Can the Emotion Code Help with Low Self-Esteem?

Juanita Ecker

Do you like yourself? I know this may be a loaded question, but I believe it’s an important one that many of us don’t really ask ourselves.

The Golden Rule is the principle of treating others as one wants to be treated. But sometimes we forget to treat ourselves with the same compassion that we give others. Even in religious teachings, we’re told to “love your neighbor as yourself”. For some of us, if we treated our neighbors as harshly as we treat ourselves — being heavily critical, constantly doubting their capabilities and decisions, dismissing their best qualities and strengths, etc. — getting along in the world would be quite difficult.

So how do you get to the point of not really loving who you are?

Maybe instead of being cherished for your unique gifts, you were put down and made fun of. Maybe you were constantly told you were too sensitive or “emotional”. Maybe you wanted to spend your time doing what you loved, like painting or doing art but your parents thought it was a waste of time. 

Situations like this can create low self-esteem. By definition, self-esteem is “the degree to which the qualities and characteristics contained in one’s self-concept are perceived to be positive. It reflects a person’s physical self-image, view of his or her accomplishments and capabilities, values, and perceived success in living up to them, as well as the ways in which others view and respond to that person. The more positive the cumulative perception of these qualities and characteristics, the higher one’s self-esteem. A reasonably high degree of self-esteem is considered an important ingredient of mental health…” (APA, 2022). So, you can understand how low self-esteem is an obstacle to overcome.

As situations like the ones mentioned above occur during child development, an inner message gets created that deep down there is something wrong with who we are. We learn not to like or even love ourselves because we can feel so different from everyone else, struggling to fit in. These childhood messages then get carried into adulthood.

Real life effects of low self-esteem

It’s important to note that low self-esteem can also lead to other issues. For example, sometimes people go into a career path because it is what their parents wanted for them rather than pursuing what they wanted to do with their life. Personally, I have a friend, Helga, who grew up in Germany. She was very smart in school, loved numbers, and wanted to go to college to study accounting. Her parents told her she needed to go to trade school for sewing to become a seamstress…so, that’s exactly what she did. She begged them to let her go to college, but they were firm on their decision. It wasn’t until years later when she was married, that Helga was able to go to college to fulfill her desire of working with numbers.

I always get so encouraged after hearing Helga’s story because no matter where we are in life, we can always take that first step to begin our happier, healthier life journey. So many others who have dealt with low self-esteem have also experienced great shifts in their lives using the Emotion Code. The Emotion Code can be used to release those old, heavily rooted, beliefs that impact our overall self-esteem. If you would like to eliminate the belief that: 

  • You are not good enough 
  • You can’t move forward because you are afraid to make a mistake
  • You will never succeed at what you really want to do

Let’s talk! Contact me today for a free 20-minute strategy session.