self esteem

How does spirituality help low self-esteem

Low self esteem  can feel like rot. A canker eating away at the soul. Not surprising really as lack of confidence is interconnected with our sense of purpose, sense of identity and of course our self-esteem.

At this point in time, more than ever, a surprising amount of people suffer with low self esteem, low self confidence and low sense of self worth.  As a coach over the years I have been amazed how many times I have heard people say they are “not good enough”. It is the root of so many dihabilitating, pressure inducing problems such as perfectionism, imposter syndrome and anxiety. 

And I am guessing if you are reading this you know this feeling maybe a little too well. I know I do because I used to, in my early 20s, have cripplingly low self-esteem. 

Yet here I am 23 years later with, if not overflowing self esteem, a quietly confidence sense of self, of who I am and what I am, how I work. And I have to say these days I rather like myself ! 

But how did I go from there to here? 

Well for me it was choosing to become a spiritual person that has been the root of my transformation from self-loathing to self acceptance, pride and love. 

(Now let me put a little disclaimer in here. Just as an FYI I support anyone and everyone to choose their path in life so I won’t be pushing any one type of spiritual belief in this post)

Confidence is defined as a feeling or belief that one can have faith in or rely on someone or something. Esteem is linked to respect, assigining value to something or someone. 

That is where, for me at least spirituality is a natural self-esteem and confidence booster. 

Think about it. 

At its roots  in contemporary Western culture today our identity or the ‘self’ is a a self-led reflective project,  rather than  being formed through location within a particular community or traditions as it was back in the day. 

Today we have the luxery of self awareness, personal choice. Society is no longer as rigid as it was in the past. Which is fantastic in many ways. One of the down sides is that we have lost our certainty in our identity. In essence because of all the options we don’t neccisarily have something we can rely on. Leading us down of path of identity crisis, self questioning, self blame and dissaproving of our selves. Basically we have lost the north star and we can’t figure out how the compass works. 

Spirituality, especially in the modern sense, is primarily focused upon self awareness. Which means being a spiritual person can contribute to skills of thinking and decision making which enhances the development of confidence in beliefs about life and world. It gives us something to rely on, believe in, something we value. Not to mention a moral or ethical code to follow. It is part of our identity and a connection to something much larger than ourselves. 

Modern spirituality under, or not under; whatever dogma,  is the often based in self-acceptance. Of understanding your part and journey in life.  In the rightness of finding oneself in the very middle of the life process, even in all its chaos and complexity. 

Spirituality gives people something they can rely upon

Spirituality forms part of identity 

Spirituality shapes our values

Spirituality gives a north star to navigating life’s journey

Spirituality in my experience, boosts confidence and self esteem. 

For me my spiritual path is very much about being self aware, of how I connect and grow with the worls and seasons around me. To understanding and honouring my humanity, the gift of life.  And that is how it has helped me to value myself, understand myself, live a life where I value so much and live a life aligned to my values. Higher self-esteem and confidence has simply been a byproduct of following, well in my case creating a spiritual path and living a spiritual life.

 

Now as I said before I am would never say you should do this with your life, you should believe this or that. Every human should be free to make a choice as we are lucky enough to live in a time where that is possible. 

What I will say is that if you are someone who is drawn to a spiritual path and suffer with low self-esteem, low self-confidence, then rooting yourself in your beliefs, using them to raise your self awareness and understanding, can and will become the natural north star that will help to boost your confidence.

How has your spiritual path boosted your confidence? 

Let me know in the comments 


Walk in the footsteps of your ancestors & align your spirituality with nature

Our Celtic and Nordic ancestors were deeply  connected with nature. Shamanically, spiritually & personally. Discover how you can create your own spiritual path connected with nature with the Wheel of the Year.


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By disovering nature you discover yourself

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