I hate myself is it normal

Self-compassion is different from self-love. It means accepting your negative thoughts, mistakes, and failures, and understanding them as messy human moments. The next time you find yourself spiraling down the self-hatred rabbit hole, try to cut yourself some slack. Remind yourself that everyone makes mistakes. But studies have shown that, much like reframing or meditation, self-compassion is a trainable skill.

Everyone has been where you are at one point or another, and most need a little help to get through. Start by asking yourself a few basic questions:.

Next, start making a list of therapists in your area. If you live in the U. Concerned about the cost? Our guide to affordable therapy can help. Here are five…. Self-care is more than what some have commercialized it to be. But why are we still feeling like self-care is selfish? Adding these 10 simple self-care strategies to your daily routine can be effective for managing depression. Burnout is a state of mental and physical exhaustion that can zap the joy out of your career, friendships, and family interactions.

An introvert is often thought of as a quiet, reserved, and thoughtful individual. Ask yourself questions about whether your thoughts are realistic, or whether you are engaging in thought distortions.

Try standing up to your inner bully by countering that inner voice with arguments to the contrary. If you find it hard to build up a strong voice on your own, imagine yourself taking on the role of a stronger person you know—such as a friend, famous person, or superhero—and talking back to the critical voice in your head.

Instead of hating yourself, practice showing yourself compassion. This means looking at situations in a different light, seeing the good things that you have accomplished, and ending black-or-white thinking. What would you say to a friend or loved one who was having similar thoughts about themselves? Was that one bad thing that happened really the end of the world? Could you reframe the situation to see it as a setback instead of a catastrophe? Research shows that compassion-focused therapy can improve self-esteem, which could be helpful to reduce self-hatred.

Instead of hanging out with people who make you feel bad, start hanging out with people who make you feel good. If you find it hard to slow down and detach yourself from your negative thinking, try starting a regular meditation practice.

Engaging in meditation is a way to shut off the negative voice in your head. If you are struggling with your mental health, you might benefit from seeing a therapist. Instead of engaging in self-destructive behaviors, engage in self-care. This approach means taking care of your physical and mental health by doing all the things that will keep you feeling good.

Eat healthy food, get regular exercise, get enough sleep, reduce social media and screen time, spend time in nature, and talk kindly to yourself, to name a few examples. The antidote to feeling bad all the time might be to start taking small steps toward what you want in life. That might mean finding a new career path, traveling, getting out of debt, ending a relationship, starting a family, or moving far away.

Determine your values and then start acting in accordance with them. Once you start to align with your values, it will be easier to feel confident in yourself. The truth is that many people feel the same way that you do, and there are ways to get past it. If you are diagnosed with a mental disorder, this could be the starting point to finally making positive changes in your life.

On the other hand, if you don't have a diagnosable disorder, or if you have already seen a mental health professional and are receiving treatment, then your best course of action is to follow through with your treatment plan and consider trying some of the above-mentioned set of coping strategies to manage your negative thinking.

If this feels hard, you might benefit from an accountability partner or someone else who will check in with you regularly to make sure that you are keeping up with your positive habits. While it might feel hard to confide in someone that you need help, you also might be surprised at how willing others will be to help when you ask.

Learn the best ways to manage stress and negativity in your life. Mental Health America. I hate myself. Recall of threat and submissiveness in childhood and psychopathology: The mediator effect of self-criticism. J Child Fam Stud. The role of self-blaming moral emotions in major depression and their impact on social-economical decision making. Front Psychol. Effectiveness of expressive writing in the reduction of psychological distress during the COVID pandemic: A randomized controlled trial.

Thomason S, Moghaddam N. This might mean taking constructive criticism harshly or twisting what others say into insults. You compare yourself to everyone. While everyone compares themselves to others to some degree, you do so excessively. You avoid discussing your feelings with your loved ones. You put others down.

You also surround yourself with these less-threatening individuals, out of lack of confidence. You put yourself down.

It just might take these individuals, and ones of the like, little steps to achieve a greater sense of self-love, such as the following: Begin each day with positive thinking. Look in the mirror and say something you love about yourself. And look forward to the day ahead, determined to make it a good one.

Take care of your mind and body. This means nourishing yourself with healthy, feel-good foods and making time to exercise. Separate reality from your inner critic. Surround yourself with loving, supportive people. They will encourage you and help you realize how awesome you really are. Stop comparing yourself to others. We all have different traits, quirks, and talents that make us who we are. So stop wishing you had her hair or her body and appreciate your uniqueness.

Explore the latest mental wellness tips and discussions, delivered straight to your inbox. Email Address. Zendya on November 10, at am. You may be feeling like everyone else is better than you, or that people hate you. This may be due to something that happened recently or something that someone said to you; or it may just be a feeling inside that started for no reason. Whatever the cause, the emotional consequences of not liking yourself can be devastating.

This can damage your self-esteem, especially if it is from a parent or caregiver who is supposed to love you. This does not mean your parents are the cause of all your problems, but these internalized messages can continue to cause you inner turmoil for the rest of your life, if you let it. Of course, nobody had the perfect childhood and not everyone ends up hating themselves as an adult. There are online counselors you can talk to who know exactly how to help you.

They have been trained in these issues, and can help and guide you to manage your self-loathing. Also, there are many ways you can help yourself, such as talking about it, writing your feelings down, finding activities that make you happy, or even utilizing exercise or meditation.

Writing down your feelings always seems to help, even when you do not believe that it will. Try to find a good reason for your negative self-image, and write it down. In fact, write down as many reasons as you can think of. It may not be as easy as you think it will be, even if you constantly say to yourself, "I hate myself".

And when you read what you wrote, you may just realize that these reasons are wrong. It always helps to get your feelings out; and seeing them written in black and white makes a big difference.

There are also physical things you can do to make yourself feel better such as working out, going for a walk, relaxation techniques, or just taking a bath with some nice scented candles or incense.

These may seem silly but just taking the time to do something for yourself can make a big difference for your self-concept. Talking to someone seems to help no matter who the other person is.

Some people have trouble talking to friends about their personal feelings, especially thoughts like "I hate myself", so talking to a counselor or therapist online is a good choice.

Also, there are chat rooms and support groups for every issue, including self-loathing. Many people do not realize that negative thinking is one of the biggest creators and perpetuators of poor self-esteem. Do you disqualify positives and maximize negatives about yourself?

Do you make unfavorable comparisons between yourself and others? Do you have rigid expectations of yourself? If so, you are likely sending a lot of messages to yourself that are resulting in your self-esteem continuing to get worse.