mind. When we struggle with low self-confidence, we have a poor perception of ourselves that is often inaccurate. Practice visualising a ‘feel good’ version of yourself and sit with how that feels with you.

Challenge your inner critic

Some of the harshest comments that we get come from ourselves. If you struggle with low self-confidence, there is a possibility that your inner critic has become overactive and inaccurate.

Help someone else

Helping someone else enables us to forget about ourselves and to feel grateful for what we have. It also feels good when you can make a difference for someone else. Instead of focusing on your own weaknesses, volunteer to mentor, assist or teach another, and you’ll see your self-confidence grow automatically in the process.

Create personal boundaries

Learn to say no. Teach others to respect your personal boundaries. If necessary, take classes on how to be more assertive and learn to ask for what you want. The more control and say that you have over your own life, the higher your self-confidence will be.

Practice self-care

Self-confidence depends on a combination of good physical health, emotional health and social health. It is hard to feel good about yourself if you hate your physique or constantly have low energy.