People who have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will oftentimes struggle with low self-esteem. PTSD can directly impact your relationships, disrupt your daily life, and cause depression. PTSD also causes feelings of worthlessness and negative thought patterns that can directly impact how you navigate the world and how you feel about yourself.
While PTSD can take months to years to overcome, there are some steps you can take to positively encourage a healthier self-esteem and a happier you.
Can PTSD Affect Self-Confidence?
Yes, PTSD can affect your self-esteem. The effects of PTSD vary by person, but the most commonly experienced side-effects on your self-esteem are:
- Disruptions in your daily routine
- Difficulties in your Relationships
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Low self-esteem
- Temporary hair loss
These side effects either combined or on their own, can wreak havoc on your confidence and directly impact how you feel about yourself. For instance, anxiety and depression typically come with negative thought patterns. These thought patterns can be difficult to control and intrusive thoughts can come suddenly and intensely, which can be hard to navigate. In order to rebuild your confidence, there are some steps you can take to self-regulate these thoughts and rebuild your confidence.
How to Build your Self-Confidence
If you are looking to rebuild your confidence, take a moment to appreciate your willingness to make a change. You are well on your way to regaining your self-esteem. Beyond your PTSD treatment, here are some different things you can do to improve feelings of self-worth.
Challenge Negative Thoughts
Negative thought patterns can directly impact your self-esteem. You might have thoughts that make you feel unworthy, challenge your relationships, and make you angry. And while negative thoughts are a normal occurrence for everyone, taking the time to monitor and challenge them can help encourage a more positive outlook. Here are some ways you can challenge negative thought patterns:
Reframe your Thinking
When you are experiencing negative thoughts, ask yourself, “Is this thought true?” What would I tell my friend who is having the same thought? Instead of running from negative thoughts, meet them and dissect them. Acknowledge that your thoughts are not your reality and work on becoming aware of when you have these negative thoughts. You can try noting, a method that involves assigning the word thought or feeling, when you experience them. This helps you become more self-aware of your thoughts and allows you to challenge them.
Release Judgment
Everyone experiences negative thoughts, so you should not associate guilt with them. Instead, focus on a positive when you have a negative thought about yourself or someone else. Release expectations of what your thoughts should be and just knowledge them in a gentle way.
Practice Daily Gratitude
Life has a way of making it very easy to focus on the negatives, but gratitude is a major factor in overcoming negative thoughts. Practicing daily gratitude can reshape the way you think and rewire your brain.
Seek Professional Help
While this can all be good and helpful, sometimes you need to get professional help when the problem is serious. When it comes to getting assistance for post-traumatic stress disorder, there are many therapies that can help. One of the most common and effective is eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) which has shown to be effective in just 3 sessions.
Improve your Depression and Anxiety
Beyond treatment for your PTSD, there are some other ways you can improve your anxiety and depression symptoms. For one, taking up a new exercise routine can increase your “feel-good” hormones and improve your mood. You can also try out a yoga class, as studies have found that yoga improves depression symptoms and creates more positivity. Limiting caffeine can also combat anxiety symptoms as caffeine has been found toincrease the severity of your anxiety.
Take Care of Your Body
Taking care of your body is just as important as taking care of your thoughts. When working to rebuild self-confidence, it is important to also focus on your lifestyle. Getting your body moving, focusing on your happiness, and even addressing insecurities like PTSD-induced hair loss can help you restore your self-esteem.
How you view your physical self is just as important as how you view your inner self. In fact, taking pride in your appearance is directly linked to a higher self-esteem. It is important to note that your self-worth should never be linked to your appearance, but taking the time to work on your physical pride has heaps of benefits.
For example, If you are suffering from PTSD, temporary hair loss in men and women is a common problem, but there are hair growth solutions available to help with that. Some other ways you can improve your self confidence is to make time for self-care, even if it's just ten minutes per day. Do something nice for yourself, maybe that is a nice bath, reading your favorite book, going for a run, or hiking. All of these things can go a long way toward self-healing and restoring confidence.
At the end of the day, rebuilding your self-confidence takes work but is worth the effort. It may be easy to write all this on paper, but when it comes down to it, overcoming various problems associated with PTSD is a long journey. It is not uncommon for PTSD issues to linger, if this is the case it can be best to seek out professional help.
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